7 Card Stud
In the most basic view, the number of face down cards makes playing 7 Card Stud that much more difficult for novices, as it forces every player to try harder to work out what hand their opponents have and then decide the mathematical likelihood of winning each specific hand. This need for strategy and analyses has always ensured that, while 7 Card Stud is potentially fairly easy to understand and learn how to play, it can take many years to master at a realistically proficient level.
Despite the dominance of Texas Hold'em all over the world, 7 Card Stud is still immensely popular, both online and in casinos. Its popularity in online poker rooms has been a major factor in retaining its significance in the international poker world. At the same time, its simpler cousin, 5 Card Stud, has fallen by the wayside and is rarely played, online, in casinos or even in friendly poker games.
Each game of 7 Card Stud begins with all the players being dealt three cards – one face up and two face down. If there is no “bring in” bet, the player with the highest showing card begins the betting. Every player is then dealt three more up cards and then a final face down card, with betting after each card is dealt. Then a showdown is held, if necessary, where each player makes his best poker hand.
While Texas Hold’em has dominated the online poker world, 7 Card Stud is still a major player, and according to many sources has retained its position as the biggest draw in Las Vegas, the Mecca of the gambling world.
The difference between playing 7 Card Stud in a casino or other land-based poker rooms and playing online is the ability to read an opponent’s physical signs. When you are physically sitting at a table you can watch all the other players and see how they react to their cards. It is for this reason that many players wear sunglasses, even if the game is played indoors. Online poker, meanwhile, eliminates this aspect of the game. Although it may be seen as a disadvantage, it clearly affects all players in the same way. At the same time, experienced online poker players become adept at following the strategies and moves of their opponents in the same way that people playing at land-based poker games watch every physical move of their opponents.
In any case, online poker rooms such as Noble Poker offers players most forms of poker and 7 Card Stud has remained many poker players’ game of choice.
