Guts Card Game Rules
- Deuces Wild - Wild Widow
Introduction
Five Card Draw is one of the oldest forms of poker and was by far the best known internationally until the sudden rise in popularity of Texas Hold'em at the end of the 20th century. The basic game will be described first, followed by some variations with extra opening conditions, winning conditions or wild cards. These can be combined in various ways - for example jacks or better and trips to win are often played with a bug or wild card. This page assumes some familiarity with the general rules and terminology of poker. See the poker rules page for an introduction to these, and the poker betting and poker hand ranking pages for further details.
- If more than one player says 'in,' all those who are 'in' show their cards, and the player with the best cards wins the pot.
- Poker Game Variants. Guts Poker offers players a wide variety of poker games to choose from through iPoker, many with differing rules and betting procedures. Below is a list of games which are offered: Texas Hold’em, Omaha, Omaha Hi/Lo, 6+ Hold'em Razz, 5-Card Stud & 7-Card Stud.
- Scabs ‘N’ Guts Board Game is a totally new and exciting 'meducational' board game that's packed with interesting and occasionally disgusting medical facts about how your body works. Players or teams take turns to move around the fun and factual body-shaped game board while attempting to correctly answer the multiple choice questions from one of three unique body categories: Scrapes.
Five Card Draw Poker
Each player must play a card during their turn if possible; if the person cannot play, they put one chip in the pot and the turn passes to the left. The game ends when one player gets rid of all of their cards. Each opponent then pays the pot one chip for each card remaining in their hand, and the winner takes the pot.
This basic game, with no restrictions on the cards needed to open or win, is sometimes known as California Draw or Guts, though Guts is also the name of another poker-like game. Because of this freedom it offers considerable scope for bluffing, especially if played for high stakes.
Players and Cards
Five Card Draw is played with a standard 52-card pack, and there can be from two to six players - six probably make the best game. It is possible for seven or or even eight people to play, but then there is the disadvantage that the cards may run out during the draw.
Ante, Deal and First Betting Round
Before the deal each player puts an agreed ante into the pot. Usually the ante is the same amount as the minimum bet.
After the shuffle and cut, the dealer deals the cards face down clockwise one at a time until each player has five cards. Players may look at their cards, and there is a betting round begun by the player to dealer's left. If everyone passes (checks) in this first betting round, the cards are thrown in, the turn to deal passes to the left, the pot remains and everyone adds another ante to it.
In fixed or spread limit games, the number of raises after the initial opening bet is usually limited to four.
The Draw
If more than one player remains in the game after the first betting round, active players have one opportunity to improve their hands by discarding some cards and obtaining replacements. Beginning with the nearest active player to dealer's left, each active player announces the number of cards to be replaced, discards that number of cards face down, and is dealt an equal number of cards face down by the dealer.
A player can discard from zero to three cards. The dealer should wait until the player has discarded the number of cards stated before starting to deal replacements. Discarding no cards at all and thus keeping one's original hand is known as standing pat. Naturally, it is in the players' interest to wait for their turns and not give away information in advance about how many cards they intend to draw.
In a game with more than six players it is possible that the deck will run out of cards (since each player can consume up to 8 cards - a hand of 5 plus 3 more drawn). If the dealer finds that not enough cards remain then the discards of the players who have already discarded are shuffled and cut to form a new deck from which replacement cards can be dealt to the remaining player(s). Reusing cards rejected by other players is not very satisfactory, and this is why six players is normally set as the maximum number for this game.
Until the second round of betting begins, any player is entitled to ask how many cards any other player drew, and be given an honest answer.
Second Betting Round
After all active players have had a chance to draw there is a second round of betting, begun by the player who opened the betting on the first round.
The minimum and maximum bets allowed in the second betting round are normally set higher than in the first betting round - typically double.
In a fixed limit or spread limit game, the second betting round, like the first, is normally limited to a bet and four raises.
Showdown
After the second betting round, if the pot has not already been won, players show their cards in clockwise order, beginning with the last player who took aggressive action (bet or raised) in the second betting round. If everyone checked in the second betting round, the player who opened the betting in the first betting round shows first.
Variations
Drawing more than three cards
Some allow a player to discard and draw four cards if the fifth card is an ace. Some allow a player to discard four or all five cards unconditionally. With these rules the likelihood of running out of cards during the draw process is increased. In practice, however, the difference is small since it is rarely if ever worthwhile to draw more than three cards.
