How to Play 2-7 Triple Draw

The rules in six ideas

If you know Razz, read this page carefully, because two of its rules are exactly inverted. Everything else you learned about playing low hands still holds.

1. Lowest hand wins — but not the way Razz means it. Same instinct, different scoring. Two rules change, and they change everything.

2. Aces are always high. In Razz the ace is the best card in the deck. Here it's the worst one. There is no version of this game where an ace helps you.

3. Straights and flushes count against you. Razz ignores them entirely. Here they are real hands, and a real hand is a disaster — you are trying to have nothing.

4. So the best hand is 7-5-4-3-2. It skips the six on purpose: 7-6-5-4-3 would be a straight, and a straight is a losing hand. The five cards must also not share a suit.

5. Five cards, three draws. You are dealt five, and after each betting round you may throw away as many as you like and take new ones. Three times. Taking none is standing pat.

6. Pairs are still poison. The one thing Razz got you ready for. Two of a rank means one card is doing nothing, in a game where all five have to work.

Try it — one real decision

How the betting works

Blinds, not antes — there is no bring-in and no door card, because nothing is face-up. Four betting rounds: one on the deal, then one after each of the three draws. Played fixed limit, so bets come in two sizes with raises capped.

Frequently asked questions

Terms to know