English Stud Rules

English Stud is played with a standard 52-card deck with no jokers and no wild cards. Hands are ranked according to the standard poker hand rankings.

No more than six players may take part. The limit exists because every exchange uses a card from the stub, and with more players the deck may run out.

The object of the game is to win the pot, either by holding the best five-card hand at showdown or by making a bet that no other player calls.

Except where these rules state otherwise, the game follows the rules of seven-card stud, including antes, the order of betting and the betting limits in use.

Each player places an ante before the deal. Where the table uses a bring-in, it is made in the same way as in seven-card stud.

Each player is dealt two cards face down and one card face up. A betting round follows.

Each player is then dealt a fourth card face up, followed by a betting round, and a fifth card face up, followed by a betting round. At this point each active player holds two down cards and three up cards.

Betting rounds are begun by the player with the best hand showing, as in seven-card stud, unless the table uses a bring-in on third street.

Each round of exchanging begins with the active player to the dealer's left and continues clockwise. It is not led by the best hand showing.

On their turn in an exchange round, each active player shall do exactly one of the following:

4.1(a) Discard one down card and be dealt a replacement card face down.

4.1(b) Discard one up card and be dealt a replacement card face up.

4.1(c) Stand pat: keep all their cards and exchange nothing.

A player may exchange at most one card in each exchange round. The replacement card takes the same face-up or face-down position as the card it replaces.

A player must discard before the replacement is dealt, and is bound by the replacement card.

Exchanges are free unless the table has agreed an exchange fee under 7.2.

After the final betting round, the remaining players show their hands. Each player's hand is the best five cards from the cards they hold.

The best high hand wins the whole pot. Tied hands split the pot equally. Suits never break a tie at showdown.

If all but one player folds at any stage, the remaining player wins the pot without showing their cards.

Seventh card. With five or fewer players, the table may agree to deal each player a seventh card face down, as in seven-card stud. Players then choose their best five cards from seven.

Exchange fee. Some tables charge for each exchange, often an amount equal to the minimum bet at that point. A player who exchanges pays the fee into the pot. The fee is not a bet, and the other players do not have to match it.