Poker Variations Badugi

In poker there are three main game variations; Flop games (i.e. Texas hold’em and Omaha) Stud games (i.e. Seven-card stud, Razz) Draw games (i.e. Five card draw, 2-to-7 Triple Draw). Badugi poker rules History of Badugi. The history of this game is unknown, with Canadian and Korean players claiming that they created the game. One thing they both agree on is when the game was created, according to them the game began life in the 1980s and has since developed and grown from there. Badugi is the poker variation much different from the likes of Texas Hold’em and Omaha, thus requiring you to really think outside the box Badugi, also known as Padooki among other names (Korean for “spotted dog”), is a very unique variant of lowball poker. Aug 24, 2020 Badugi is a draw game gaining popularity in the poker world these days and for good reason - it's a very fun, action-packed poker game. Although it shares many aspects of its structure with other draw games, such as 2-7 Triple-Draw Lowball, Badugi uses an entirely distinct system for evaluating the winning hand.

1. Poker Variations Rules
2. Poker Variations Badugi Strategy
3. Poker Variations Games

Rules & Strategy for Badugi & Badeucy Poker

Badugi is a draw game gaining popularity in the poker world these days and for good reason - it's a very fun, action-packed poker game.

Although it shares many aspects of its structure with other draw games, such as 2-7 Triple-Draw Lowball, Badugi uses an entirely distinct system for evaluating the winning hand.

A hand in Badugi is aptly named 'a Badugi.'

What is Badugi?

The origin of the card game Badugi is somewhat undetermined although many people have noted the similarity to the South Korean word 'baduk,' which means 'black and white pattern' - similar to what you might find in the game Go.

In North America it was reportedly played as 'Offsuit Lowball' in the 1980s in Winnipeg and a comparable high-low game was played in Toronto.

Poker Variations Rules

In Vegas some say it originated with poker pro Paul 'Eskimo' Clark, who reportedly brought the game back with him from his military service in Vietnam. These reports are unconfirmed, though.

How to Play Badugi

1. Badugi is a 'blind game,' meaning the player to the left of the dealer puts in the small blind and the player to the left of the small blind puts in the big blind.
2. Starting with the player on the left of the dealer and moving clockwise around the table, every player is dealt four cards facedown, one card at a time.
3. Once all players have their four cards the first betting round starts with the player to the left of the big blind.
4. Once the betting round has completed the players enter the first drawing round.
5. Starting with the player on the dealer's left the player announces how many cards he would like to throw away from his hand and receives new ones in return.
6. The dealer deals all of the cards to that player at once and moves on to the next player.
7. A player can choose to throw away no cards, keeping their hand intact. This is known as standing pat or rapping pat.
8. Once all players have received their new cards the second betting round begins, starting with the player to the left of the dealer.
9. This pattern repeats until either:
   • Only one player is left, the rest having folded.
   • The players have completed the betting round after the third drawing round.

If you'd like more information on things such as betting rounds or blinds, head to this article:

Badugi Hand Rankings

Once all betting is complete the best Badugi wins the pot.

1. A Badugi must be made up of the lowest one to four cards from a player's hand.
2. Hands are counted from the highest card down; the value of the hand is based on how low the highest cards in the hand are.
3. Aces are low.
4. All cards used must be of different suits and ranks.
5. Any four-card Badugi beats any three-card Badugi.
6. A two-card Badugi is beaten by any three- or four-card Badugi.

How to Read Badugi Hands

• A♥2♣3♦4♠ - This is the best possible Badugi, known as a 'four-card 4.'
• A♥2♣3♦3♣ - Since you cannot have a pair this hand can't use the second three, making the hand a 'three-card 3.' This hand would lose to any four-card Badugi.
• 2♣3♣7♥9♠ - This is a three-card 9. Since the 3♠ is of the same suit as the 2♣, the higher of the two cards cannot be used.
• A♥2♣3♦10♠ versus 4♥6♦7♣9♠. The second hand wins with a four-card 9 beating the four-card 10.

Any two players holding the same hand split the pot. Once the player with the winning hand has received the pot, the player who was to the left of the dealer becomes the new dealer for the next hand.

Play Badugi online, free

The best way to get a proper handle on how to play Badugi poker (and how to play it well) is to play some actual Badgui hands, either live or online.

The best way we've found to get some free Badugi poker in is on PokerStars, where you can create an account and access the play-money games. You can play free Badugi poker online until your heart's content; then, when you're ready to try it out for real-money you can easily add a deposit to your account.

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How to Play Badeucy Poker

Two poker games that have exploded in popularity over the last couple of years are Badugi (as explained above) and 2-7 Triple Draw Lowball. Both are draw poker variants and tend to produce a lot of action.

Somewhere along the line someone also decided to make a split pot game by combining the two games. Badeucy was born.

Aces Are Bad

As a quick refresher: In 2-7 Triple Draw Lowball you're looking to make the lowest five-card hand. Straights and flushes hurt your hand and an ace is always high.

In Badugi you're looking for a four-card hand with one of each suit. This is called a Badugi. If more than one player has a Badugi, the lowest hand wins.

Normally the lowest Badugi is A-2-3-4. However, in Badeucy, aces are also high for the Badugi hand. This makes the best Badugi hand 2-3-4-5.Most Badeucy games run six-handed.

In Badeucy the goal is to scoop the full pot by taking half with the best 2-7 hand and the other half with the best Badugi.

Playing Badeucy

Most Badeucy games are played six-handed and fixed-limit betting is generally used. A button will determine the dealer position and the two players to the left of the dealer post the small and big blinds.

Once blinds are posted each player is dealt five cards. After a round of betting the remaining players may exchange cards or stand pat.

Players can exchange up to five cards, but this is not typical.

