How to Play No Limit 2-7 Single Draw Lowball
A Real Test of Poker!
The 9th game that will feature in the weekly mixed games cash game rotation that will soon begin at Portomaso Casino, Malta, is No Limit 2-7 Single Draw Lowball. I already posted some information about this game played as a triple draw game with fixed limit betting, but played as a no limit game with only one draw it is a very different test of poker skills.
Players coming to mixed games from No Limit Texas Hold Em (NLHE) will be happy to find a game where there is no limit betting, and this is one aspect of NL 2-7 Single Draw that will be familiar to poker players who like to apply pressure with big bets. Let’s look at what NLHE players will find they need to adapt to when they play this game:
No community cards - the cards you play are dealt to you
Players can change, or “draw,” cards - just once (hence the name) and there is a betting round before and after the draw.
Hand rankings are turned on their heads - the WORST poker hand wins, so the best possible hand is 75432 with at least two suits represented.
There is not much information available about the strength of your opponent’s hand - all you see are your own cards, betting amounts and the number of cards that are drawn. this makes NL 2-7 Single Draw a very pure poker game: when facing a bet, you have very little information to help you know how strong a hand you are up against.
At this point it is worth pointing out that the winning hand at showdown in this version of 2-7 poker, with only one draw, is often weaker than the average winning hand in a triple draw game. This makes sense as there is only one opportunity to draw cards and improve one’s hand!
Take a look at some resources available on the Internet (there’s not a lot!) to help you play this game: