Currently the leading place to
play Badugi Online is at
Doyle's
Room,
Doyle
Brunson's own poker site.
Jump to:
How to Play
Hand Values
Hand Rankings
Badugi Poker originated in Asia but is now rapidly becoming a
popular game throughout America and Europe. Badugi combines the most exciting
elements of poker. The game is a triple draw four card low-hand wins game! The
best low hand is comprised of four cards, with none of the same suit, and none
of the same rank: i.e. ace, two, three, four all of different suits is the best
possible hand!! When you find yourself holding 4 cards of different rank and
suit then you are holding a…..BADUGI.
How
the Dealing Works:
Each player is dealt 4 cards in a clockwise direction starting from the player
on the Small Blind. Cards are dealt to each player one card at a time. Once
everyone has their 4 cards the action begins with the player to the left of the
Big Blind and continues around the table in a clockwise direction.
How the Betting Works:
Badugi can be played as either a Limit game, a Pot Limit game or even a Half Pot
Limit game. No matter what level of action mixed with skill you like best there
is a game to suit you!
Limit Badugi:
All bets are made in incremental units. On Rounds 1 and 2 a player can bet the
lower level bet (e.g. in a $2/$4 game the bet for Rounds 1 and 2 would be $2).
On Rounds 3 and 4 players can bet the higher level bet (e.g. in a $2/$4 game the
bet for rounds 3 and 4 would be $4).
Betting is capped at 4 bets per round as is standard in all limit games.
Pot Limit Badugi:
In Pot Limit Badugi players can raise any amount at any stage, ranging from the
minimum bet (i.e. the big blind amount) up to how much is already in the pot.
E.g. if the pot is comprised of the small blind($2), the big blind ($4), and one
caller ($4), then the next active player can bet any amount from $4 up to the
total value of the current pot (on top of his initial call), in this case the
maximum bet would be $18. ($2 + $4 + $4 + $4).
All bettors can raise the pot by the total value of the current pot as it stands
when it is their turn to act. So in Pot Limit Badugi there is no limit to the
amount of betting allowed on any particular round, as opposed to it being capped
in the Limit version.
Half Pot Limit Badugi:
The same rules apply to Half Pot Limit Badugi as they do to Pot Limit Badugi.
The only exception is that the maximum a player can raise is the value of half
the current pot. E.g. if the pot is comprised of the small blind ($2), the big
blind ($4), one caller ($4), the next player to act can bet any amount from $4
up to a maximum of $11. ($2 + $4 + $4 + $4 /2) = 7. So it would be a call of $4
and a raise of $7, making a total bet of $11. So in this case the player can bet
any amount from $4 to $11.
How to Play Badugi
Each player is dealt 4 cards, after which the first betting round ensues, based
on the strength of each players initial 4 cards. The betting amounts will depend
which variation of Badugi you are playing, Limit, Pot Limit or Half Pot Limit.
-
First bet round: In this round the
first player to act is the first participating player clockwise from the big
blind. The player may fold, call, or raise. Each player in clockwise order
is asked to bet, (call, raise, fold or check). Once everyone has had their
turn and all bets are matched you move on to the First Draw.
First draw round:
Players are offered the opportunity to draw zero to four cards, clockwise from
the first participating seat to the left of the dealer button. Players select
which cards to keep and which to replace through a draw. Drawing zero cards is
known as 'Standing Pat'.
Second draw round:
Same as first draw round.
Third draw round:
Same as second draw round, applying reshuffle of discards as is necessary.
Showdown: It's time to show your hand and see who won. The winning
player scoops the pot! The showdown rules follow those of Hold'em. In brief, the
player whose last bet is called, if there is one, shows cards first. If there is
no last aggressor, showdown begins from the first participant holding cards,
clockwise from the dealer button. As hands are shown, players with losing hands
may muck or show, similar to Hold'em options.
Winner: Once the showdown is complete the winner is
announced and awarded the pot. Fingers crossed that player will be you!
Other Points to note:
1. Side pots are accumulated and awarded just as
they are in all other games.
2. Make sure you never forget that in this game the lowest hand wins!!
Badugi Hand Values
In Badugi the aim of the game is to hold a lower
hand than your opponent holds. Aces are considered the lowest card in the deck;
therefore A234 (all off suit) is the best possible hand in the game.
Badugi
A Badugi is a 4-card hand with no pairs and none of the same suit. Examples of
Badugi’s would be 2345, 2467, A358, all with none of the same suit. The best
possible Badugi is A234 all off suit as there is no other possible hand lower
than this.
