How Many Cards Can You Discard In Poker

4/12/20224/12/2022

How to Play 5-Card Draw Poker. If you have played any other form of poker, 5-card draw rules are similar in that the aim of the game is to make the best five-card poker hand. You will play with part of a standard poker deck consisting of only the cards 2 through 6 (20 cards), while your friend will play with the remaining cards (32 cards). You will play a game of poker in which each player is dealt 5 cards and there is no 'discard and replace' phase. The normal rules for poker hand superiority apply.

It’s a weekend and you and a friend or family member are wondering if you can play a game of poker with just the 2 of you. I have been playing for over 10 years and can give you a definitive answer.

Can you play poker with 2 players? Poker can be played with only two players. It is called heads-up. Here are the two player rules:

The dealer is the small blind and the other player posts the big blind. Players take turns being the dealer.
The first card is dealt to the player in the big blind.
The Dealer goes first before the flop and the Big Blind goes first after the flop.

Let’s cover a few more common questions that players typically have about 2 player poker in greater detail.

What Are the 2 Player Poker Rules?

Now that you are set up to play, let’s cover how to play 2 player poker. Here are the basic rules that you will need to know in order to play your game.

You may want to keep this page open in your browser in case questions come up during play.

1. How do the blinds work in 2 player poker?

How the blinds work is probably the most confusing thing in heads-up poker. However, once you get the hang of it it’s not that difficult to remember since there are only a couple of differences between 6-max or full-ring rules.

Who Is the Big Blind Who Is the Small Blind in Heads-Up Poker?

This is the most common question I get about 2 player poker.

The big blind is always the player who does not have the dealer button in front of him or her. That means that the person dealing is always the small blind.

How Do We Determine Who Gets the Button First at the Start of the Game?

The easiest and most fair way to determine who gets to be dealer first is for each player to draw a card from the deck. The high card gets to deal first.

2. How Are the Cards Dealt in 2 Player Poker?

Which Blind Gets Dealt to First Before the Flop?

The big blind gets the first card and the dealer gets the second card in heads-up play. The easy way to remember this is that the dealer never deals to his or her self first.

Can the Same Person Deal Every Hand?

It’s true that sometimes one person is better at dealing. In this case, it’s okay for the same person to deal every hand.

Just make sure that you move the dealer button each hand. It would be highly unfair if the same person had to play the big blind every single hand!

3. Who Goes First When Only Two Players Are Playing?

I remember walking up to observe the heads-up match between two friends in pub poker. I quickly realized that they were following the opposite order of play that they were supposed to.

I did not want to embarrass them so I kept quiet. It was apparent everyone else didn’t want to as well since none of the 10-15 observers said anything!

Who Goes First Before the Flop?

Pre-flop, the dealer always acts first in 2 player poker.

This rule is exactly the same as pre-flop however, it is easy to get wrong for inexperienced players. The easy way to remember it is that the big blind player acts last before the flop in 6 or 9-handed games, and it makes since to work the same way in heads-up.

Who Goes First After the Flop in Heads-Up?

This rule is also exactly the same for normal poker games. The dealer gets to always go last on the flop.

The biggest perk of playing on the dealer button is that you get to act last and have more information than your opponents. This is especially powerful in heads-up since the big blind can never act last.

What If the Dealer Open Folds in 2 Player Games?

When the Dealer decides to not play his or her hand before the flop, the small blind is relinquished to the player in the big blind. The dealer button then moves and the next hand begins.

Is it better to play Heads-Up, Cash Games or Tournaments?

Deciding what format to play in 2 player poker all comes down to personal preference. Each type of game has its perks.

Why Play Heads-up Cash Games?

There are a couple of reasons people might choose cash games over tournaments:

Blinds Do Not Rise – Perhaps the biggest benefit of 2 person cash games is that you don’t have to worry about the blinds going up like they do in tournaments. You don’t need a special tournament clock, you can just choose your stake level and play indefinitely without having to adjust your style to the rising blinds.
You Don’t Need Poker Chips – In tournaments, you really need to use poker chips that you can “color up” as the game goes on. That means to add higher value chips to compensate for the bigger stakes. Instead, you can use real coins or even paper money to play cash games.
Cash Games Take More Skill – If you really want to practice and improve at poker, then the best way is through cash games. Once the blinds rise in tournaments, the game becomes more and more about who is the luckiest person.

Why Play Heads-up Tournaments?

