Official Poker Rules BoardDocument OPR-686 · Updated 28 September 2026

Home game · Stud

Low Hold Rules

Low Hold is dealt like seven-card stud, but the lowest of each player's face-down cards is wild for that player. Because a new face-down card can change which card is wild, a player may pay to have the seventh card dealt the other way up. The best high hand wins.

Players: 2 to 7
Type: Stud, with a buy
Wild cards: Each player's lowest face-down card
Pot: High only

Article 1Players, deck and wild cards

1.1

Low Hold is a variant of seven-card stud for two to seven players, contributed to pagat.com by Dan Mathe. The same game appears under the same name in Arthur Buderick's book Dealer's Choice Poker.

1.2

The game uses a standard 52-card deck. The object is to make the best five-card high hand from seven cards.

1.3

The lowest of a player's face-down cards is a wild card for that player alone. It may stand for any card the player chooses. Face-up cards are never wild under this rule.

1.4

Aces count high when deciding which face-down card is lowest. The published descriptions do not say whether other cards of the same rank as the wild card are also wild; the dealer shall announce this before the deal if it matters.

1.5

Five of a kind is possible with a wild card. By the usual convention it ranks above a straight flush. See hand rankings.

Article 2Antes and the deal

2.1

Antes and betting limits are as the house or the dealer sets them. The cards are dealt and bet exactly as in seven-card stud, except for the seventh card.

Street	Cards dealt	Betting
Third street	2 face down, 1 face up	First round
Fourth street	1 face up	Second round
Fifth street	1 face up	Third round
Sixth street	1 face up	Fourth round
Seventh street	1 face down, or face up if bought (article 3)	Final round

Article 3Buying the seventh card

A face-down seventh card becomes a player's wild card if it is lower than their two existing hole cards. Each version of the game lets players pay to control this.

3.1

Contributed version. The seventh card is normally dealt face down at no cost. A player who wants to keep their current wild card may instead pay to receive the seventh card face up, where it cannot become wild. The price is fixed by the dealer before the deal and paid into the pot.

3.2

Dealer's Choice Poker version. Buderick's version works the other way round. The seventh card is dealt face up unless a player pays to have it dealt face down. The cost equals the size of a bet or raise in the final betting round of this fixed-limit game.

3.3

In the Buderick version, all players declare their choice at the same time, before the seventh card is dealt. Each player holds either one or two coins in a closed fist, and all fists are opened together. The dealer shall state before the deal which number means face down.

3.4

The dealer shall announce before the deal which version is being played.

Article 4Showdown

4.1

After the final betting round, the remaining players show their hands. Each player names the value of their wild card, and the best five-card high hand wins the whole pot.

Example

Finding the wild card

A player's face-down cards are K♦3♠9♦ and their face-up cards are 8♥8♣K♥K♠.

The lowest face-down card is the 3♠, so it is wild. Used as a king, it gives the player four kings with the 9 as kicker, K-K-K-K-9.

Had the seventh card been a face-down 2 instead of the 9, the 2 would have become the wild card and the 3 would count only as a 3. The player would still have four kings, but with an 8 kicker.

Article 5Strategy notes

Every player has exactly one wild card, so strong hands are common. Full houses and four of a kind win more often than in plain stud.
A low hole card is not an advantage in itself: whatever its rank, the lowest face-down card is the wild one.
Paying to control the seventh card only matters when a new face-down card could replace a wild card you are already using well.

Article 6Frequently asked questions

Which card is wild in Low Hold?

The lowest of your face-down cards is wild for you. Face-up cards are never wild. Aces count high, so an ace is not your lowest card unless all your face-down cards are aces.

What is the difference between Low Hold and Low Hole?

They are close relatives. Low Hold adds the option to buy the seventh card the other way up, so a player can protect the wild card they already have. See Low Hole for the other game.

Can you get five of a kind in Low Hold?

Yes. A player with four of a kind and their wild card can make five of a kind, which by the usual convention beats a straight flush.

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.

Low Hold Rules · OPR-686 · officialpokerrules.com/low-hold/

OPR-686Uncontrolled when printed