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Rules for Playing Razz

In razz, each player makes an ante to create an initial pot.  Each player is then dealt two cards down, then one up, just as in 7-card stud.  The highest card then "brings it in" with a forced bet.  Aces are always low.  The player to the left of the bring-in bet then has the choice to either call the bring-in, complete the bet to a larger amount, or fold.  Each successive person must either call the bet, fold their hand, or raise the current bet.  This is called a round of betting.

Another card is dealt face-up to all remaining players (4th street).  The player with the two lowest cards showing has the option to bet or check.  A second round of betting occurs.

Another card (5th street) is again dealt dealt face-up to the remaining players.  The person with the three lowest cards showing has the option to bet or check.  On 5th street, the amount of the wager doubles from 4th street.

Another card is dealt to face-up to the remaining players (6th street), and another round of betting ensues.

The last card (7th street, or the river) is dealt face-down.  A final round of betting ensues.  If more than one player remains,  the players flip their cards over and the winner is determined.  If two or more players have identical low hands, then the pot is split equally among them.

When determining the best hand, straights and flushes do not count against a player, thus

defeats the hand

When determining the best hand in Razz, you must compare the highest card of each hand and work down from there.  It is a common mistake to start with the lowest card.

A handy way to determine whether one hand defeats another is to arrange your five best cards (which would be the five lowest cards) from highest to lowest.  Transpose the ranks of the cards as a number.  In the hands above, the two numbers would be 76,543 and 84,321.  Clearly 76,543 is less than 84,321 and is therefore the winning hand.

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