In Badugi, the goal is to have the lowest four-card hand. It’s a triple draw lowball game, so when the cards are dealt, each player gets three chances to discard cards and draw new ones to improve their hand.
Badugi Rules
Badugi is a triple draw game. Similar to lowball poker, players aim for the lowest rating hand. But Badugi is a special game. The goal is to build a hand of four separate ranks and suits.
Badugi Ranks
Badugi’s hand rankings differ from standard poker’s. In Badugi, each player gets four cards, and the goal is to build a hand of unique rankings and suits. Your hand’s matching suit or rank cards are discounted. There are four sorts of Badugi hands, from finest to worst:
Each hand has four cards of varying suits and ranks. It is determined by the highest card in each hand when two or more players have badugi. If the highest card is tied, the next highest card is compared, and so on. Because suits are equal in Badugi, the pot is shared if players have the same Badugi hand.
3 Card Hand
Identical rankings or suits in a hand are not counted. Given that there are two 3, one of them is disregarded, leaving three cards of a different rank and suit. In our case, it’s a 3-2-A, the lowest three-card Badugi hand.
Hand of 2
Because just two cards are unique in suit and rank, this is a two-card hand. The 4d and 3d diamonds in this hand are discounted, making the hand 2dac, the lowest possible two-card hand.
Hand of One
Finally, one-card hands.
Only one card counts here. In Badugi, a King is the highest-ranking individual card (remember, Aces are low). Good in Texas Hold'em, bad in Omaha, and dreadful in Badugi.
As you can see, each sample includes four identical cards. So just the lowest-ranked card counts. The lower the rank, the better for two players sharing a one-card hand.
Of course, a badugi always beats a three-card hand, and so on. The rankings are straightforward to learn and we hope you grasp the reasons.
Badugi Rules
How to play Badugi:
- A full Badugi table seats 6 people.
- Badugi uses a fixed-limit betting system.
- Texas hold'em and Omaha use blinds.
- To begin, each player is dealt four cards.
The game begins with a betting round, followed by the first draw. If there are no more active players left, the dealer button can be clicked. The player can alternatively “stand pat” and keep the current hand. Each player gets the equal chance to draw cards.
Three drawing rounds and four betting rounds (one before the initial draw). Badugi is a fixed-limit game, therefore the first two rounds utilize modest bets, and the third and fourth rounds use doubles. If there are still players left after the final betting round, the pot will be shown down.
Because Badugi is a sort of draw poker, these strategies work well in Badugi. Use your understanding of your opponents' betting and drawing routines, as well as poker fundamentals like position, to your advantage.