Waiting for Godot Rules

Waiting for Godot was contributed to pagat.com by Andrew Foley.

The game is played with a standard 52-card deck with no wild cards. The source does not state a player limit; each player uses three cards and four are shared, so the deck is never at risk of running out at a normal home table.

The object is to win the pot with the best five-card high hand, made from any combination of the player's three cards and the four community cards. Hands rank according to the standard poker hand rankings.

The source does not specify antes or blinds. Any ante or other forced bet shall be agreed before the deal.

The dealer first places four cards face down in the middle of the table. These are the community cards.

Each player is then dealt one card face down, followed by one card face up.

There are four betting rounds, as set out in the table. A showdown follows the fourth round.

The source does not say who acts first. Common home-game practice is either to start each round with the player to the dealer's left or, as in stud games, with the player showing the best upcard. The dealer shall announce the rule before the deal.

Because each player's upcard is visible from the start, opponents know one of each player's three cards. The contributor notes that this encourages aggressive betting early, to push players out before they receive their third card.

After the fourth betting round, each remaining player shows their hand and makes the best five-card hand from their three cards and the four community cards, in any combination.

The highest hand wins the pot. Tied hands split the pot equally.