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Lowball Poker

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lowballIf you’ve mastered basic draw poker and the standard high hand rankings that govern the outcomes then why not try Lowball. This is a variant of poker in which normal hand rankings are reversed and it comprises a number of variants including California Lowball (ace to five), Kansas City Lowball (two to seven) and Ace To Six.

Essentially a lower hand will beat a higher hand but of course different variants of the game have slightly different hand rankings as we shall explain below.

Ace To Five

This is by far the most common variant and as the name suggests, the strongest hand is A, 2, 3, 4, 5. The following rules apply:

  • A hand with no pair always beats a hand with a pair.
  • One pair always beats two pairs and so on.
  • Hands with no pairs are compared according to the highest card; the highest card loses. If there’s a tie the low ‘kicker’ (lowest card) is compared.
  • Aces are low and straights/flushes are ignored.

Ace To Six

  • A hand with no pair always beats a hand with a pair.
  • One pair always beats two pairs and so on.
  • Hands with no pairs are compared according to the highest card; the highest card loses. If there’s a tie the low ‘kicker’ (lowest card) is compared.
  • Aces are low and straights/flushes do count which means that A, 2, 3, 4, 5 would lose, being a straight. Therefore the strongest hand is A, 2, 3, 4, 6.

Two To Seven Triple Draw (Deuce To Seven)

  • A hand with no pair always beats a hand with a pair.
  • One pair always beats two pairs and so on.
  • Hands with no pairs are compared according to the highest card; the highest card loses. If there’s a tie the low ‘kicker’ (lowest card) is compared.
  • Straights/flushes do count which means that A, 2, 3, 4, 5 would lose, being a straight. Aces are high, and therefore the strongest hand is 2, 3, 4, 5, 7.

Click the link at the top of the page to view all hand rankings.