In addition, straights are much more valuable in Short-Deck Poker.

This makes it harder to play weak hands like gutshots and overcards, since they become much less likely to hit. For example, a flush draw that needs an 8 would have six outs in a standard deck, but only four outs in a short deck. All flushes and straight draws become much stronger because there are fewer cards in the deck to complete these hands. The main difference between Short-Deck Poker and regular Texas Hold’em is the structure of the hands. Because of this, in some variations, some of the rankings of hands are changed. In Short Deck, the probability of certain hands appearing slightly changes as there are fewer cards in the deck and more picture cards. The deck is a standard one, minus the 2s, 3s, 4s, and 5s. The main differences are the size of the deck, 36 cards instead of 52, the way the river is played (in some variations), and the hand-ranking order (in some variations). Short-Deck Texas Hold’em is almost identical to Texas Hold’em. The basis of poker is a game between two or more players trying to accumulate the best hand based on a predefined hand-ranking system. Short-Deck Texas Hold’em is just one variation of several games under the poker umbrella. Short-Deck Texas Hold’em allows players to assemble their best hand by selecting any combination of five cards from the face-up cards on the table, plus two, one (or none) of their own two-hole cards, just like in standard Texas Hold’em.ĭifference between Short-Deck Texas Hold’em and other poker games Therefore, all players in the game can make use of seven cards (2 hole cards + 3 + 1 + 1) to create their optimal five-card hand. Then the dealer spreads out five more community cards face upwards – first three, then one, then one more.

The game is played with five community cards just like in Texas Hold’em and follows the same process after the cards have been dealt, with four betting rounds in total.Īll players are initially dealt two private cards (hole cards) that no one else is allowed to see. In Short-Deck Texas Hold’em, all the 2, 3, 4, and 5 cards are removed from the deck, making 6 the lowest card. It mostly follows the same rules as Texas Hold’em, but Short Deck is played with a 36-card deck rather than with a 52-card deck. Short-Deck Texas Hold’em poker is a simple variation of Texas Hold’em with a few changes that make it both faster-paced and full of high hands. First, we’ll dive into the most popular version, Short-Deck Texas Hold ‘Em. In this guide, we’ll look at Short-Deck Poker, what it means to play with a short deck, and the different Short-Deck Poker variations, rules and tips.

Straight hand in short deck