• Community Board Cards Variations

The most acknowledged community card poker game is Texas Hold'em and variants thereof. In home games, it is normal to use an ante, while casinos normally use only blinds for these poker games. Fixed limit games are more common in casinos, while spread limit games are more common in home poker games. No limit and pot limit games are less common but some poker games play more often well with those structures.

As in Stud Poker later betting rounds have a higher limit than earlier betting rounds. Each betting round starts off with the player to the dealer's left when blinds are used. The first round begins with the player after the big blind, which makes community card games positional.

Community card poker games do not play well with lowball hand values even though some play well at high-low split, in particular with ace-to-five low values, making it possible to win both sections of a pot. When played high-low split, there is normally a minimum qualifying hand for low and as it is played cards speak for themselves.

Low Poker Hands - Deuce to Seven Low
Deuce-to-seven low is a method for evaluating low poker hands. It is often called Kansas City Low Poker or just low poker. It is almost the direct opposite of standard poker - high hand loses.

As in all lowball poker games, pairs and trips are bad - that is, any hand with no pair defeats any hand with a pair; one pair hands defeat two pair or trips, etc. No-pair hands are compared starting with the highest ranking card, just as in high poker, except that the high hand loses. In deuce-to-seven low poker, straights and flushes count for high (and are therefore bad). Aces are always high (and therefore bad).

For example, the hand 8-5-4-3-2 defeats 9-7-6-4-3, because eight-high is lower than nine-high. The hand 7-6-5-4-2 defeats both, because seven-high is lower still. The hand 7-6-5-4-3 would lose, because it is a straight. Aces are high, so Q-8-5-4-3 defeats A-8-5-4-3. In the rare event that hands with pairs tie, kickers are used just as in high poker (but reversed): 3-3-6-4-2 defeats 3-3-6-5-2.

A special rule is that a wheel is not considered a straight. Thus, A-5-4-3-2 is simply ace-high no pair (it would therefore lose to any king-high, but would defeat A-6-4-3-2).

It's called deuce-to-seven low because the best possible poker hand is 7-5-4-3-2, followed by 7-6-4-3-2, 7-6-5-3-2, 7-6-5-4-2, 8-5-4-3-2, 8-6-4-3-2, etc. When speaking, low hands are referred to by their highest ranking card or cards. Any nine-high poker hand can be called "a nine," and is defeated by any "eight." Two cards are frequently used: the hand 8-6-5-4-2 can be called "an eight-six" and will defeat "an eight-seven" such as 8-7-5-4-2.

Wild cards are rarely used in deuce-to-seven low poker games, but if used they play as whatever rank would make the lowest hand. Thus, in 7-6-Joker-3-2, the joker plays as a 4, while in Joker-5-4-3-2 it would play as a 7 (a six would make a straight, and an ace would make ace-five high).

High-low split poker games with deuce-to-seven low are usually played with a declaration.