Even though I am a cash game specialist, when I play heads-up I actually prefer tournaments. Here is why:

There Are Logical End Points – While cash games drag on and on, a tournament always ends up with one person having all the chips. You can then decide whether to start anew or call it a night. So, if you want to play best of 3 or best of 5, you have a better idea of when the night will end and can plan for it. For this reason, it’s also a great format for hosting a home poker tournament with multiple players.
Tournaments Tend to Be Much More Exciting – There’s nothing more fun in poker than getting to the shove-fold phase of a tournament or sit and go. Chips change hands rapidly and anyone can win at that point. Who doesn’t love a race for all the chips?
The Games Are Usually More Fun for Beginners – Many people that get into poker are used to watching the World Poker Tour or the World Series of Poker. Therefore, tournaments are what they are familiar with and likely to understand better.

If you don’t have poker chips, there are likely plenty of poker chip substitutes lying around the house or office.

A Fun Alternative Format: Play Short-Stacked Cash Games

Another idea is to mix both a tournament and cash game feel by playing short stacked cash games.

The way it works is that each player starts with 20, 30, or 40 big blinds and then play cash games. The blinds do not rise, but there is still plenty of heavy pre-flop action with lots of reraise shoving.

Post-flop also plays a lot easier as a short stack. Top pair is an easy hand to get all-in with when short whereas it can be difficult to play when deed-stacked.

What Is the Best 2 Player Poker Strategy?

The biggest adjustment when playing heads-up poker is that marginal hands go way up in value. 3rd pair or even high card Ace can often win at showdown.

So, loosen up and don’t let your opponent run you over if he or she bets a lot! Conversely, you should bet often when you have any piece of the board or a credible bluff. There is a good chance your opponent might fold a better hand or pay you off with a worse hand.

What 2 Player Games Can We Play Besides Texas Hold’Em?

If you are tired of heads-up No-Limit Hold’em and want to mix in another game occasionally, there are several good options:

Pot Limit Omaha: In PLO, the heads-up rules are exactly the same as Hold’em except that both players get four hold cards. You also have to use both cards at showdown. Having one Diamond in your hand does not make a flush on a four Diamond board in PLO.
5-Card Draw: This is the traditional “old-fashioned” game that most people used to learn poker before No-Limit Hold-em became the dominant game. Both players have a designated ante that they pay before the cards are dealt. Then, you simply deal out 5 cards to each heads-up player. Instead of having a flop, turn, and river there is instead two betting rounds. Once when you get your initial cards and then after a discard round. You may discard up to 3 cards (4 if you have an Ace) and get those cards replaced by the dealer. There is then another betting round and then the cards are shown and a dealer determined. You can, of course, fold any time during the hand and only lose the money you have invested up to that point.
7-Card Stud: This game is similar to draw except that you start with two cards down and one card up. There is then a betting round. Afterward, another card is turned up one by one with a betting round happening in between. Once both heads-up players each have 7 cards, the dealing is complete and showdown can be reached.

Accessories to Make Matches Even Better

If you want to make your games more classy, then I recommend picking up quality accessories. I wrote recommendation articles for each category, just click the links to learn more:

Playing Cards– My personal favorite is Copag, what’s yours?
Poker Chips– I prefer a higher-end set, but there are plenty of good budget poker chip sets available as well.
Poker Table– I like roll up poker table mats for ease of storage, but that’s just me.

Final Thoughts

Playing heads-up only happens in tournaments if you are the last two players left in the field. However, 2 player poker is something you can do for fun either as a cash game or tournament at home.

If you want to read more about heads-up poker, I wrote a detailed article on the heads-up poker rules for Texas Hold’em. Thanks for stopping by!

Introduction

This is a simple draw and discard game, suitable for players of all ages. Players have a three card hand and the aim is to collect cards in a single suit worth 31 points or as near as possible to that total. It is played in the USA, the UK and perhaps other places. In the USA it has various names including Scat, 31, Blitz, Cabbage, Cadillac, Kitty, High Hat and Geronimo. Some of these names can cause confusion with other games:

This Scat has no connection whatever with the German national card game Skat;
There are at least two other games called 31:
- the German game 31, also known as Schwimmen, Schnauz or Hosen 'runter, which is like the game on this page, except that cards are swapped with a central pool of three cards, rather than using a draw and discard mechanism;
- the Greek banking game 31, which is similar to 21 except that the object is to draw cards adding as near as possible to 31 without exceeding it.
This Blitz is not to be confused with Dutch Blitz, which is a version of Racing Demon, sometimes played with special cards.

