Stud poker is a card game played by two or more people where you try to get the best hand and place bets on the outcome. Cards are dealt to the players in a varied way of some being face up and some being face down. As they are dealt, betting occurs between each round dealt.
There are many variations of stud poker, but there are three different types of stud that are the most popular. Three Card Stud began and was popular during the American Revolutionary War. Five Card Stud is the same basic concept but with five cards instead of three. It became popular around the American Civil War. Seven Card Stud has recently become popular and is the one of the three variations that is found most often in casinos around the world.
Three Card Stud is an ante game. Players must ante up before the first card is dealt. Each player is then dealt a three card hand. They must decide then if they are going to fold or bet. If the player folds, he loses his ante bet. If he continues, he must match his ante. The dealer must qualify with a queen or better in his hand for game play to continue. If the dealer qualifies, play resumes and players see who has the highest hand. The highest hand of course wins the pot.
Five Card Stud is a variation of three card stud only with two more cards. Players ante first, then three cards are dealt. The first two are dealt face down (hole cards) and the third is dealt face up. Bets are placed then based on what is showing. Another round is dealt with more bets being placed. After the fifth card is dealt, final bets are placed and whoever has the best hand wins.
Seven Card Stud is another variation and is very popular in casinos. After the ante, players are dealt two cards face down and one up. The two face down cards are called hole cards and the face up one is the door card. The player with the lowest door card starts the betting for this round. The next card is dealt face up and from here on out the player with the highest showing hands leads the betting. The fifth and sixth cards are dealt face up with a round of betting in between each. The seventh card is then dealt face down. Players all bet on their hands or fold if they do not think they can win. When the betting is over, all players show their cards and the player with the best five card hand wins the pot.
Those are the three most commonly found types of stud poker. Three card stud is actually trying to make a comeback in casinos throughout the world. You can find the five card version in a few as well, but for the real action, go find a seven card stud table and play with the big boys.
