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Lesson: 3
Just A Few Things When Playing Razz
Jennifer Harman
March 28, 2005
The rules:
For those of you who aren't familiar with Razz, it is a game played
like 7-card stud. The twist is that in Razz, the worst hand wins.
Straights and flushes don't count for anything, but pairs are bad.
Aces are always low cards. A five-high (or wheel -- remember that
straights don't count against you) is the worst -- or I should say
the best -- possible hand for this game. A-2-3-4-5.
Starting hands:
When playing this game, it's important that you start with 3 little
cards. You shouldn't play with any card bigger than an eight in
your hand. But there are two exceptions to this rule.
1. You have a nine showing when the hand is dealt, everyone else's
up card is bigger than a nine, and you have two low cards in the
hole. In this case, you have the best starting hand.
2. You are in steal position with a baby showing, and the remaining
player (or even the remaining two players) has a big card showing.
You can often raise in this spot to steal the antes regardless of
what your hole cards are. If somearticle calls, you hope that their
next card (fourth street) is a big card and yours is a baby. If
your opponent catches a baby and you catch big, you should let it
go. There's no point in continuing with the bluff.
Tracking cards:
Are your cards dead? This is another important thing to know when
playing Razz. What do I mean by 'dead card'? A dead card is a card
that is no longer in the deck. You know this because you have seen
it in someone else's hand. Keeping track of the dead cards allows
you to know how many of the remaining cards can hurt you, and how
many will improve your hand. For example: your first three cards
are 2-5-8. There are seven other players in the game, and their
upcards are: 2, 5, 8, 8, 2, 7, J. Remember that pairs are bad in
Razz. Fortunately, many of the cards that will pair you are in other
players' hands, or 'dead'. Now suppose your opponent is holding
7-3-A. He needs a lot of the cards that are on the board (dead)
to make his hand. The cards you need to make your hand are still
available. In this situation, you are a little more than a 56% favorite.
By tracking cards, you can more accurately make decisions based
on your real equity at any given time.
Jennifer Harman
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