Jack the Shifter Rules

Jack the Shifter is seven-card stud in which jacks change the game. A player dealt a jack face up, or who reveals a jack from the hole before the last betting round, may switch the game to any seven-card stud variant on a list the players agreed before the deal. The pot is won under whichever game is in force at showdown.

Players: 2 to 7
Type: Stud
Special card: Jacks change the game
Wild cards: None, unless the chosen game has them
Pot: High, unless the game is shifted

Article 1Players, deck and the agreed list

1.1

Jack the Shifter is played with a standard 52-card deck without jokers. It is dealt and bet as seven-card stud, and the game begins as plain high-hand seven-card stud.

1.2

Before play, the group shall agree a list of seven-card stud games to which the game may be shifted. A player may shift only to a game on that list. This prevents a player from inventing a game to suit their own cards.

1.3

The list is for the group to decide. For example, a group might list games dealt the same way as seven-card stud, such as Razz, Stud Hi-Lo, Follow the Queen or Baseball.

Article 2Antes and the deal

2.1

Each player places an agreed ante, and the cards are dealt as in seven-card stud, with a betting round after each stage.

Stage	Cards dealt to each player	Betting round
Third street	Two down, one up	First
Fourth street	One up	Second
Fifth street	One up	Third
Sixth street	One up	Fourth
Seventh street	One down	Fifth and last

Article 3Shifting the game

3.1

A player who is dealt a jack face up may change the game to any game on the agreed list. The player announces the new game when the jack is dealt.

3.2

A player holding a jack face down may reveal it at any time before the final betting round and name a new game from the list.

3.3

Immediately before the final betting round, the dealer shall offer each player in turn a last chance to reveal a jack. After that, the game can no longer be changed.

3.4

Each change replaces the game previously in force. The game in force after 3.3 decides how hands are ranked and who wins the pot.

3.5

Groups should agree in advance how a shift affects rules already applied earlier in the hand, such as extra cards or wild cards triggered under an earlier game, and whether a player may decline to shift when dealt a jack. The standard rules leave these points open.

Example

Two shifts in one hand

On fourth street Player A is dealt J♥ face up and shifts the game to Razz, so the lowest hand will win.

Before the final betting round, Player C reveals J♠ from the hole and shifts the game back to ordinary high-hand stud. No one else reveals a jack when the dealer asks, so the pot is played for high.

Article 4Showdown

4.1

After the final betting round, the remaining players show their hands and the pot is awarded under the rules of the game in force.

4.2

If no jack has been used to shift the game, the best high hand wins, as in seven-card stud.

Article 5Strategy notes

A jack in the hole is a hidden option. Saving it until the dealer's last call lets you choose the game after seeing almost every card.
Hands that are strong in several listed games, such as a low hand that also holds a pair, are more valuable than in plain stud.
Watch for opponents who keep calling with weak upcards. They may be holding a jack to change the game.

Article 6Frequently asked questions

What does a jack do in Jack the Shifter?

It lets the player who holds it change the game to any seven-card stud variant on the list the players agreed before the deal. A face-up jack can be used when it is dealt, and a face-down jack can be revealed at any time before the last betting round.

Can you shift to any game you like?

No. You may only choose a game from the list agreed before play began.

When is the last chance to change the game?

Just before the final betting round, when the dealer offers each player in turn one last chance to reveal a jack. After that the game is fixed.

Final authority

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

Hand rankings, high to low: royal flush · straight flush · four of a kind · full house · flush · straight · three of a kind · two pair · one pair · high card. Suits never break ties.

Jack the Shifter Rules · OPR-682 · officialpokerrules.com/jack-the-shifter/

OPR-682Uncontrolled when printed