Home game · Shared card
In Swingo each player is dealt five cards, keeps two hidden and lays the other three face up as their own board. One shared river card follows. At the showdown each player makes the best five-card hand from their two hole cards, their three board cards, the river and any one card from another player's board. Swingo was invented by Steve Albini in December 2007 and developed by the Alliance-X poker group in Chicago, as published on pagat.com.
Also known as Swingo Poker
The game is played with a standard 52-card deck with no jokers and no wild cards. It works best with five to eight players. Play is clockwise.
The highest five-card hand at the showdown wins the pot, under the standard hand rankings.
Swingo was invented by Steve Albini in December 2007 and brought to its current form by the members of the Alliance-X poker group in Chicago.
The game has been found to work best with a small blind and a big blind, posted as in Texas Hold'em, and pot-limit betting.
The dealer deals five cards face down to each player.
| Round | Before the betting | First to act |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Five cards dealt face down to each player | Player left of the big blind |
| 2 | Each player keeps two cards hidden and lays three face up as their board | Highest-ranking board |
| 3 | One river card dealt face up in the centre | Highest-ranking board (river not counted) |
After the first betting round, each remaining player chooses two cards to keep as face-down hole cards and places the other three face up in front of them as their board cards.
On the second and third rounds, the player with the highest-ranking board cards acts first.
3.2(a) Only pairs, two pairs and three of a kind count when comparing boards. Straights and flushes are ignored.
3.2(b) Between otherwise equal boards, suits decide, ranking from lowest to highest: clubs, diamonds, hearts, spades.
3.2(c) The river card is not counted when deciding who acts first.
Restriction on folding. A player may fold only when facing a bet or raise. A player who could check may not fold, because other players may be relying on that player's board cards.
A player who folds discards all their cards face down. Their board cards can no longer be used by anyone.
After the third betting round, the remaining players reveal their hole cards.
Each player makes the best five-card hand from seven cards: their two hole cards, their three board cards, the river card, and any one board card belonging to another player still in the hand.
The highest hand wins the pot. Identical hands split the pot equally.
Borrowing a card
River: K♥. Player A's hole cards are A♥A♦ and board is A♠7♣2♦. Player B's board is K♠9♣4♥.
A may borrow one card from B's board. Taking K♠ gives A-A-A-K-K, aces full of kings. Without it, A would have only three aces.
Yes, but only one. At the showdown you may use any one board card belonging to another player still in the hand, alongside your own two hole cards, three board cards and the river.
Other players may be counting on borrowing one of your board cards. So you may fold only when facing a bet or raise.
Steve Albini invented it in December 2007, and the Alliance-X poker group in Chicago developed it into its current form.
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.
Swingo Rules · OPR-576 · officialpokerrules.com/swingo/