Five Card Draw is alive and well in internet poker rooms. Paradise Poker offers games with limits from $1.00-$2.00 to $5.00-$10.00. The games are beatable and, hence, profitable.
The following advice is intended for use in a five card draw, high only, game with a fixed limit which doubles after the draw, a traditionally structured small blind and big blind and a maximum of five players.
Draw is the most mathematically based game of all poker games. In particular, opening strategy is primarily based on mathematics, especially in terms of the decision to open or fold. It is the game most susceptible to analysis through the use of game theory which can be used to a significant degree in post-draw decision-making.
The Importance Of Having The Best Hand Before The Draw
It is very important to have the best hand pre-draw as Five Card Draw played with blinds is not a game for chasers. The best hand holds up more often in this game than any other. As the game has only two betting rounds and three decision-making points (the two betting rounds and the discarding decision), the superior player has fewer rounds in which to use his skill advantage to overtake a better hand held by a weaker player. For example, Hold ‘Em, Omaha and Omaha, Hi-Low have four decision points and Seven Card Stud and Seven Card Stud, High-Low have five decision points. Also, the discarding decision, while requiring some skill, is less important than any other decision point in Draw or those other games.
Pre-Draw Hand Advantages
In Draw, if a player is ahead pre-draw, that player will never be less than a 5:2 favorite as in when the player holds two-pairs and the opponent holds a single pair higher than either two-pairs. Other than this situation, the player will always be a 7:2 favorite or better. Note: the word “ahead” does not include a situation where both players hold a single pair of equal rank or two-pairs of equal rank. Both will often draw three in the case of the single pair and one in the case of the two-pairs. Thus, they are essentially tied even though one player probably is ahead pre-draw with a better kicker.
The following are typical pre-draw hand match-ups with examples and the odds that the better hand will remain ahead after the draw.
Two-Pairs v. Single Pair Larger Than Either Two-Pairs
Ex. KKQQ v. AA
2.5 : 1
Larger Single Pair v. Smaller Single Pair
Ex. AA v. KK
3.5 : 1
Two-Pairs v. Single Pair Not Larger Than Both Two Pairs
Ex. AA22 v. KK
7.5 : 1
Three Of A Kind v. Single Pair Larger Than Three Of A Kind
Ex. KKK v. AA
8.0 : 1
Straight Or Flush v. Three Of A Kind
Ex. S/F v. AAA
8.5 : 1
Two-Pairs v. Smaller Two-Pairs
Ex. AA22 v. KK33
9.5 : 1
Three Of A Kind v. Smaller Three Of A Kind
Ex. AAA v. KKK
9.5 : 1
Straight Or Flush v. Single Pair
Ex. S/F v. AA
97.0 : 1
Three Of A Kind v. Single Pair Smaller Than Three Of A Kind
Ex. AAA v. KK
109.0 : 1
By comparison, in Hold ‘Em, a hand with two overcards such as AK is less than a 2:1 favorite over two smaller and unpaired cards such as QJ. The best pre-flop match-up is a pair against two unpaired cards the larger of which is the same rank as the pair such as AA v. AK. The pair of aces is “only” a 12:1 favorite. This match-up is rare and when it occurs it is much less of an advantage than the 100:1 type advantages in Draw. A pair v. two overcards is an 11:9 favorite. Two unpaired cards with one overcard is only a 3:2 favorite over another two unpaired cards such as AJ v. KQ. These advantages are quite small compared to the routine 2.5:1 through 9.5:1 match-ups that are common in Draw.
This advantage of the leading hand is so strong that it is often correct in Draw to fold to a raise or re-raise after opening. In other games, a player who is voluntarily in the pot should always call one additional bet. This is not true in Five Card Draw. For example, a player open-raises in middle position with a pair of queens and the button raises with both blinds folding. The raise requires a call of $1.00. The pot contains the initial blinds of $0.50 and $1.00, the player’s open-raise of $2.00 and the opponent’s re-raise of $3.00 for a total pot less rake of $6.25. The payer is receiving odds of 6.25:1. Against many of the possible raising hands, the player is more than a 6.25:1 underdog.
Assuming the opponent will make this raise with a pair of aces and better, should the player call? A pair of aces will be held 32% of the time at an advantage of 7:2. Two-pairs smaller than Queens-Up will be held 27% of the time at an advantage of 5:2. Two-pairs larger than Queens-Up will be held 14% of the time at an advantage of 7.5:1. Three of a kind smaller than three queens will be held 16% of the time at an advantage of 8.0:1. Three of a kind larger than three queens will be held 3% of the time with an advantage of 109:1. Even better hands will be held 8% of the time at an advantage of 97:1 or greater. So, the pair of queens will be an average underdog of 9:2. The player should call. But if the pot had only $4.50 because the player open-limped, then the call is very marginal. The player will often improve his hand but lose a big bet or more post-draw.
