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Razz is quite possibly the least played of the most well-known poker variants. Serving as the “R” in H.O.R.S.E., players usually stumbled upon Razz for the first time while playing in a mixed game tournament format.
As players are starting to venture out more and more from No Limit Texas Hold ‘em to other forms of poker, Razz has been picking up some steam as some of the biggest names in poker continue to win the Razz only events at the World Series of Poker.
For a lot of players, Razz seems fairly straightforward in theory. That is until they play it for the first time and realize there is more to it than meets the eye. A little bit of strategy can go a long way though.
Before diving into some of the basic strategies of Razz, it is important that we understand the game. If you’re totally new to the game and are unsure about the rules and format, we invite you to check out our Rules of Razz Poker section before going too much further, that way you have a full understanding of how the game is played.
If you’ve made your way past that part, however, you should have a fairly good understanding of how the game is played. A quick refresher couldn’t hurt though…
Right off the bat you will see that Razz operates very differently from the games that you might be typically used to. Prior to the dealer dealing the cards every player must post an ante to be a part of the hand. The amount of the ante will be relative to the betting limits, something we will touch on in a later section.
Once the dealer collects all the antes they will then begin the deal. Each player will receive two cards face down and one card face up and the action will begin.
In Razz there is no dealer button. That means that every hand starts with the dealer dealing to the 1 Seat first and continuing to the left. Every proceeding street will continue in the same fashion.
The action starts with the HIGHEST face up card placing a forced bet called the “bring in”.
The amount of the bring in is a set amount relative to the betting limits. Just like with antes, we will cover this in a later section when we discuss the betting limits.
If you have played 7 Card Stud you might be used to the lowest card having to post the bring in. Given that in Razz you are trying to make the lowest hand, it works the opposite in that the strongest card is essentially the weakest.
In Razz an ACE is low (in the 7 Card Stud variant the Ace is high, however). Therefore, a King is the lowest, or better said as the weakest, card. I know what you’re thinking, what if the lowest card face up is held by more than one player.
In the instance that two or more players share the lowest face up card, and this happens fairly often, the suits of the cards become the deciding factor. Let’s say two players are dealt a King face up.
Player A has the King of Clubs and Player B has the King of Spades. In this case, you will refer to the suit. The suit strengths go from low to high in alphabetical order as follows:
So as you can see Clubs are the weakest suit and Spades are the strongest. That means that in our example above, Player B with the King of Spades will be the bring in. Action then continues to the left of the bring in.
After a round of betting the dealer will burn a card and then deal each player still in the hand another face up card. Once this happens you will see that this position will most likely change.
What happens now is that for every proceeding street, the player with the strongest hand showing will be first to act, and action will continue to their left.
Remember, when we say strongest Razz hand we mean the lowest hand!
That means that from street to street, the first player to act can always change. As the hand continues and the dealer continues to burn a card and deal a card face up to each player still in the hand they will continue to call on the highest showing hand to act first.
When it comes time to deal each player their last card, the dealer will burn a card and then deal each player’s final card face down.
If you are still in the hand after the river, or 7th Street as it is often called, you will be looking at four cards face up and three cards face down. You must make your best 5 card hand out of the 7 that you are holding.
There are no community cards to share in Razz so you will be using your cards and only your cards.
Razz is typically played as a fixed limit game. We mentioned above that Stud also includes an ante and a bring in. So what exactly are these forced bets?
One thing to keep in mind when starting out in Razz is that whatever you think about a winning poker hand, start to think the opposite. In Razz, as we’ve mentioned, the lowest possible hand is the winner.
That being said, the best possible Razz hand you can table is 5-4-3-2-A, also known as a wheel. While yes it is also a straight, straights and flushes are not relevant in Razz.
Just like with any lowball game variation, when two players have the same highest low card you then look at the next card in descending order to determine who has the better hand.
It is not uncommon for players to table hands in Razz that contain pairs. Sometimes the run out of the draw is not as you had hoped and you are holding a very bad hand. Even if two or more players showdown hands with pairs, there will still be a low hand amongst them.
By now you should have a good understanding of the rule set required to play Razz. Let’s quickly recap some of the specifics:
Razz can be a very tricky game. Whereas in Texas Hold ‘em a beginner can get lucky and beat a table full of pros, that will almost never happen in Razz.
Experience in Razz is huge. But we all have to start somewhere, right?
Something that is very important in Razz, and we touched on it a little bit more in-depth in our Guide to Seven Card Stud is the need to remember cards.
On the surface it might sound rather trivial, but when you’re trying to put players on a hand, it’s imperative to remember what face up cards were folded so that you know which cards your opponent CANNOT have.
The more you play stud games the more you get used to committing those cards to memory during hands.
New players should try to keep track of all the cards ranked eight or lower that have been exposed. There are times when knowing that nines, tens, and jacks are dead would be helpful, but those may be for more advanced stages of Razz.
Since beginners are generally only going to play three-card eights or better, it’s safe to ignore those high cards in the beginning.
The point is, knowing which cards are dead, combined with the board of all opponents that stay in the hand past third street, combined with a player’s own hand, will make certain decisions on later streets easier to make.
Either a player’s cards are live, or they’re not. Also, memorizing the exposed cards is an easy skill to practice when not in the hand and provides a way to keep a player’s focus on the table.
A good rule of thumb for players just starting out in Razz is to approach the game as if you are playing just the 8 or Better version of 7 Card Stud 8 or Better and let your game grow from there. Meaning, if a hand doesn’t consist of three unique cards ranked eight or lower, it should generally be folded.