Eric Kent learned the game in the late 70's from older siblings, who had in turn learned it from friends visiting from the UK, and they called it Ride the Bus, and used a somewhat different method of keeping score.

Players

From 2 to 9 or more people can play. Eric Kent suggests that the game is perhaps best when played with 3 players, but it should also work well with a larger group.

Cards and their value

A standard 52 card deck is used. For scoring hands, the Ace is worth 11 points, the Kings, Queens, and Jacks are worth 10, and all other cards are worth their pip value.

The value of a three card hand is calculated by adding up the value of the cards held in any one suit. So if you have three cards of the same suit, you can add up all three. If only two cards are in the same suit you can add those, or use the value of the odd card if it is higher than the sum of the other two. If you have three different suits the value of your hand is the value of the highest card in it. The maximum hand value is 31, consisting of the ace and two ten-point cards in the same suit.

Examples:

K-8-5: value 23 (sum of all 3 cards)

Q-9-8: value 17 (9 + 8)

A-6-4: value 11 (the ace is worth more than the spades)

J-7-4: value 10 (the jack)

Deal

Determine the first dealer in any manner you desire. The turn to deal passes on clockwise after each hand. The cards are shuffled and are dealt out one at a time, starting with the player to dealer's left and continuing clockwise until everyone has a hand of three cards.

The next card is turned face up on the table to start the discard pile, and the remaining undealt cards are placed face down next to it to form the draw pile or stock. During play, the discard pile is always kept 'squared up' so that only the top card is visible and available to be taken.

Play

The player to dealer's left begins and the turn to play passes clockwise around the table. A normal turn consists of:

drawing the top card either from the stock pile (without showing it to the other players) or from the discard pile;
discarding one card face up on top of the discard pile.

Note that if you choose to take the top card from the discard pile, it is illegal to discard the same card, leaving the position unchanged. You must keep the card you took and discard one of the cards that was previously in your hand. However, if you draw the top card of the stock, you are free to discard the card that you drew onto the discard pile, leaving your hand unchanged.

Knocking

If at the start of your turn, you believe that your hand is not the lowest and that at least one other player will be unable to beat your hand even if they are allowed one more turn, you can knock instead of drawing a card. Knocking ends your turn. You must keep the hand you had at the start of that turn, but each other player gets one final turn to draw and discard. After the player to the knocker's right has discarded, all players reveal their cards. Each player decides which suit is their point suit, and totals up their cards in that suit.

The player with the lowest hand value loses a life. If there is a tie involving the knocker, the other player(s) lose a life, but the knocker is safe. If the knocker's score is lower than that of every other player, the knocker loses two lives. If there is a tie for lowest between two or more players other than the knocker, then both (all) of those players lose a life.

There is just one case where it is possible to pick up your own discard. This happens when there are only two players left in the game and your opponent knocks. The card you discarded just before the knock is still on top of the pile, so it is now available for you to take back if you want it - for example if you had just broken up a suit for tactical reasons you can now restore it.

Declaring 31

If after drawing and discarding a player achieves hand value of 31, they show their cards immediately and claim victory. In this case all the other players lose a life. A player who makes 31 after another player has knocked still declares it and every other player including the the knocker loses one life.

A player who is dealt 31 in their original three cards declares it - there is no play and all the other players lose a life. If it happens that two or more players get 31 on the initial deal then all the players other than those with 31 lose.

A player who has 31 in their hand and does not declare it as soon as they make it or are dealt it cannot claim it later. An undeclared 31 in a player's hand effectively counts as 30 - if another player declares 31 the holder of the undeclared 31 will lose a life along with the other players.

Draw pile exhausted

If the stock runs out the play can continue as long as each player wishes to take the previous player's diuscard. If the player whose turn it is does not wish to draw the top discard, the play ends and all players show their cards and the hand is scored. If no one has knocked then the player who has the lowest score loses one life, or if there is a tie all the players with the lowest score lose a life.

Scoring

The normal way of scoring in Scat is that each player begins the game with three pennies. When you lose a life, you have to put one of your pennies into the kitty in the centre of the table. If you knock and lose, having the sole lowest hand, you pay two pennies (if you have that many).

If someone declares 31, all the other players have to put a penny in the kitty. If someone declares 31 after another player has knocked, the knocker just pays one penny, like everyone else.

If you have no money left, having lost all three of your pennies, you are said to be 'on the county' (meaning receiving charity from the county, etc.), or 'on poverty', 'on your face', 'on your honour', 'on welfare' or 'floating'. If you lose while on the county, you are out of the game. If you lose two lives when you only have one penny you are also out of the game. The game continues until only one player has not been eliminated, and that player is the winner.