Do Not Open-Limp
One principle of opening strategy is to always open the pot with a raise. The blind structure is so high (0.30 small bets per hand at a five player table and higher when fewer players are in the game) that winning the blinds uncontested is important. Further, by utilizing proper hand selection guidelines, a player will be called quite frequently by weaker hands. The overlay of the stronger hand is so great that a great deal of a winning player’s profits come from pre-draw raising. Also, many pre-draw raising hands, such as a big pair, are defensive after the draw. Thus, they must be played offensively pre-draw. Finally, slow-playing big hands, such as straights and better hands, is not recommended because your strength will be revealed on the discarding. A slow-play is only useful if the opponent will bet before the strength is revealed. Since the opponent will know before post-draw betting begins that a player has the possibility of a big hand, that player might as well reveal that possibility through his betting pre-draw and get some money for the information instead of giving it out for free on the discarding.
Assume that the player open-raises in early position (EP) with a pair of aces in a $1.00-$2.00 limit game. He is called by a late position (LP) player who has a pair of kings. How much does the player gain by his opponent’s call? The player is a 7:2 favorite. Without adjusting for rake, the player’s profit on his bet and the opponent’s call is over $1.10. The two players contribute a combined $4.00 in the pot. As a 7:2 favorite, the pair of aces has $3.11 in equity in that $4.00 although he only contributed $2.00. In other words, every time a player raises with a big pair and is called by a smaller pair, he gains over $1.10.
For blind-stealing purposes, an open-raiser is receiving odds of 3:4. Thus, blind-steals which succeed at a rate of 57% will show a profit without ever winning a pot post-draw.
Do Not Slowplay
As discussed above, a hand should never be slowplayed before the draw. Once the player stands pat, the secret will be out and the player is unlikely to gain any additional bets. Raise and re-raise before the draw with all appropriate hands.
Recently a hand was played in which the hand was folded to the LP opponent. He open-limped with an eight-high straight and stood pat. The SB player was receiving 4.75:1 (after reducing the pot for the rake) on his open-ended jack-high straight-draw, so he called for one-half of a bet. The BB opponent checked. The SB player made a queen-high straight. The LP opponent lost with the pat hand. On the other hand, if the LP opponent had open-raised pre-draw, then the SB player would have folded since the pot odds would have been 6.75:3 (again after adjusting for the rake). The LP opponent's open-limp cost him the pot. Also, note that the LP opponent would only get action from the SB player after the draw when the LP opponent was beat. Thus, the slowplay allowed the SB player to draw out on the LP opponent while creating a situation in which the LP opponent gets no action post-draw if ahead and only gets action post-draw when behind.
Opening Play When No Players Voluntarily In The Pot
It is recommended that a player open-raise in EP with a pair of kings or better, in middle position (MP) with a pair of queens or better and in LP with a pair of tens or better. All three standards give the player a 63% chance or better of being best pre-draw. Certainly, these standards can be reduced one notch in each position. In those cases, the player will be a 54% or better favorite to be leading pre-draw.
In the small blind, the player receives 1:1 odds on his raise as he already has one-half of a bet in the pot. That consideration is counter-balanced by the player playing the hand out of position on the discarding and post-draw betting. It probably is accurate to consider the advantage of having one-half bet in the pot and the positional disadvantage to be equal and, hence, cancel each other. Thus, the player should open-raise with the same hands as if in LP: a pair of tens or better.
Outside the blinds, if re-raised, then the player should call with a pair of aces and better and fold all weaker hands. Sometimes the player will hold a big pair and a four-flush and/or straight draw. The player always should call one bet and draw to the flush or straight (assuming that the straight draw is open-ended or also a flush draw). The player should cap the betting with all high three of a kinds. Depending on the player’s taste, a high three of a kind may include tens and certainly includes jacks.
Why should a player outside the blinds fold pairs smaller than kings if re-raised? As discussed above, Five Card Draw is one of the few games in which it can be correct to fold pre-draw for one bet after having put one bet in the pot. Again, this is due to the power of the leading hand in Five Card Draw.
Limper(s) In The Pot
If the pot contains limpers, then the player can call or, better yet, raise with any hand one notch better than that required to have open-raised in that position. In the small blind, it is important to raise with a small two-pairs if only one player is in the pot with the goal to drive out the big blind and play the hand two-handed. Also, in the small b;lind, the player can call with any flush or open-ended straight draw as, even with only one limper, the player will be receiving 5:1 pot odds plus additional implied odds.
Raised Pot
In positions other than the big blind (including the small blind), the player should not cold-call (a cold-call is a call of a raise when the player has not put any money into the pot on that round) without aces-up or better. In the big blind, the player can call a raise with a pair of aces or, in most cases, a flush or open-ended straight draw. In a re-raised pot, three of a kind or better are required to cold-call.
Adjustments
These guidelines are for a normal five handed game. In a heads-up or three handed game and/or with specific knowledge of the opponent's playing tendencies, deviations from this basic strategy can and should be made.
