Rules of the Game
Triple Play Draw Poker Video poker has never quite gained the level of popularity enjoyed by slot machines. But for a certain segment of the casino-loving population, it is the game of choice – and it is easy to see why. When played well, it offers the kinds of odds that can’t be matched by anything else in the casino gaming world. Triple Play Draw Poker is a video poker game designed by IGT.It offers nine different video poker games in one machine. It also has a unique way to handle coins per hand. Most video poker machines let you choose one to five coins per hand, and you have to wager five coins to unlock the top bonus amoun.
Ace to Five Triple Draw is a lowball game where the best hand is A2345 and neither straights nor flushes count against you. Essentially it is the same game as Deuce to Seven Triple Draw except with different hand rankings. It is not nearly as popular in cash games as Deuce but it still is a part of many mixed cash games and tournaments that occur at the WSOP.
The game is played with blinds and the action before and after the 1st draw is at the lower limit. The rounds after the 2nd and 3rd draws are at the higher betting limit. For greater ease in reporting hands, the rounds after the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd draws are often referred to as the flop, turn, and river.
Basic Strategy
Ace to Five is a one winner limit game so a tight aggressive style is widely considered ideal. This means that one should always enter the pot with a raise and frequently re-raise someone that entered before you if that will significantly increase the odds of getting the pot heads-up. Equities run close in this game so chopping up the blinds has a lot of value and you will not often be severely punished in the event that you run into a better hand.
Many of the tougher decisions before the first draw revolve around keeping a four card seven such as 3567 or drawing two. If the pot is contested multi-way you should draw two, but tend to draw one heads-up. However, with smoother draws such as A247 you have more implied odds and should probably draw regardless of the number of opponents in the pot.
Much of the play after the first draw is fairly straightforward. If you are drawing fewer cards than your opponent you have an automatic bet. It is particularly important to bet after the second draw if you have a one card draw and your opponent is drawing two. You must take a shot at winning the pot without a showdown.
When you are both drawing the same amount you should tend to bet only when you improve. When you are drawing more cards you should be check/folding or check/calling most often but when the situation is right you must not be afraid to put in a check/raise if you improve dramatically.
For example, after the second draw if you improved to an A24567 after drawing two you should often check raise an opponent that drew one. It is not because your holding is a monster in this game; it is because the vast majority of players will bet regardless of whether or not they improved. And they should be betting because when you don’t improve at all you must fold, so to balance it out you must punish them when you hit. It is also possible that your opponent may break a better hand which is obviously an outstanding result.
Suppose we are in position after the 2nd draw with a marginal made hand and our opponent draws one. In Deuce to Seven it is somewhat common knowledge that the breakpoint is a jack; that is assuming no knowledge of any discards the pat jack is a small favorite over any draw. In Ace to Five the breakpoint is typically a ten low although this advantage is slight and thus tens should tend to be broken to gain implied odds in position. However, it would generally be a mistake to break any nine heads-up even with a hand with a potential smooth draw underneath such as A2349.
Starting Hand Standards
A reasonable set of opening requirements at most tables would look something along the lines of:
Early position/ Hijack: (26% hands played)
- Made Sixes or better
- Four Wheel Cards
- Four to a Six
- Three Wheel Cards
- A26-A46, 236, 246, and 346
Admittedly this is a very high percentage of hands to open with in early position so if you are inexperienced and/or are facing a tough lineup you can eliminate the bottom of this list.
Cut-off: (31% hands played)
- Early position/ hijack hands
- Three to a Six
Button: (42% hands played)
- Cut-off hands
- A2-34
Further Learning
Triple Draw Rules
Super System 2 by Doyle Brunson (Rating 8/10) – Daniel Negreanu wrote a chapter on Deuce to Seven which is an excellent introduction to triple draw lowball and adds a section on the specific adjustments that need to be made when playing Ace to Five. The majority of the material is solid; however, some of the advice for Ace to Five opening standards appears to be overly tight. Considering folding a hand as good as 356 on the button in an unopened pot would be extremely “weak-tight”.
Lowball hand rankings fall into four main categories A-5, A-6, 2-7 and 2-6. This article will cover each category and show you what beats what when playing different lowball poker games. The one thing that all of the lowball poker hand rankings have in common is that they are all based around players making the lowest possible hand as opposed to the highest possible hand.
The most popular lowball games are Razz, 2-7 Triple Draw and 2-7 Single Draw all of which can be played at PokerStars.com alongside Badugi and Stud Hi/Lo.
Ace to five hand ranking
When playing any game that uses ace to five hand rankings the best possible holding is A-2-3-4-5 which is commonly known as the wheel. Aces are always considered to be low cards when playing ace to five lowball games and straights and flushes are completely ignored when evaluating hand strength. Razz poker is the most popular lowball poker game which uses ace to five hand rankings and is basically Seven Card Stud but with lowball hand rankings replacing the usual hand rankings.
When playing Ace to Five lowball games it’s important to note that Aces are low cards and low cards only. This means that A-A-x-x-x would always beat 2-2-x-x-x.
Ace to six hand rankings
Triple Draw Lowball
The best possible hand when playing any poker game which uses the ace to six hand rankings system is A-2-3-4-6. This is because straights and flushes count as high hands instead of being ignored. Aces are always considered low cards. Ace to six is often known as 6-4 low because the best hand you can make is 6-4-3-2-A. London Lowball is one of the only poker games which uses the ace to six lowball hand rankings.
Remember when you play Ace to Six poker that A-K-Q-K-T is in fact not a straight. Aces are low cards only and therefore A-K-Q-K-T would beat a hand like 3-10-J-Q-K. Like in Ace to Five poker A-A-x-x-x would always beat 2-2-x-x-.
2-7 hand rankings
When using 2-7 hand rankings the absolute best possible hand is 2-3-4-5-7. Aces are always high cards when using deuce to seven rankings and straights and flushes will always count as high hands. 2-7 is often known as 7-5 due to the best possible hand starting 7-5. The deuce to seven hand rankings are thought to be the exact opposite of the regular high hand rankings used by most poker games. 2-7 Single Draw and 2-7 Triple Draw are the most popular deuce to seven games around.
2-6 lowball hand rankings
2-6 lowball hand rankings state that the best hand a player can make is 2-3-4-5-6. This is because aces are always high cards but straight and flushes never count against you. Deuce to six lowball hand rankings are pretty uncommon and there aren’t any games online you can play which use this ranking system.
If you fancy playing any of the top lowball poker games then PokerStars.com is the place to do so. Currently they spread the following lowball games:
– Razz
– Badugi
– 2-7 Triple Draw
– 2-7 Single Draw
– Stud Hi/Lo
– Omaha Hi/Lo
Visit PokerStars the best place to play lowball poker online.