What Is Stud Hi-Lo?
Stud Hi-Lo — officially called Seven-Card Stud 8-or-Better — is Seven-Card Stud played in two directions simultaneously. Every hand, the pot is split between the player with the best high hand and the player with the best qualifying low hand. A qualifying low hand needs five unpaired cards all ranked 8 or below, with Aces counting as low. If no qualifying low hand exists, the high hand wins everything. Scooping both halves of the pot is the ultimate goal.
What You Need
- One standard deck of 52 playing cards
- Two to eight players
- Poker chips
Low Hand Qualification
A low hand must contain five UNPAIRED cards all ranked 8 or below. Aces are always low. Straights and flushes are ignored for the low hand. Best low hand: Ace-2-3-4-5. The hand is ranked from its highest card downward — Ace-2-3-4-5 beats Ace-2-3-4-6.
How to Play — The Five Streets
Third Street
Ante up. Each player receives 2 cards face-DOWN and 1 card face-UP. The player showing the highest face-up card posts the bring-in. Betting round clockwise.
Fourth Street
One card face-UP to each player — two visible cards each. The player with the LOWEST visible cards acts first (best current low hand, since low is valuable in this game). Betting round.
Fifth Street
One more card face-UP — three visible cards. Lowest visible hand acts first. Bets double at Fifth Street.
Sixth Street
One more card face-UP — four visible cards. Lowest visible hand acts first. Betting round.
Seventh Street
Final card dealt face-DOWN — three private cards and four public cards each. Final betting round.
Showdown
Players reveal all seven cards. Each player independently selects their best five-card HIGH hand and their best five-card LOW hand from their seven cards. These can be the same five cards or completely different combinations.
Splitting the Pot
The high half goes to the best high hand. The low half goes to the best qualifying low hand. If no player qualifies for low (no five cards 8 or below), the entire pot goes to the high hand.
Winning
Scoop both halves by having both the best high and best low hand. Track chips over the session.
Tips for New Players
- Starting hands with three low cards including an Ace give you both low potential and high-hand possibilities — these are premium starting hands.
- Watch opponents’ visible low cards — if many 2s and 3s are showing, your own low draws face more competition.
- An Ace in your hole card is very valuable — it is the best low card and contributes to high hands as well.