Two Draws
Some play with two draws. The first time up to three cards can be discarded and drawn, after which there is a round of betting. Then each remaining player can discard and draw one or two cards, after which there is a third and final round of betting and a showdown.
Blinds
Some prefer to begin the pot with a blind bet instead of or in addition to the ante. In the first betting round, the player to dealer's left is forced to bet an agreed amount, irrespective of his cards. The next player to the left may be permitted to straddle by placing a blind bet of twice this amount, the next player to re-straddle and so on. Then the betting round begins with the player to the left of the player who placed the largest blind bet. Players may fold, call or raise. If all others call or fold, the player who placed the largest blind bet may check or raise. See the poker betting page for further details.
Five Card Draw - Jacks or Better
This game, also known as Jack Pots, a hand at least as good as a pair of jacks is required to open the betting. It is probably the most popular version of Five Card Draw Poker. There should be at least four players and preferably more, otherwise most of the hands will be thrown in without play. Opinions on the merits of this game have varied widely over the years. For example:
'The addition of jack pots has probably done more to injure Poker than the trump signal has injured Whist ... the whole system has become a nuisance, and has destroyed one of the finest points in the game of Poker - the liberty of personal judgement as to every counter put into the pool, except the blind.' (R.F.Foster: Handbook to the Card Games, 1897).
'It is essential for the stability of the game that a player have jacks or better when opening. If this rule is not enforced and a player opens the pot any time he feels like it, one of the greatest factors of skill in the game is automatically eliminated - which depends on knowing that the opener holds at least a pair of jacks.' (J.Scarne: Scarne on Cards, 1949).
The ante and deal are as in Five Card Draw, but in the first betting round, if no one has yet bet, a player who does not have a pair of jacks or better is obliged to pass. Once a player has opened the betting, others are free to call or raise irrespective of what they hold.
Note that the opener does not actually have to hold jacks, or cards higher than jacks. Any hand that beats a pair of tens is sufficient - for example you could open with 5-5-3-3-6 (two pairs) but not with 10-10-A-K-Q.
The draw is the same as in Five Card Draw, except that if the player who opened the betting discards cards that formed part of the qualification to open, this must be announced and the discarded cards kept separate from the cards discarded by other players. This is known as splitting openers. For example a player might discard the Q from Q-Q-10-7-6 in the hope of getting a flush, especially if some of the other players seemed to have good hands.
The second round of betting and the showdown are as in Five Card Draw. When the pot is awarded, the player who split openers must show the discarded card(s) to prove that the opening requirement was satisfied.
If no one has a good enough hand to open (or if those that do choose not to open), then the cards are thrown in and it is the next player's turn to deal.
If the opener wins the pot, enough of the opener's hand must be shown to prove that the opener really has jacks or better. This applies even if all the other players fold on the opener's bet. If the opener cannot show a qualifying hand, the opener's hand is dead. The opener cannot win the pot. If there was a showdown, the best of the other hands wins the pot. If everyone else has folded the pool remains for the next deal.
Some play progressive jackpots: if no one opens the minimum requirement for the next deal is increased to a pair of queens, and if this hand too is thrown in then kings and then aces, then back to kings, queens, jacks and so on.
Five Card Draw - Jacks or Better, Trips to Win
The rules are the same as Five Card Draw - Jacks or Better except that a player needs a hand at least as good as three of a kind to win the pot. If the pot is won without a showdown, the winner must expose enough cards to prove that the hand is at least as good as three of a kind. This of course further reduces the scope for bluffing.
If no one has a hand as good as three of a kind after the draw, the pot remains, but the players who folded before the draw are out of the game. The players who did not fold ante again and there is a new deal involving just these players.
Five Card Draw with a Bug
To increase the proportion of good hands, some players add a joker, to make a deck of 53 cards. The joker is not a true wild card but a bug: the holder can use it to represent an ace, or to complete a straight or flush. So for example 9-9-7-7-joker is not a full house but two pairs with an ace kicker.
In this game the highest hand is five aces: A-A-A-A-joker. This beats a straight flush.
When used in a flush the joker represents the highest card not already present, so for example A-K-J-4-2 beats A-10-9-8-joker because the bug represents the K not a second ace.
The bug can be added to any of the above versions: California (Guts) Draw, Jacks or Better or Trips to Win.
