How to Play 2-7 Triple Draw

What is 2-7 Triple Draw?

2-7 Triple Draw is a draw poker game that requires players to make as low a hand as possible. This is quite opposite to the goal of other games like Texas Hold'em and Omaha, and so 2-7 Triple Draw is a great poker variant for anyone who fancies trying something a little different.

To summarize the game in a nutshell, your aim here is to make the lowest hand possible. You'll be dealt five cards and given three opportunities to draw, which means to exchange cards that you hold for new ones. There are four betting rounds, and if two or more players get all the way to the showdown, the player with the best (which means the lowest) hand wins.

Where to Play 2-7 Triple Draw

2-7 Triple Draw can be played for real money at many land-based poker rooms, as well as at most online poker rooms. Unfortunately, not all states allow poker rooms to operate, and some only allow land-based ones. Your first task should therefore be to find out what the legal situation is in the state you want to bet in. Visit our state pages and you will be able to see exactly what forms of gambling are legal and what aren't.

Assuming that the law allows online poker rooms to operate in your state, you'll probably find that most of them will offer 2-7 Triple Draw. Take a look at our online poker sites page to read up on each operator that you have access to. If you're keen to sign up with a poker room as quickly as possible, be sure to check out the recommended poker rooms highlighted below:

Recommended Poker Sites

The Best 2-7 Triple Draw Poker Hands

As we said earlier, the aim of 2-7 Triple Draw is to make the lowest hand possible. This makes hands that are desirable in a game of Texas Hold'em (Pair, Two Pair, Three-of-a-Kind, Straight, Flush, Full House, Four-of-a-Kind, Straight Flush, and Royal Flush) ones that should be avoided at all costs in 2-7 Triple Draw. Instead, you want to make the lowest High Card hand that you can.

The table below shows the top 16 hands that are most likely to help you win the pot in this game. Note that all of these hands are unsuited, and are presented in order of how good they are. That means the first hand (7-5-4-3-2) is the best possible hand in 2-7 Triple Draw. In fact, it's the one that the game is named after.  You should also note that aces are high in this game.

How to Play 2-7 Triple Draw

The game of 2-7 Triple Draw can best be discussed in terms of each hand having seven distinct stages. Not every hand will go all the way to the seventh stage (the showdown) but many of them will, so here's how you can expect a typical hand to unfold, stage-by-stage.

Posting the Blinds

As in many other poker games, 2-7 Triple Draw begins with the posting of the blinds. One player will have the dealer button and the two players to his left will post a small blind and a big blind. A big blind is generally equal in value to the minimum bet, while the small blind is half as much.

These blinds serve to 'seed' the pot and get the hand started. When the hand is finished, the button is passed to the player to the left of the button. It continues to shift one position to the left after every hand. This ensures that all players will post one small blind and one big blind for every rotation of the button around the table.

The Deal

Five cards are dealt to each player. These cards will be dealt face-down to you in a land-based poker room so that no other player can see them. When you're playing at an online poker room your own five cards will be shown clearly on your computer screen, but none of the other players at the virtual table will be able to see them. In the same way, each of your opponents will be able to see their own five cards, but you won't see any of them. 

Initial Betting Round

When all players have received their five cards, a round of betting will take place. The first player to bet is the one sitting to the left of the player who posted the big blind, and play progresses around the table in a clockwise direction. When it is your turn to bet, you will have three main options, and those will be to call, raise or fold.

• Call means to bet the same amount as the player before you. Or, if you are the first player to bet in the hand, to bet the same amount as the big blind. Calling is the least you need to do to stay in the hand and have a chance of winning.

• Raise means to bet more than the player before you. Players after you will need to bet the same amount to call it, and when they have done so the players before you will also have to add money to match your bet if they want to remain in the hand. 

• Fold means to choose not to participate in the hand. When you fold, you won't have a chance of winning the pot, even if you have previously contributed to it. However, you won't have to bet either, so if you have a poor hand it can often be a good idea to fold it.

First Draw and Betting

All players in turn will now have the opportunity to discard as many of their five cards as they want and receive (or 'draw') new cards to replace them. The aim here is for you to try and improve your hand, so the number of cards you choose to draw will depend on how strong your original hand was. Of course, you don't have to draw any cards if you don't want to, so if you were dealt a strong hand to begin with, you can hold on to it.

When all players have drawn, another round of betting takes place. This - and subsequent betting rounds - proceeds in the same way as the first one.

Second Draw and Betting

Players are now given a second opportunity to draw. This also works in the same way as the first drawing round. When all players have drawn the cards they want, another round of betting takes place.

Third Draw and Betting

A third and final opportunity to draw cards is given to players at the table. When all players have had this opportunity, a final round of betting takes place.

Showdown

It can often happen that at least one or two players will fold their hands in any of the betting rounds that have just been described. If so many players fold that just one player is left in the hand, that player will win the pot automatically, no matter what cards he is holding. 

If there are at least two players remaining in the hand after the final round of betting, their cards will be revealed. This is the showdown, and the winning player will be the one who shows the best hand according to the 2-7 Triple Draw rankings discussed earlier. Should more than one player have the same best hand, the pot will be divided between them.

2-7 Triple Draw Poker Tips and Strategies

You now know how to play 2-7 Triple Draw poker, but if you only rely on luck you aren't likely to fare particularly well at the tables. If you want to play to win, you'll need to work on your game. Here are a few key tips and strategies to help you do that in the most effective way possible.

Study the Game

Just as playing good tennis involves a lot more than being able to hit the ball with a racket, so playing good 2-7 Triple Draw poker involves more than knowing what the best hand is. That being the case, we suggest that you study the game in earnest if you intend to play it on a regular basis. There are more than enough poker books out there to choose from that cover this game in some depth, so shop around for a couple of them and spend some time learning about starting hand selection, pot odds, playing your position effectively, and so on.

Be Selective

Knowing which hands to play and which to fold is central to becoming a winning poker player. This is something that you'll learn about in the poker books that you study, and it's a good idea to commit good starting hands to memory so that you can train yourself to make the right decision automatically. In the meantime, consider having a cheat sheet handy if you play online, as that will give you something to refer to in your early days at the tables.

Play Tight Aggressive

The best approach to 2-7 Triple Draw poker is to play with a tight-aggressive style. This means being selective about the hands that you play (as mentioned a moment ago) but then playing the hands that you do play with a good amount of aggression. We're not talking about emotional or interpersonal aggression, of course, but aggression in the way you raise or re-raise rather than simply call. Playing in this way won't guarantee that you will win, and you should always moderate your aggression to suit the strength of your hand, but a tight-aggressive approach is almost always better than a loose-passive one in this game.

Practice for Free

Explore the lobby of your chosen online poker room and the chances are high that you'll see tables that allow you to play 2-7 Triple Draw for free. These use chips simply for keeping score, and they can be an excellent place to start playing without risk. Don't spend too long at the free play tables, but just long enough to get the hang of the game so that you can advance to real money games with the confidence that comes from having played the game before.