Badugi
Badugi: The Draw Poker Game Where the Lowest Hand Wins
Badugi is one of the most unusual poker variants. It is a draw game: there are no community cards, each player is dealt four face-down cards and can exchange some of them three times. The lowest hand made of cards of different suits and different ranks wins. A four-card hand like this is called a "badugi".
The game comes from Korea and became known through mixed games at mid and high stakes. Badugi appeals to players who want a break from Hold'em and Omaha: the rules are simple, while decisions revolve around reading your opponents' draws and playing position.
IMAGE PROMPT (aspect 3:2, width 75%)
ALT: The perfect Badugi hand: ace, deuce, three and four of different suits
PROMPT: Photorealistic close-up of four playing cards on a dark green poker table: ace of clubs, two of diamonds, three of hearts, four of spades, fanned neatly, a few chips beside them, soft moody lighting, no text, no logosBadugi Rules
The table seats 2 to 8 players and uses a 52-card deck, with a button and two blinds. Badugi is usually played fixed-limit, although pot-limit tables exist too.
Each player receives four face-down cards, followed by the first betting round.
First draw: each player may discard zero to four cards and receive the same number of new ones. Then comes the second betting round.
Second draw and the third betting round.
Third draw and the final betting round, after which the remaining players go to showdown.
In the limit version, bets in the first two rounds use the small bet, and in the last two the big bet (twice as large).
How Hands Are Compared
In Badugi the ace is the lowest card, and straights and flushes do not count. Only cards of different suits and different ranks count towards your hand: if two cards share a suit or a rank, the higher one does not play.
A badugi (four-card hand) always beats any three-card hand, and a three-card hand beats any two-card hand.
Between hands of the same size, the highest cards are compared: the hand with the lower top card wins. A seven-high badugi beats an eight-high badugi.
The best possible hand is A-2-3-4 in four different suits.
Example: A♣ 2♦ 5♥ 5♠ is the three-card hand A-2-5, because one of the fives is a duplicate. It loses to any badugi, even K♣ Q♦ J♥ T♠.
IMAGE PROMPT (aspect 16:9, width 50%)
ALT: Badugi hand comparison: a four-card hand beats a three-card hand
PROMPT: Educational infographic comparing Badugi hands: top row shows a four-card rainbow hand K-Q-J-10 of four different suits labeled as winner, bottom row shows A-2-5-5 with one duplicate five crossed out, clean flat vector style, dark background, green check and red cross icons, card ranks only, no other text, no logosStrategy and Tips
Value low cards of different suits. A good start is three cards eight or lower in different suits, needing just one more card.
Watch your opponents' draws. A player drawing one card is usually close to a badugi; a player drawing two or three is far from it. Standing pat (not drawing) signals a made hand or a bluff.
Use your position. The player on the button draws last and sees how many cards everyone else took, which is a huge advantage.
Do not chase to the end. With a two-card hand after the second draw, your chances are usually too slim.
Snow bluff. Standing pat with an unmade hand (snowing) is a classic bluff that works against opponents who are still drawing.
Where to Play Badugi
Badugi is less common than Hold'em and Omaha. In classic rooms you will find it in the mixed games and draw sections, and in club apps Badugi tables appear in individual clubs and unions. Our site's catalog lists venues that run this game.
Badugi is a great way to broaden your poker horizons: you learn the rules in a couple of hands, and the skill of reading opponents pays off in any variant.