Five Card Draw with Deuces Wild
In this variation of Jacks or Better, the four deuces (twos) are wild cards. A deuce can be used as any card the holder needs to complete a hand. The highest hand type is Five of a Kind, which is better than a Straight Flush.
Except when making Five of a Kind, a wild card cannot be used to represent a card that is already present in a player's hand. The only case where this matters is when making a Flush, in which case if you have (for example) a natural ace, you cannot use a wild card as a second ace.
This variant is found mostly in home poker games and is usually played with the rule that players must declare their own hands (the cards do not 'speak for themselves' - see poker betting and showdown for details).
It is equally possible to play with any other set of cards wild as agreed by the players, or as specified by the dealer in a dealer's choice game. For example you one can play with fives wild, or with one-eyed jacks wild.
Wild Widow
This five-card draw variation is similar to deuces wild except that the wild card is determined during the deal rather than specified in advance. This is done by dealing a card dealt face up to the table, usually after the fourth card has been dealt to each player. The other three cards of the same rank as the face up card are wild.
Diablo
How To Play Guts Poker
This is a five-card draw in which deuces are wild and players are not allowed to draw more than two cards. There is an extra rule that the player who opens (makes the first bet) must either win the pot or match it. In other words, if the pot is won by a player other than the opener, the opener must pay to create a new pot equal to the pot was just won. The deal then passes to the left (with no new antes) and the game is played for this new pot. This continues until a hand is played in which the opener wins the pot.
If this variant is played in a dealer's choice game, it continues until the opener wins the pot, after which the deal passes to the player to the left of the player who called Diablo, who can then select another game. To avoid the pot becoming too large, some groups may prefer to put a fixed limit on the size of the new pot that the opener must create after failing to win.
Jacks Back
This variation of Jacks or Better works well for smaller groups, say 3 to 5 players, in which case there will be many deals on which no one can open.
The game begins like Five Card Draw. Five cards are dealt to each player and there is a betting round, in which Jacks or Better are required to open. If someone opens the betting the game proceeds exactly like normal Five Card Draw, and in a showdown the highest hand wins the pot.
If no one opens in the first betting round the cards are not thrown in. Instead the players keep their cards and the game changes to Ace-to-five Lowball, and there is a new betting round begun by the player to dealer's left. Provided that the betting is opened in this new betting round, the players then have the chance to draw with the aim of making a low hand. After the draw there is another betting round, begun by the first active player to dealer's left. If more than one player stays in there is a showdown in which the lowest poker hand wins. Aces are low and straights and flushes do not count, so the best hand is A-2-3-4-5 (a 'bicycle'). A-A-2-3-4 is a pair, so it is worse than any hand without a pair, but better than any other pair since aces are low.
It may happen that no one opens in the first betting round, and then after the game changes to Lowball everyone checks again. In this case the cards are thrown in and the turn to deal passes to the left.
To avoid the possibility that a hand is thrown in, some clubs have a rule that when the game changes to Lowball the player to dealer's left must place a 'blind' bet, and the betting round begins with the next player to the left. The player who placed the blind may raise after everyone else has acted even if no one did more than call. The betting round after the draw is begun by the first active player to dealer's left as usual.
Some play that check-raising is not allowed in the Lowball part of this game, and also apply the betting sevens rule as for California Lowball.
Jacks Back is often played with a joker, which acts as a bug for high hands. When the game is played for low, the joker is known as a fitter, and it represents the lowest card not already present in the player's hand. Other forms of Lowball Draw Poker are described on the Lowball page.
All for One and One for All
In this game the drawing and betting can continue until the deck is all but exhausted.
Antes are placed and five cards are dealt face down to each player. There is a betting round.
Now there is a drawing round. Each active player, beginning to dealer's left, can either:
- stand pat, or
- discard one card face down and receive a replacement, or
- discard all five cards face down and receive a new five-card hand.
The drawing round is followed by another betting round.
This process is repeated: there is a series of drawing rounds, each begun by the player to the left of the one who began the previous drawing round. Each drawing round is followed by a betting round.
There are restrictions to ensure that the cards do not run out:
- A player is not allowed to exchange all five cards if this would not leave enough cards for all remaining active players in the current drawing round to exchange one.
- If after a betting round there are fewer cards remaining in the deck than there are active players, there is no more drawing, but a showdown in which the highest hand wins the pot.