There is a theoretical possibility of a draw if all the remaining players are on the county, the draw pile runs out before anyone knocks or makes 31, and all remaining players have equal scores. If this unlikely situation were to arise and it was necessary to determine a winner, the hand would have to be replayed.

Variations

Some play that in case of a tie for lowest score between a knocker and one or more other players, the knocker loses two lives while the other players in the tie lose one life. If a player declares 31 after a knock, the player with 31 is safe, knocker loses two lives and the other players each lose one life. In this variant it is possible for all the remaining players to lose their last life simultaneously, in which case those players play another hand (in which they will all be on their honour / on the county) to break the tie.

Some play that in a tie involving the knocker, only the knocker loses.

Some play that a knocker who has the lowest score only loses one life, not two.

Some play that 3-of-a-kind of any rank counts as 30 (or 30.5) points. When it counts 30, it ties with three ten-point cards of the same suit. If it counts 30.5, it beats all hands except a 31.

Rarely, people play that any straight-flush (three cards of the same suit in sequence) is worth 30 (except for A-K-Q, which is 31).

Some play that there is a minimum score with which you are allowed to knock - for example 17, 19 or 21. Some play that a knock is only allowed by a player who has three cards of the same suit.

Some players have recommended a variant in which instead of drawing, the very first player, to the left of the dealer, has the option to call a 'hammer'. This is also known as 'knocking under the gun'. Everyone must show their cards - no one gets to draw a card - and the hand is scored exactly like a knock. If the first player, the one who called for the cards to be exposed, has the lowest hand value, they lose two lives - otherwise the player with the lowest score loses a life. If anyone was lucky enough to be dealt 31 all the other players lose a life. Obviously, this round of the game takes very little time, thus speeding up the game. Some play a version of this known as 'throw-down' or 'shotgun' where the first player must decide before looking at their cards whether or not to call for an immediate showdown in which everyone reveals their cards and the worst hand loses as above.

Kent Hamilton describes a variant Cadillac in which each player begins with four nickels. A player losing a life pays a nickel to the pot, a player who has no nickels is on poverty and a player who loses a life when on poverty is out of the game. If the knocker ties with one or more other players for lowest hand the knocker loses two lives and the others lose nothing. A hand worth 31 is declared by calling 'Cadillac' and every other player loses a life. Three Aces make a 'Grand Cadillac' worth 33 points - this is declared in the same way as a Cadillac and each other player loses a life. Three-of-a-kind of a rank other than Aces is worth 30 points.

Angie Barry described a variant called GIN is which a knock is a promise to have the highest score. The three lives are represented by the letters of the word 'gin' and a player who has all three letters is out of the game. After a knock each of the other players takes a turn and if after this the knocker's hand is highest or equal highest, everyone except the knocker gets a letter. If another player beats the knocker, the knocker gets a letter. A player who has 31 declares it and everyone else gets a letter. In this variant a three-of-a-kind is worth 30.5 points.

Ride the Bus has a different way of keeping track of wins and losses. All players start out 'seated' at the back of the bus. Players who lose a hand move toward the front in a sequence. The sequence is usually: first, you stand at the back of the bus, then you are in the middle of the bus, then at the front of the bus, then you are on the stairs, then you are off the bus. Players who are no longer 'riding the bus' are out of play. Winning a hand simply keeps your position; you do not move back a step if you win a hand.

The scoring system of Ride the Bus can be changed to suit how many hands people want to play. Because this game is very casual, this often happens in the middle of the game by mutual agreement of all players; for example, a player who is 'on the stairs' loses another hand and would normally be out of play, but since everyone is having so much fun, it is declared that the player is 'on the second step' or 'asking the driver to stop' instead of out. If extra levels are introduced, they apply to all players.

On the site Cribbage.ca is a description of a French Canadian version of 31 in which after a player has knocked and everyone else has taken a turn, the player with the highest score is awarded one point. If there is a tie the player who did not knock wins it. Presumably if there is a tie between two players neither of whom knocked they get a point each. A player who makes 31 declares it and score a point immediately. The game apparently goes on until someone reaches a score of 31 - a long game. Jeffrey Jacobs describes a version of this game in which players are not allowed to knock unless they have three cards of the same suit. If two players have equally high scores the tie is broken if possible by looking at the ranks of the cards as in poker - for example A-10-9 beats K-Q-J, K-10-9 beats Q-J-9 and K-J-7 beats K-9-8.