Paired Hands:
If you hold a hand such as A244 (all different suits) then your hand value is
really A24 as you can only use one of the cards you have paired. This is known
as a three-card hand.
Other examples would be A224 that is finally A24, KKQJ that is finally KQJ, KJ55
that is finally KJ5. A Badugi beats any 3 card hand.
Similarly a hand such as A222 would only hold a final value of A2, a two-card
hand, as the other 2 cards are counterfeited. A three-card hand beats any 2-card
hand. Other examples of 2 card hands would be A444, AA88, 7766, 5669 etc.
Suited hands:
Suited hands work similarly to paired hands. If you hold a hand such as A456
(where both the 5 and 6 are hearts) then you should choose to play the lower of
the two suited cards. In this example then you would hold A45 as the 6 is
counterfeited. Other examples would be As9d5s8h where the final value would be
A98 as the 5s is dropped. 3h4s9dKh where the final value would be 349. JhQdK2d
where the final value would be 2JK.
Suited and paired hands:
Occasionally you may be dealt a hand containing both pairs and suited cards.
This is usually not a good situation to be in as it means your final hand value
will be very weak. For example, KhKc9cTs would have a final value of 9cTsKh as
the King of clubs is counterfeited. Other examples would be:
· 2h3h4s6d where the final value would be 246 as the 3 of hearts is
counterfeited.
· Td9s7s5s where the final value would be T5 as the 7 and 9 of spades are
counterfeited.
· JsQh3s9s where the final value of this hand would be Q3 as the 9 and J of
spades are counterfeited.
Therefore double suited double-paired hands are not good starting hands.
Another rare example would be when you hold 4 of a kind, e.g. 4444 or 9999
giving you a final hand value of either 4 or 9 respectively. This is known as a
1-card hand and is the worst possible type of hand to hold.
Furthermore, you could be dealt a hand such as KdKcJdJc where the final value
would be either KcJc or KdJd. NB: there is no ranking of suits. So for example
you could hold KhJhKcJc versus your opponent’s KsJsKdJd, whereby both of you
have a final value of KJ, therefore resulting in a split pot.
Order of hand value from best to worst:
1) Badugi
2) 3 Card hand
3) 2 Card hand
4) 1 Card hand
NB: If at a showdown there are 2
Badugi’s or 3 card hands or 2 card hands or 1 card hands obviously the lowest
one will win. E.g. Ah2s3d4c beats 3h4d5s6c, and 3c3s7d9c beats 3d8d8s9h, and
4c4d6c6d beats 5s8s8h5h, and 4444 beats 5555.
Multi-way pot example:
Player 1 holds 3h5s7d9c
Player 2 holds 7s7h5c6d
Player 3 holds 3h4s7c8s
Player 4 holds AhAs4dTs
Player 3 would win this pot as he/she holds the lowest hand with a 3478 Badugi.
Although player 1 also holds a Badugi 3579, player 3’s is lower.
BADUGI HAND RANKINGS
ALL BADUGI HANDS ARE TO BE
CONSIDERED "RAINBOW" HANDS. |
|
Rank of Hand |
Badugi |
|
1 |
432A |
|
2 |
532A |
|
3 |
542A |
|
4 |
543A |
|
5 |
5432 |
|
6 |
632A |
|
7 |
642A |
|
8 |
643A |
|
9 |
6432 |
|
10 |
652A |
|
11 |
653A |
|
12 |
6532 |
|
13 |
654A |
|
14 |
6542 |
|
15 |
6543 |
|
16 |
732A |
|
17 |
742A |
|
18 |
743A |
|
19 |
7432 |
|
20 |
752A |
|
21 |
753A |
|
22 |
7532 |
|
23 |
754A |
|
24 |
7542 |
|
25 |
7543 |
|
26 |
762A |
|
27 |
763A |
|
28 |
7632 |
|
29 |
764A |
|
30 |
7642 |
|
33 |
7643 |
|
32 |
765A |
|
33 |
7652 |
|
34 |
7653 |
|
35 |
7654 |
|
36 |
832A |
|
37 |
842A |
|
38 |
843A |
|
39 |
8432 |
|
40 |
852A |
|
41 |
853A |
|
42 |
8532 |
|
43 |
854A |
|
44 |
8542 |
|
45 |
8543 |
|
46 |
862A |
|
47 |
863A |
|
48 |
8632 |
|
49 |
864A |
|
50 |
8642 |
For more information on Badugi Poker see the section at
Doyle's
Room.