32-Card Poker
Sometimes known as Stripped Deck Poker, this version of Five Card Draw is popular in Southern Europe. The 32-card deck consists of cards from Ace (high) to Seven (low) in each suit. The main differences from normal Five Card Draw are as follows:
- Because a flush is harder to make than with a 52-card pack, it ranks above a full house and below four of a kind.
- When used as a low card, Ace is adjacent to Seven, so A-7-8-9-10 is a low straight (or straight flush).
- There is a ranking of suits, usually hearts (highest), diamonds, clubs, spades (lowest). When hands are otherwise equal, the suit of the highest card in the combination is compared. For example when two players have equal pairs with equal kickers, the pair containing the heart will win (the suits of the kickers don't count).
- The maximum number of players is five: usually there are four players or fewer.
Variants
The four-player versions of Italian Poker and Turkish Poker are forms of 32-card poker with some special rules.
The following variant is found in Bosnia and Herzegovina, and perhaps other places. A player who asks to exchange four cards discards four and is first dealt three cards face down to look at. Then the dealer deals one card face up and one face down, and the player must choose which of these to take as the fourth card. If the face up card is chosen the face down card is discarded unseen.
Seven Card Draw Poker
This variant is not widespread but it is played to a minor extent in the Netherlands. It is seen as a novelty game with a greater element of risk than 5 card draw, in that players have a better chance to make a high ranking combination. Because of the larger number of cards dealt, this game does not work well with more than four players.
Before the deal, the player to dealer's left places a small blind, and the next player to the left a big blind. The size of the blinds is agreed in advance - the small blind should be half the value of the big blind. The dealer then deals seven cards to each player and there is a first round of betting beginning to the left of the big blind.
After the betting round each surviving player in turn, beginning to the left of the player who placed the big blind, has one opportunity to discard from zero to four cards and obtain replacements from the dealer. If the deck runs out during this process, the cards already discarded are shuffled to a make new deck from which replacement cards can be dealt to the remaining player(s).
After everyone has had a chance to exchange there is a second betting round beginning with the player to dealer's left. As usual, it is possible just to check, but if anyone wishes to bet, the minimum is twice the amount of the final bet in the first betting round (twice the big blind if no one raised in the first round).
In the showdown, each surviving player discards two cards and keeps five. The best five-card poker hand wins the pot.
Variant: this game is often played with an ante placed by all players, in addition to the small and large blinds.
Rules of Seven Card Draw Poker in Dutch are available on the Pokeren Online site.
Bourré (also commonly known as Bouré and Boo-Ray) is a trick-takinggamblingcard game primarily played in the Acadiana region of Louisiana in the United States of America. It is also played in the Greek island of Psara, with the name Boureki (Μπουρέκι in Greek). The game's closest relatives are probably Spades and Euchre; like many regional games, Bourré sports many variant rules for both gameplay and betting considerations.
Object[edit]
The object of Bourré is to take a majority of the tricks in each hand and thereby claim the money in the pot. If a player cannot take a majority of tricks, the secondary goal is to keep from bourréing, or taking no tricks at all. A bourré usually comes at a high penalty, including matching the amount of money in the pot.
Rules[edit]
The game is played with a standard 52-card deck, aces high and two to seven players. With seven players, only three cards may be discarded (so as to not have to re-use them for later players). After every player antes, the dealer passes out five cards to each player, one at a time. In a traditional game, the dealer flips their own fifth card – the last dealt – and that card's suit is considered trumps (in Boureki kozia or atoy). As in Spades, the chosen suit beats all others; a two of trumps is 'higher' in rank than an ace of any other suit.
After the deal, each player (starting to the dealer's left and continuing clockwise) states an intent to play. Many variants require an additional ante at this point. Those who are not playing in the hand fold; those cards are collected by the dealer.
Once every player has stated intent, the dealer asks those still in the game (in the same order as before) how many new cards they desire. They can take any number from zero to five, discarding an equal amount from their original set; their discards go in a separate pile and the dealer hands them as many new cards as they discarded. If the main stock is depleted before all players have been serviced, the dealer shuffles the 'folded' hands and deals those; if that stock is depleted as well, the discards are shuffled and used.
