J-Lo Rules

J-Lo combines Jacks or Better with Deuce-to-Seven Lowball. Each hand starts as Jacks or Better. If nobody can open, the cards are not thrown in: the hand is played as Deuce-to-Seven Lowball instead, where the lowest hand wins.

Type: Draw
Opening: Pair of jacks or better
If no one opens: Played as Deuce-to-Seven Lowball
Wild cards: None
Pot: High, or low if switched

Article 1Players, deck and objective

1.1

J-Lo was contributed to pagat.com by Dana Collins, who reports playing it since about 2007. The name joins the J of Jacks or Better with the Lo of lowball.

1.2

It uses a standard 52-card deck with no wild cards.

1.3

Each hand is played for high or for low, depending on whether anyone opens (see article 3).

Article 2Playing as Jacks or Better

2.1

Each hand is dealt and played exactly as Jacks or Better, the form of Five Card Draw in which a player needs at least a pair of jacks to open the betting.

2.2

If a player opens, the hand continues as Jacks or Better to the end, and the best high hand wins.

Article 3Switching to Deuce-to-Seven Lowball

3.1

If no player opens, the cards are not thrown in. The same hands are played out as Deuce-to-Seven Lowball, and the lowest hand wins.

3.2

In Deuce-to-Seven, aces are high, and straights and flushes count against the hand. The best possible hand is 7-5-4-3-2 of mixed suits.

3.3

The source does not give separate betting procedures for the lowball hand. Unless the group agrees otherwise, it proceeds as a Deuce-to-Seven single-draw hand: a betting round, the draw, and a final betting round.

Example

No opener, so the hand goes low

Player A holds 10♠10♦8♣5♥3♠, a pair of tens, which is not enough to open. Player B holds 9♥7♣5♦4♠2♣ and Player C holds K♣J♦8♠6♥3♦. Nobody can open, so the hand becomes Deuce-to-Seven Lowball.

A breaks the tens and draws two, receiving 6♦4♣, for 8-6-5-4-3. B stands pat with 9-7-5-4-2. C folds.

A's highest card is an eight and B's is a nine, so A has the lower hand and wins.

Article 4Notes and related games

The point of the switch is that every deal is played. In plain Jacks or Better, a hand where no one can open is wasted.
In the lowball hand, players who could not open for high often hold weak, low cards, which suit lowball.
Jacks Back works on the same principle, but switches to Ace-to-Five Lowball rather than Deuce-to-Seven.

Article 5Frequently asked questions

What happens in J-Lo if nobody opens?

The hand is not redealt. The same cards are played as Deuce-to-Seven Lowball, and the lowest hand wins.

What is the best hand in the lowball part of J-Lo?

7-5-4-3-2 of mixed suits. Aces are high, and straights and flushes count against you.

Is J-Lo the same as Jacks Back?

They share the same idea, but Jacks Back switches to Ace-to-Five Lowball, where A-2-3-4-5 is the best hand. J-Lo switches to Deuce-to-Seven Lowball, where aces are high and straights and flushes count against you.

Final authority

Where any doubt remains in the application of this document, Rob is right.

J-Lo Rules · OPR-607 · officialpokerrules.com/j-lo/

OPR-607Uncontrolled when printed