There are three draws in Badeucy with a round of betting after each round. Betting on the deal and after the first draw is in the small bet amount, or the size of the big blind.

Betting on the second and third draw is done in the big bet amount, typically double the big blind. After the third draw and final round of betting the remaining players go to showdown.

The player with the best 2-7 lowball hand wins half the pot and the player with the best Badugi hand wins the other half. In the event the same player wins both hands, he or she scoops the pot.Play Badeucy Now!

Basic Badeucy Strategy Tips

Like most split-pot games you want to focus on starting hands that give you the best possibility to scoop.

First, stay away from higher Badugis when possible. Since everyone is getting five cards instead of four the odds of improving to a lower Badugi increases.

For starting hands try and focus on playing hands requiring just two cards to complete a hand. Preferably you want at least three suits to start with. That way you have three draws to your Badugi and you can focus on your 2-7 hand.

Pump Your One-Way Hands

Unlike Stud 8 or Omaha 8 this is one game where you want to pump your one-way hands.

Let's say you get dealt 2s-3s-4s-5h-7d. You have the nut 2-7 hand but no badugi. In this case, don't worry about the other half and try and pump the pot.

Odds are that you will have multi-way action to the end and win half of a nice pot. Yes, there is a chance you could get quartered by someone else hitting the same 2-7 hand.

However the odds of that happening are not the same as in Omaha Hi-Lo. If there is a lot of action in a pot after the first draw and you have to draw more than one card it might be time to abandon the hand.

Unless your game is very loose a lot of action after the draw is usually being driven by one or more players with at least half a made hand. These players are freerolling and pumping the pot. You're drawing and should wait for a better spot.

More Poker Games:

In poker there are three main game variations;

• Flop games (i.e. Texas hold’em and Omaha)
• Stud games (i.e. Seven-card stud, Razz)
• Draw games (i.e. Five card draw, 2-to-7 Triple Draw)

Poker Variations Badugi Strategy

Badugi is a draw game similar to triple draw. The hand values are similar to lowball poker, whereby players strive to obtain the lowest ranking hand. However, Badugi is a unique game. Players receive four cards and the objective is to create a hand of four distinct ranks and suits.

Badugi Hand Rankings

The hand rankings in Badugi are different to those of traditional poker games. As mentioned, in Badugi each player receives four cards and the objective is to create a hand of unique ranks and suits. Any cards in your hand of a matching suit or rank are discounted. This means there are four types of Badugi hands, and they are as follows (from best to worst):

Badugi

A badgui hand is four cards that are all different suits and different ranks. Aces are low cards in Badugi and the objective is to create a low hand. Therefore our example is the best possible Badugi.

Here are more examples (ranked from best to worst):

Each of these hands contain four cards of different suits and ranks. When two or more players have a badugi, the best hand is determined by the highest card in each hand. If there is a tie for the highest card, the second highest card is compared, and so on. Suits are of equal value in Badugi, so if players share the same Badugi hand then the pot will be split.

Three Card Hand

When a hand contains identical ranks or suits, they are not counted. In our example you can see there are two 3’s, so one of these is discounted, leaving only three unique cards of a different rank and suit. Our example is a 3-2-A hand, the lowest possible three card Badugi hand.

Here are more examples (ranked from best to worst):

• (4-2-A)
• (9-8-6)
• (J-8-4)

Two Card Hand

This is a two card hand because there are only two cards that are unique in suit and rank. Of the three diamonds in this hand, the and would be discounted, meaning the hand is – which is the lowest possible two card hand.

Here are more examples (ranked from best to worst):

• (3-2)
• (8-4)
• (K-T)

One Card Hand

Lastly, there are the one card hands.

In this hand only one card counts. Four Kings is the worst possible hand in Badugi, because a King is the highest ranked individual card (remember, Aces are low). This would be a great hand in Texas Hold’em, not so good in Omaha, but truly terrible in Badugi.

Here are more examples (ranked from best to worst):

• (2)
• (3)
• (7)

As you can see, each of these examples have four cards of either the same suit or rank. Therefore only one card counts, which would be the lowest ranked card. In the event of two players sharing a one card hand, the lower the rank the better.

Poker Variations Games

Of course a badugi always beats a three card hand, and a three card hand always beats a two card hand, and so on. The rankings are actually very simple to learn and it’s hoped you understand these explanations

Badugi Hand Ranking Quiz

Which of the following hands is the best?

Hand A is a three card hand (5-4-3) because the King and three are both diamonds. Hand B is a badugi hand (King-high) because all four cards are of a different suit and rank. This means hand B is our winner.

Badugi Rules

Badugi is played as follows:

• A full Badugi table seats a maximum of 6 players
• Badugi is played using a fixed-limit betting structure
• Blinds are used like in Texas hold’em and Omaha
• Each player receives four face down cards to begin

The game starts with a round of betting, after which the first draw takes place. The first active player to the left of the dealer button can choose to draw cards to improve their hand. The player can also choose to “stand pat” and keep the hand as it is. Each player is in turn afforded the same opportunity of drawing cards.

In total there are three drawing rounds and four betting rounds (one before the initial draw). Badugi is played as a fixed-limit game so the opening two betting rounds use small bets, and the betting doubles for the third and fourth betting round. If there are players remaining after the final betting round then it will go to a showdown, with the winner taking down the pot.

Badugi shares many strategic similarities with other forms of draw poker, so these concepts also work well in Badugi. Use knowledge of your opponents and the hands they like to put money in the pot with, along with observing their betting and drawing habits, and of course poker fundamentals such as position, and you should do well in this fun and exciting game.

By Tim Ryerson

Tim is from London, England and has been playing poker since the late 1990’s. He is the ‘Editor-in-Chief’ at Pokerology.com and is responsible for all the content on the website.