Which are the most amusing poker variations?
As poker fans, we are truly living on very special times. The game of poker has never been more popular that what it is now. Far from being considered as merely a form of entertainment, poker has reached a high level of professionalism and competitive legitimacy. Poker players nowadays are endorsed and have the opportunity to play ridiculously high stake tournaments. Plus, the incursion of poker in television and the internet has drawn millions of new fans to what it used to be a relatively small circle.
However, many new fans of poker do not know all the different variations of the game that exist. Generally, they are mostly familiar with stud, Texas Hold’em, seven card stud, and Omaha. And, in my opinion, that’s a shame! Precisely, one of the things I love the most about poker is that is a game that lends itself to a variety of styles, rules, environments, and players. So, I have gather up what I think are the most entertaining poker variations so you can give them a try next time you sit down to play with your friends or family.
Seven-Card No-Peek
In this variation of seven card stud, the idea is to, as the name say, bet without peeking at you hand first and beat the reigning best hand. The dealer will deal each of the players 7 cards face down. If any of the players as much as takes a look at any of his dealt cards, that person is disqualified on the spot.
This game has no community cards, so players have to form the best hand with the cards that they were dealt. The player at the left of the dealer turns his first card and the first round of betting starts. The second player turns his first card and if it does not beat the 1st player’s first card, player 2 needs to keep turning cards until something in his cards beats the 1st player’s first card. If it does, then he becomes the one to beat. If it doesn’t, then he has what is called a dead hand and becomes immediately disqualified.
Crazy Pineapple
Although the game has little to do with the tangy tropical fruit, its silly name is only a preview of the fun that it contains. This is a community card game, which means that there are a determined number of cards which ALL the players will share in order to form the best hand. The variation here is that the players are given three cards instead of two. Why? They will eventually need to discard one of them.
The game goes like this: Every player is dealt three cards and bets without seeing any of the community cards. After the dealer shows the flop, the players must discard one of the initial three cards that were given and continue to play the game in the regular fashion with betting rounds before the river and the big reveal.
After every new card/hand leader, there is a round of betting/folding (no checking) which is really hard for the people that have not had the chance to look at their hand yet. But this is exactly what makes the game so interesting. It is a played on a do or die fashion. At the end the person with the best hand takes all the pot! Ka-ching!
Follow the Queen
This game is a big hit among seven card stud players since it shifts the pace of the game every round. The wild card factor if this game is an excellent way to keep players on their toes. The game is called Follow the Queen because if a Queen is dealt, the card that follows immediately will become a wild card and the rest of the cards of its same rank.
The game begins with an ante bet. Afterwards the dealer deals two cards down and one face up. If a Queen appears, the cad after that is wild then. The person with the lower card will start the betting session before the next card is dealt. The betting rounds will be the same as in a regular seven card stud. When new cards are dealt, if a Queen appears again, the card after that will be the new wild and so on and so forth. If no Queens appear, then there are no wild cards in the game and you play it like a typical seven card stud.
Besides these options, there are many more poker variations you can try in order to mix up your poker play and learn more about the game you love. As a special treat, Palace of Chance offers many poker alternations like Joker Poker or Loose Deuces for you to get even more fun out of your regular poker play.
