Variants
Short deck poker: hold'em on a stripped deck with a new hand order
Short deck, or 6+ hold'em, removes the cards 2 through 5 from the deck. Fewer cards mean more big hands: straights and sets arrive often, flushes become rare and overtake full houses. Fast, action-heavy and a favourite of high rollers.
- 2 through 5cards removed
- 6 seatsseats
- A-6-7-8-9lowest straight
- beats a full houseflush
Short deck plays like hold'em: two hole cards, five community cards, four betting rounds. The differences: the deck loses 2 through 5, so the ace can bottom a straight A-6-7-8-9; a flush outranks a full house; tables seat 6 seats; antes from every player usually replace blinds, with the button posting double.
What changes in the deck
Thirty-six cards remain, sixes through aces. Everything else follows: pairs, sets and straights become more likely, flushes less - still four suits, but nine cards each instead of thirteen. Hence the flush ranks above the full house.
Hand order in short deck
| Rank | Hold'em | Short deck |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | royal flush | royal flush |
| 2 | straight flush | straight flush |
| 3 | four of a kind | four of a kind |
| 4 | full house | flush |
| 5 | flush | full house |
| 6 | straight | straight |
| 7 | three of a kind | three of a kind |
Some venues rank three of a kind above a straight; the GG network uses the order in the table. Below three of a kind the order is standard.
Antes instead of blinds
Every player posts an ante, the button posts double. Each hand is expensive from the first action, which pushes players to see more flops. Position matters less than in hold\'em: starting hands sit closer in strength and most pre-flop decisions are a call or raise, not a fold.
Who it suits
Players tired of folding in hold\'em, players who enjoy action and accept high variance, and players who already understand hold\'em - skills transfer. Not a first game for a beginner. At GGPoker short deck runs in cash at several stakes and on play chips. Full rankings: Hand rankings.
Keep reading
Texas hold'em
Texas hold'em rules: two hole cards, five community cards, four betting rounds, how the hand is built, positions and blinds, starting hands for beginners and why hold'em is the best first game.
Omaha
Omaha poker rules: four hole cards, a hand from exactly two of them plus three from the board, pot-limit betting, table sizes, PLO-5 and PLO-6, and the mistakes hold'em players make when they switch.
Hand rankings
Poker hand rankings from high card to royal flush: what beats what, how each hand is made, how ties and kickers work, and where the order changes in short deck.
Learn
How to play poker from scratch: hand rankings, Texas hold'em and Omaha rules, short deck, bankroll management - with a plan that takes you to a first real-money table.
The stripped deck in the GGPoker client
Open an account and try short deck on play chips - the hand order sticks within a dozen hands.