The Basics of Razz - Seal

Razz is seven card stud played only for the low hand with straights and flushes null and void, meaning they do not make your hand high – only the card ranks count. The best possible hand in razz is 5432A. This hand is the same if they are different suits or if they are all the same suit. The second best hand in razz is 6432A. When evaluating hands, the easiest way to look at it is to put the highest card first, then next highest down to lowest. So a 6543A beats a 7432A because the six is lower than the seven, and a 7542A beats a 7632A because the 75 is lower than the 76. For a more complete hand ranking, see the list of the top 22 hands at the end of this article.

Since razz is a variation of seven card stud, much of the play and strategy is the same. Everyone at the table puts in a small ante before cards are dealt. You start with two down cards and one up card, also called a "door" card. The player with the worst door card, in razz that means the highest rank, makes the bring in bet which is usually less than half of one small bet. This player has the option of making a full small bet instead of the small bring in. Aces are always low in razz so a king is the highest rank card, and although suits do not count for flushes, in the case of a tie for highest ranking door card, suits determine the bring in by the usual order; clubs are lowest, diamonds, hearts, and then spades are always high.

Basic game play involves starting with three premium cards when you are sure to play a hand out. If you are just trying to steal the antes then as long as your door card is low, your other two cards are of no consequence. I will write more on this in both this article and the next one, as stealing the antes is an important part of any stud game. For now lets focus on what constitutes "premium" cards in razz.

Aces are the big dogs of razz. In a game where the low hand wins, ones are boss, and aces always count as just low, or one. Next, of course are twos, then threes, fours and fives in that order. Nothing unusual so far – the game is played for low and the lowest rank cards are the best to hold. There is a big difference between cards ranked A through 5 and all others in razz though. Sixes are still good cards as well, and sevens a bit less so, but after eights it goes downhill very fast.

Unlike high-low split games, where in order to qualify for the low hand you must hold five cards ranked 8 and under, all cards do play in razz. In fact, one of the biggest pots I've ever won in razz was when I had a 9752A and my lone opponent ended up with a T432A. So, although a starting hand like 82A is playable in razz, it is not a premium holding. In general, any three cards ranked 5 and lower and any 6 high hand containing an ace are premium three card starters. Of course, 32A owns.

If you are playing razz as opposed to HORSE, then the players tend to be better versed in the game. In a game with good players it is very important to steal the antes and bring ins whenever possible. Since the high card brings it in, the player who brings it in rarely has a quality hand. Any premium door card, especially an ace, is scary for a good player, so this is the first criteria for stealing. The second is your position in the betting order. The best spot to be in is directly to the bring in's right. This spot enables you to act last and if it is folded around to you then you only have to scare the bring in out of the pot. One final criteria is the other players' door cards. Even if you are out of position, if all the players yet to act have big cards up, you can still try to steal.

If, on the other hand, you are playing the razz portion of a HORSE game, there may be more players at the table who are not familiar with the game of razz. Unsophisticated players are very hard to bet out of the hand. Some players will even call with a king up if they have no other paint in hand. Also, many times I have seen players in a HORSE game who think they are playing stud high or stud8 when the game is razz. In these kind of situations it is best to only attempt to steal if you at least think you may be ahead. In fact, I think of this more as loosening up my starting hand requirements a bit than stealing.

As with other stud games you need to pay attention to all the upcards any time you plan on playing a hand. The best stud players can tell you every card that was up and folded in every hand they play. Most important of these cards are cards that would pair one in your hand and those cards under eight that would have helped your hand. This concept is so important to the odds that players who do this same thing in blackjack are sometimes banned from playing in casinos. If all four fives are showing and you hold A234, there is no chance at all of you making a wheel.

One final basic concept to keep in mind is the power of the board. Unlike holdem where everyone shares all the upcards, stud upcards are unique to each player. This means that you can catch a low card while your opponent catches a high card or vice versa. Starting with the best hand, A23, is terrific, but if you catch all paint from then on you still end up with garbage. On the other hand, even if your down cards are a pair of kings, if your board ends up A234, you can scare out even a decent low sometimes. The best stud players do take the boards into account, but are not as afraid of them as novices are.

In my video series I will cover play after the initial three cards as well as some advanced plays and concepts and how to counter them. The following table lists the best hands in order for the game of razz. Notice that there is only one way to make a 5 low, or the best possible hand (also called a wheel or bicycle), while there are five ways to make a 6 low.