Once everyone, including the dealer, has either folded or completed their redraw, the trick-taking phase begins. The first player to the dealer's left who is still in the game starts by playing any card (with few exceptions); rules of play are as follows (a lower-numbered rule overrides any higher-numbered):
- You must play on-suit if possible, even if your highest on-suit card will not beat the highest card in play. Even if a trump has been played on a non-trump lead,
- You must play a trump if you have no on-suit cards, and must 'play to win'. If the only trump played is a three and you hold the two and ace of trumps but no cards of the lead suit, you must play the ace of trumps. If you cannot 'play to win' then it is not required to play a trump card that cannot possibly win the trick. Some variants override the 'play to win' rule and require a trump card to be played regardless.
- If you have neither cards of the lead suit nor trumps, you may play any card. This is an off card and is effectively lower than a two of the lead suit.
The winner of a given round or trick collects the cards and places them face-up in front of them, then leads with another card. Play proceeds until all five tricks have been completed.
- If a single player has taken more tricks than any other player, that player has won the hand and may take all of the winnings in the pot.
- If more than one player ties for the most tricks, this is a split pot. With five tricks, the only possible splits are 2-2-1 and 1-1-1-1-1. On a split pot, the winnings stay on the table.
- Any player who took no tricks or reneged during play— that is, did not follow the rules properly—has bourréd and must match the pot for the next round instead of adding the usual ante. For example, if there are five red chips in the pot at the end of a hand and someone has bourréd, they must put five red chips (or their equivalent) into the pot for the next round.
Deal then passes to the left.
Blood And Guts Card Game Rules
There are complex rules about forced plays; a simple example is when someone who has just taken their second trick holds the ace of trumps. Since the ace of trumps is unbeatable, they must play it as their next card. Similar occurrences are when a player has taken one trick and has both ace and king or (more complex) ace, queen and jack. This is sometimes called the 'cinch win' rule. If it is a 'cinch' that you will win, you must win immediately by laying down the winning cards all at once. While the rules themselves are simple in theory, details about forced plays can make Bourré challenging for even a skilled player.
The 'must play to win' rule can have contentious results if a player is playing 'nice', trying to keep others from bourréing. Most games disallow such 'nice' plays; players must attempt to bourré as many other players as possible. As Bourré is a game with imperfect information and gamesmanship is expected to trump rules-lawyering, care should be applied to any analysis of rounds when looking for such 'nice' plays.
Variations[edit]
Variations in rules of Bourré abound, possibly due to its nature as a regional game. Perhaps most common is the introduction of a pot limit, which caps the total amount a single bourré or renege can cost a given player. In some games, it is common for the dealer to ante for all of the players; this simplifies trying to determine whether individuals have anteed. In a sense, the dealer is paying for his face-up trump. In this variation, for a five-person, one-dollar-ante game, the dealer of each hand would ante five dollars. A common point of dissent is whether a player who holds trumps but not the lead suit should be forced to play a trump if he cannot beat a higher trump already on the table; while consensus seems to be that the 'play to win' rule applies, groups of players are known to require a player to play trump even though the player cannot possibly win the trick. Punishments for misplay range from simple retraction (good for new players), retraction-and-renege, or just a renege, which can lead to the misplaying individual attempting to bourré one or more other players. The default ante amount is understandably variable and the second ante is fairly common.
In the news[edit]
A game of Bourré apparently sparked the dispute that led to NBA star Gilbert Arenas's suspension. During an overnight flight from Phoenix to Washington, DC, on December 19, 2009, Arenas needled teammate Javaris Crittenton for losing over $1,000 in a game of Bourré. The two exchanged words, with Arenas joking that he would blow up Crittenton's car and Crittenton saying he would shoot Arenas in his surgically repaired knee. Two days later Arenas brought four guns to the Washington Wizards' locker room and left them, with a sign saying 'Pick One,' at Crittenton's locker. The incident, combined with Arenas's trivialization of it in the media, led to his suspension from the NBA on January 6, 2010.[1]
A game of Bourré also sparked a fight on the Memphis Grizzlies' team plane between NBA teammates OJ Mayo and Tony Allen in January 2011, when Mayo refused to settle a debt from a game.[2]
Resources[edit]
- Guidry, Preston (1988). Graeff, Benny; Lantier, Ivy (eds.). Official Rules and Techniques of the Cajun Card Game Bourré (boo-ray). Louisiana: National Cajun Bourré Association.
- Engler, Henry J (1964). Rules and Techniques of Bourré.
References[edit]
- ^Washington Post, A01, January 7, 2010
- ^Grizzlies Fight on Plane