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Slovak Double Barrel is a fixed-stake game based on Texas Hold'em, with no betting rounds. Each player is dealt two cards face up and two face down that nobody has seen. Twice during the deal, each player may discard a face-up card and turn up one of their unknown cards in its place; at the end, the two face-up cards and the five-card board make each player's hand.
Slovak Double Barrel is one of a set of fixed-stake games first published on the Pokerlistings website, where they are credited to Mikolaj Domanski. They were contributed to pagat.com by Ilya Bugreyev.
The game uses a standard 52-card deck with no wild cards.
Each player pays the same fixed stake into the pot before the deal. There is no betting, raising, calling or folding: every player stays in to the end, and the best hand collects the pot.
Each player is dealt two cards face down and two cards face up. The face-down cards are not looked at: they remain unknown to everyone, including their owner.
| Stage | What happens |
|---|---|
| First exchange | Each player in turn, from the dealer's left, may swap one face-up card for one face-down card |
| Flop | Three community cards are dealt face up |
| Second exchange | Each player may again swap one face-up card for one face-down card |
| Turn and river | Two more community cards are dealt face up |
At an exchange, a player may discard one of their two face-up cards to the muck and turn one of their face-down cards face up to replace it. The player may also decline.
Each player therefore has two chances to exchange, and may use both, one or neither.
The source does not state the order for the second exchange. The usual practice is to use the same order as the first, starting with the player to the dealer's left.
Each player makes the best five-card hand from their two face-up cards and the five community cards. See hand rankings.
Any face-down cards a player did not use in an exchange are discarded and cannot form part of the hand.
The best hand wins the pot. The source does not cover ties; the usual practice is to split the pot equally.
One exchange used, one declined
A player is dealt 9♠4♦ face up, and two face-down cards.
At the first exchange, the player discards the four and turns up a face-down card: K♠.
The flop is K♥9♦2♣. The player now has two pair and declines the second exchange.
The turn and river are 7♠K♦. The player's hand is K♠K♥K♦9♠9♦, kings full of nines. The remaining face-down card is discarded unseen.
The same set of games includes Blind Hold'em, Blind Omaha, Estonian Twist and Crazy Dutchy. All are played for a fixed stake with no betting.
No. Each player pays a fixed stake before the deal, everyone plays to the end, and the best hand takes the pot.
No. They are unknown cards. You only see one when you choose to turn it up in an exchange.
No. Only your two face-up cards and the five board cards count. Any card still face down is discarded.
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.
Slovak Double Barrel Rules · OPR-568 · officialpokerrules.com/slovak-double-barrel/