This is especially true in lower limit Razz cash games and smaller buy-in Razz tournaments where it is rare that a hand worse than an eight-high wins the pot.
Not all three-card eights are created equal. For example, a holding of (8x 3x)2x is stronger than a holding of (2x 3x)8x. This example perfectly illustrates a key aspect of Razz, you’re playing your opponent’s up card just as much as you’re playing your hand.
Not all three-card eights are created equal. For example, a holding of (8x 3x)2x is stronger than a holding of (2x 3x)8x. This example perfectly illustrates a key aspect of Razz, you’re playing your opponent’s up card just as much as you’re playing your hand.
While in the example we see that both hands, if all cards were face up, would be equal.
In this instance, however, the hand with the 2x showing APPEARS to be stronger than the hand with the 8 showing.
That is very important to take in. You know at best that the hand with the 8x up has a three-card eight. The hand with the 2x up, however, couple potentially be anything from a three-card eight or better, and needs to be respected as such.
Although both hands have the same value altogether, a 2x showing rather than an 8x looks much stronger.
Razz is very much a game of strong boards. The stronger a player’s up cards are, the more pressure he can apply to his opponent.
A three-card eight with the 8x exposed is much weaker than a three-card eight with the 8x hidden.
If the 8x is exposed, opponents will know for a certainty on fifth street that the player can’t have anything better than a made eight. This may encourage opponents to draw (to a seven, for example) when they might otherwise fold.
Keep in mind that when we say a “strong” hand, we, in fact, mean the lower type hands. The best hand you can be dealt in Razz is (2x 3x)Ax.
Typically, when you’re dealt a three-card eight you’re going to complete the bring-in or when you’re in position put in a three-bet.
Be aware of your opponents doing the same, however. The last thing you want to do is run your 8-7 low into an 8-6 low and lose a ton of chips.
As you know, in stud games your position can change from street to street.
In Razz, you can really take advantage of your position when your opponent is dealt a bad card. Fourth street is big in Razz because it can drastically change the complexion and direction of the hand.
If you and your opponent are both playing three-card eights and fourth street brings you another low card while bringing your opponent a King, you’re going to want to fire a bet.
Your opponent is now working with a King-low until at least sixth street.
What makes your opponent’s board so important is that let’s say in that same instance, the low card you receive on fourth street pairs one of your hole cards.
Your opponent was dealt a King so it’s safe to fire a bet because you are still SHOWING an eight-low versus your opponent’s King-low.
They have no way of knowing that you paired one of your down cards so a bet will get through every time.
Aggression and pressure are paramount in poker. You always want to force your opponents to make tough decisions at the poker table.
We already showed in the above example that getting aggressive when your opponent catches bad, is usually a must.
You are always playing your up cards versus your opponent’s up cards. So if the deal is not favorable to them don’t hesitate to make them pay.
Beginner Razz players are for the most part tight. Not only are they mainly going to be sticking to three-card eights, but they are going to be aggressively playing the strongest of the low hands. In theory, everyone will be playing the hands that way.
It’s important to point it out, however, because knowing when your fairly strong eight-low is beat will save you a lot of money.
If your opponent hardly plays any hands and is playing a hand very aggressively towards you he’s letting you know that his hand is strong. Even if you are drawing to a strong hand yourself it pays to be cautious.
Chances are against a tight player that fires on every street if you are going to table an 8-7 or an 8-6 low you are most likely going to be on the losing end.
In Razz, there are lot of starting hand combinations that look enticing but should really be passed on, especially for beginning players.
A hand that gets a lot of players into trouble when first starting out is (Ax 2x)Kx.
A lot of players see the Ax and 2x in the hole and are enticed by having the two lowest cards in the deck.
The problem here is that they also have the worst card in the deck in the King. What you have to understand about a hand like this is that you will be holding a King-low until at least sixth street.
Unless your opponent is showing a pair or a worse King-low, you are in terrible shape.
Remember when we said not all hands that contain the same cards are equal? Here is a good chance to make that point again.
If the cards showing are fairly weak and it folds around to you and you’re holding (Kx 2x)Ax, it is safe to put in a raise.
As long as you’re in position and the action and up cards of your opponents dictates it, it is safe to go ahead and raise here.
Player tendencies in poker often-times matter more than the cards. Luckily for us, in Razz we can see both out in the open at the same time.
Often times, and this mainly applies to beginners, a check can be very telling.
When your opponent is aggressive, raising with their low up card or betting or raising on Fourth street, pay close attention to when they check.
So many times a beginning player will be aggressive with their three or four-card eight low and then check on the next street when another low card comes.
Often-times this is indicative of having paired one of their low cards.
This would be a good time for you to fire a bet if, and only if, your board makes you look strong.
It’s rare that they would be checking in the hopes of putting in a check-raise since giving someone the opportunity to receive a free card in Razz is one that not many people will pass up unless their hand is already made or your board is looking very weak.
Razz can be a very frustrating game. The strength of hands can change from street to street and you will find that you are left wanting to pull your hair out sometimes.
You could be dealt (2x 3x)Ax-4x and then brick out the rest of the way and lose to a Nine-low and it will drive you absolutely insane.
With that in mind, it’s important that you do not overplay your hands until you actually make one. You can have an amazing hand in your first three or four cards, but you need at least five to make a hand so don’t get ahead of yourself. That Ace-Four low could turn into a King-low with the turn of a card.
So patience is an imperative skill to have. It’s not necessarily a strategy per se, but it is a necessity nonetheless.
While we didn’t really dive into later street or river play, we feel this is a good baseline to get you started on your way to becoming a profitable Razz player when you’re just getting started.
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