Lesson #1 - Beginners Guide to 7 Card Stud(Hi)
by Al Spath

In Stud, it's all about LIVE CARDS - yours, and your opponents. Unlike hold em' with a community flop that everyone sees and uses, stud requires each player to observe the board, beginning on 3rd street (everyone's first up card). Not only do you analyze what you see exposed on the entire board (more on that a bit later), this is the juncture where the most critical decision a player will encounter: to continue play, or to fold.

Stud is also a game about people and their tendencies and knowing all you can about them to empower you to use the best strategy against them. You study your opponent as you do the game, you will determine what KIND of PLAYER they are, by watching to see WHAT cards they start with, WHAT cards they CALL with, WHAT cards they RAISE with, and WHAT cards they SHOW DOWN with.

NOTE: Before I continue, many newcomers to stud might want to get immediate information on "How to Play Limit 7 Card Stud Hi, by using the PSO link below for an illustration of a stud table, with each betting round depicted and commentary available to follow the entire flow of the hand. Then return to reading this lesson. If you have played stud, continue reading now and if you want, check out the link later.

Let's now look a little deeper at what I mean by "Live Cards" which are exactly what the term implies. They are how many cards YOU need to help your hand improve, that are not revealed on the board.

For instance: If you have 3 spades and as you look around the board you noticed that 3 other spades were showing as the first card up in your opponents' hands, then you know that you will need to catch 2 of only 7 spades that have not been exposed to complete your flush. Note: Some of these cards may possibly be located as their hole cards, making the flush draw extremely unlikely. Or if you have a pair of kings, and see one other king exposed on 3rd street, you quickly realize there is only one remaining king left to help your hand. Note: You also should watch the person with the other king exposed and if they call or raise, they might indeed have both kings, leaving you with a draw for a card that can't be found in the remaining deck.

This is also why you need to study your opponents and find out if they slow-play, check-raise, bluff often or draw continuously. Knowing who is a solid player and who bets on just a prayer is important information for betting rounds later in the hand. It's important to know if when they raise with an ace on 3rd, they have split aces (one up, one concealed), or are they betting to make you believe they have aces and that you are already behind in the hand? You also look to see the types of cards your opponents are willing to start with. If they stay in the hand with a "4" as their up card, one could surmise that they possibly have a hidden pocket pair, a split pair of 4's, or three to a flush/straight. Watching and seeing their cards at showdown is important for you to determine what their mindset is in regards to their starting hand requirements so you can exploit it when the opportunity arises.

So you might ask, how on earth do I remember all the exposed cards? Well, you don't. All the exposed cards are still on the table with the players in the hand, so all you have to do is remember what cards are folded. Generally three or four players remain in the hand, so only about 4 or 5 cards are folded and put into the muck during the first betting round. As more betting ensues and cards are received, a few other players with two or more cards exposed will also fold and by this time you will probably have their cards imprinted on your brain "IF" you have been watching the deal and have observed each card dealt face up. It's all right in front of you, and you must watch everyone's hand to have all the information available to you.

More about third-street and what else should you know before sitting down to play stud at the lower limits?

• In hold em' you have a forced bet (the blinds) and in stud you may have antes. The antes will increase as you play higher limits. Typically a 2/4 table requires and ante of $ .50. A 3/6 table increases the ante to $1.00. However, it is not uncommon that the ante at a 4/8 table to also be $1.00, making the 4/8 a better value than the 3/6 game. More on that in latter lessons.

  The higher the ante will give you an opportunity to reap a higher reward if you are successful with an ante steal on 3rd street. On-line, as well as in live casinos, the antes can vary from site to site, or casino to casino. Some on-line sites have no ante in the lower limit games, however, with any stud game, the low card exposed (on the first round of betting-3rd street), must be the first person to bet. They can bet the required amount at that table, or they can complete the bet (in effect, raise the pot). Example: you are at a 2/4-limit stud table and the antes are $.50 and you get the 2 of clubs as your first card showing (the lowest ranking card by suit), you are now forced to bet (called the bring-in).

  You are not allowed to fold and must "bring it in" for the minimum bet. You can however, "bring it in" for anything between the minimum and the maximum and force others wanting to play the hand to pay a steeper price from the outset. When you would do this is up to you, but I would recommend doing it when you have a big pair or medium pair, either concealed or split.

  Some players would argue, and I would agree, that if you do have a big pair, you might not want to advertise it just yet; so betting the minimum is appropriate. The only time I would not do that with a big pair is when others in the hand have higher cards exposed on 3rd street. In that case, I want to complete the bet and try to force out the ones who have yet to make a big pair.

• You will notice that most players who will raise (in lower to medium limit games) actually have what they are representing, and usually is a big pair. Those with 3-straights or 3-flushes generally will just call so they get the proper odds to continue their draw. Should a player raise with an ace showing in his hand and in the hand of another player at the table, expect them to actually have a split pair of aces and they are just raising to protect their hand that has little chance of catching a third ace.

  Any player that limps into a pot, is then raised, and then re-raises the pot, is giving you an indication that they have a big hand. You can count on it most likely to be a huge pair and they might even be "rolled up" (both hold cards match the first up card, giving them a set).

• When comparing split pairs to concealed pairs, there is no debate. The concealed pair is the ultimate weapon in stud. The surprise factor of having a pocket pair enables you to make a set undetected. If you have split aces (one ace showing) and bet, and then get another ace on 4th street or 5th street, your opponents may immediately fold facing the trip aces you are advertising. On the other hand, when you have concealed kings and on 4th street or 5th street you get a king dealt to you, and you raise, they may only put you on a pair of kings or two pair (kings up), and not be aware of your monster hand.

• If you are not stealing antes you will need to win many more pots to compensate for your constant posting of the ante. Normally you would try to steal an ante from late position having seen no other voluntary bettor enter the pot. Your up card should be higher than the up card of the remaining few players. If you are raised and you don't have a decent hand at all, let the raiser have the pot and save additional bets.

In lesson two I will discuss in detail starting hands on third-street and how this decision can determine if you have a realistic chance of winning the hand.