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Seven Card Stud – Strategies and Concepts

In this lesson we’re going to talk about some of the key strategic concepts in seven card stud. These strategic concepts are aimed at making you a winning player, so read carefully!

Remembering Exposed Cards

As mentioned earlier, one of the key differences between board games such as hold’em or Omaha and stud is the necessity of remembering exposed and mucked cards. Now is the time to repeat the adage of hold’em being a game of high cards while stud is a game of live cards. The focus required to keep track of these cards, which is essential if you plan to succeed, can be draining. Good stud players that maintain this essential focus normally play shorter sessions than their hold’em counterparts for this very reason. Well, the good news is that this critical aspect of the game needn’t be as daunting as it would seem.

First, remember as you look around the table and see all those exposed cards, the only ones you need to remember are the ones which are folded. If a player is still involved in the hand his cards are there for you to refer to until he folds. Obviously you needn’t remember your own cards as they are there to refer to. I do recommend committing your hole cards to memory so you do not need to refer back to them which can help opponents figure out your holding. This is true in board games as well. Since players are required to fold in turn it helps you ready your mind to absorb the necessary information.

Let’s run through an example to see how “easy” this aspect of the game is to master. Imagine participating in an eight handed game in which four people fold on third street. You only need to remember those four cards. As they are folded, repeat them in your mind. Then I believe it is helpful to put them in order of rank. Let’s say a three, Jack, deuce and ten fold. I would then rearrange them in my mind as deuce, three, ten and Jack. This isn’t necessary but I believe it helps to keep them in order of rank but use whatever works for you. Don’t worry too much about suits unless you see more than three of the same suit leaving the game. This knowledge will help you read opponents’ hands as it isn’t likely anyone would be drawing to a flush in that suit.

Now on the next street, let’s say two more players fold two cards each. You just add them in sequence to the four already remembered cards for a total of eight cards. Now it is just you and a lone opponent so you won’t need to remember any additional cards as his cards will be right in front of you until he folds. In our example we needed to remember eight cards. Of course that will vary from hand to hand but, in any event, you shouldn’t need to memorize more than ten cards at most. When you approach this aspect of the game in an orderly fashion it doesn’t seem as daunting as its first impression. The reason so much time was spent on this element is that it is absolutely critical to success in seven card stud. If you don’t remember what cards have been mucked you could easily be drawing dead on occasion. Drawing dead is not the ideal way to add to your bankroll.

The Paired Door Card

If you’ve just paired your door card – that’s just fine. You would have at least a pair and maybe much more such as two pair, trips or even quads. However, if an opponent pairs his door card, sound the alarm and proceed with extreme caution. In fact if that opponent raises, you really need a strong holding to continue. Be especially concerned if an opponent pairs his door card on fourth street.

Continuing with a Draw

Three flushes on third street are almost always playable unless all your cards are low and two other players with high cards raise and re-raise or if three or more of your suit are already exposed. If you hit a fourth card of your suit on fourth street you will usually go all the way to the river.

Three straights should be approached in much the same way as three flushes. How high they are is important, as hitting another matching high card may well put you out ahead of the pack. As discussed in the first seven card stud lesson, look to see how many of your primary and secondary outs are live to help guide you on whether to continue. The previous statistical charts include key information on draws to be used in conjunction with the odds the pot is offering. Much of how to proceed includes reads on your opponents and a feel for the game that comes with experience.

Scare Cards

An important element of scare card strategy utilizes the “first in vigorish” concept covered in the hold’em section (see “Betting the Flop“). He who bets first many times is the winner. Let’s say your first three cards are three different suits with an 8s 9c in the hole and the Th as your door card. You raise with your three card straight and are called by two players. Now you catch the Ah on fourth street (a good scare card), bet out and are called by one opponent. Another heart on fifth street would really be a scare card with which you would bet again. If you are planning to call a bet if you check and your opponent bets, then it is almost always correct to initiate the bet. The reason this is so effective is that even if you don’t take the pot down right then, your bet may allow you to steal the pot on the next round with additional aggression.

Reading Hands

Reading hands is both an art as well as a science in seven card stud. It combines logic and intuition coupled with observational skills aimed at studying your opponents’ playing tendencies. That having been said, the key ingredient to honing your hand reading skills is experience – lots and lots of playing time. Here are several nuances of seven card stud that can help you sort out just what is happening around the poker table.

  • Even though the game format of three down cards and four board cards allows for “stealth” full houses and four of a kinds without a pair on board, remember neither of these hands can be lurking on fifth or sixth streets.
  • An opponent who makes a flush normally makes it in the suit of his door card.
  • An opponent who pairs his fourth street card is more likely to hold two pair than three of a kind.
  • If you observe a player on the river repeatedly looking at his hole cards and his board cards he is usually trying to put a straight together. Pairs and flushes are more obvious.
  • A raise from a door card Ace when another Ace is out normally indicates a pair of Aces. Why? Because with top pair and one of his outs already gone that player feels he must attempt to protect his hand.
  • If the pot is multi-way with several players, your opponents are much more likely to play straightforward than tricky. If a player bets into a large field on fifth street you can conclude he has a hand and play yours accordingly.

Playing Short Handed

Shorthanded play is very similar to being in a full game after several people have folded. In this regard you should be familiar with many of the subtle nuances. In short handed play pairs increase in value while drawing hands decrease. Due to the decreased odds many flush and straight draws cannot be profitably played in small fields. Many players become overly aggressive in trying to steal antes while not realizing with fewer antes, the risk is not worth the reward. Because of the ante structure of stud versus the blind structure in hold’em the dynamic of stealing is a major difference to shorthanded play.

Common Seven Card Stud Mistakes to Avoid

Many of the mistakes that beginning seven card stud players make are the same poker mistakes that can be committed in other forms of poker with the number one mistake being playing too many hands. However, these same mistakes take on a more critical nature in so far as seven card stud has an additional betting round and therefore those mistakes tend to cost more. Here is a short list of errors unique to stud which you need to avoid:

  • Entering the fray with a small pair coupled with a weak kicker. Your only real improvement is trips as you cannot make a “decent” two pair without a high card kicker.
  • Chasing without the proper odds is costly in seven card stud.
  • Playing on without live cards – I hope I’ve hammered home the live card concept in seven card stud, as it’s critical to mastering the game.
  • Checking in the dark on the river. The purpose of this move is to intimidate an opponent not to bet as he can’t gauge the strength of your hand. I believe it to be a frivolous manoeuvre for two reasons. First, if you do hit a winning hand, such as completing a flush, you’ve checked your strength. Second, if your opponent now bets you won’t really know if it is due to his strength or the fact that you checked. This is not a profitable play but I continue to see players exercise this option on the end.

Next Lesson: Playing High-Low (Split Pot) Stud