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Hello, i\’m a stud h/l frequent player, and usually i\’m a very good winner, at pokerstars and full tilt poker, and i will post \”tips\” for the stud players..

Starting Hand
Combinations and Bet Strategy

The most profitable way to play hi-low at a full table
is to begin with combinations that play  for low contention. 
Any pairs, trips, flush draws or straights that you may turn along the
way are a bonus for scooping.

For hi/low games, you will be looking at the door cards
for the following things to determine what kind of hand is best to play:

• How many low cards are on the table (number 8 or
  lower).

• How many high cards are at the table (number 9 or
  higher).

• How many of each suit is showing.

• How many duplicated cards are on the table (which
  cards are dead for you and for other players).

• Who is calling on a high.

• Who raises with a low door card possibly disguising a
  high pocket pair or better.

Starting hand strategy for loose hi-low games
runs fairly vague. Any combination of cards can turn into a great hand
in a multi-way pot. Naturally a starting hand with more outs available
is preferable. One thing to look for at a table when determining which
side you want to play (hi or low) is if there are any players at the
table taking stabs at playing for high with door-cards of 9 or higher
when low cards at the table have called. Especially look for callers
playing 9, 10, J, Q, and K.  You want to get a feel for what type
of hand you will be competing with if you decide to play high and there
are other callers with high cards. A special section for playing at
tight and/or short-handed tables is
available here to use along with the strategies and suggestions listed
below.

A table showing all door cards 9 or higher is
the perfect opportunity for a scoop if the cards in your hand allow for
playing a game of stud-hi. Pay attention to each hand that is dealt at
the table. The game in this case changes from stud hi-low to stud-hi.
Many times this is not taken into consideration at the table because the
players are interested in hi-low combinations only, and will fold
down if they do not have a combination for both. Keep in mind
that each round, the game strategy changes based on the door cards. At a
table where all high cards are showing the only opportunity is to play
for high, and the end result will most likely be a scoop of the entire
pot.

Starting Hands For Low Play
(non-paired)

What you are looking around the table for specifically
with your three-to-a-low starting hand is how many door cards on the
table are also the number 8 or less. A rule of thumb when determining
whether you have odds on making your low is; if there are more than 4
cards numbered 8 or less at the table including the door card in your
hand, odds for drawing a low are slim. This is because most likely
anyone calling also has 3 three low cards in their hand, and players 
with a high probably have low cards in their hand as well. With the
amount of low cards already dealt around the table, fold the hand unless
your combination allows outs for a strong high against the players who
are playing high.

Starting hands should consist of a combination of cards
which allow several types of outs to catch the best hand. The first rule
of thumb when playing tight at a hi-low stakes table is:

All three of the cards in your starting hand should be
the number 8 or less, with no pairs,  preferably with matching
suits and/or connectors for straight and flush possibilities. The lower
the card numbers are, the better.  Having an ace in your hand is a
big plus. An ace gives you outs to also play high and possibly take
control of raising at the table.  Paired combinations will be
discussed in later strategies.

Best starting low hands are three cards numbered from 2
through 5. This  allows outs for both inside and outside straight
draws which would possibly win both the high and low end, scooping the
pot. Having at least two of the cards in the same suit also provides
outs to a flush if the flush is still live at the table. For example:

The hand on the left has suited connectors. Middle hand
is rainbowed, on the bottom is a connected three-flush. The best hand to
start with, of course, is the hand on the right which has the most outs.
With the hand on the right, even if there is no low possible at the
table because the low is dead, you may still draw to a flush. If there
is no flush possible, you have outs to a straight, and by some miracle,
even if the odds for a low are slim, you may end up with one
accidentally while drawing for the flush or the straight.

Starting Hands
for Low Play (paired)

This type of starting hand is recommended only if
the table is short-handed, or the table that you are at is tight, where
half of the table or more is folding their starting hands.

Paired starting hands should consist of a combination
of cards where you can achieve a late low with outs to a backdoor high.
Sounds backwards doesn\’t it? Your goal here is really to make the low
with this strategy, and taking the high is a bonus. A pair of kings is a
trap hand, and often ends up being counterfeited with pairs of aces and
better, since there are so many aces and possible straights that come
into play.

It takes strong discipline to drop high pocket pairs.
However, doing so will save you money and frustration. So, I will
reiterate; paired starting hands should consist of a combination of
cards where you can achieve a late low with outs to a backdoor high.
This means pairs of 8 or lower, (excluding pocket or split aces) and
they should really only be played if the door cards at the table allow
odds for hitting a low, your pair is not dead to making trips, and,
there are no over-cards calling to play strictly for high such as J, K,
Q, or A. Keep in mind that stud 8/b is nearly an entirely different game
altogether and it\’s strategy vs. stud-hi is different.

Pocket Pair examples:

Remember when you are playing these types of hands, the
cards that you need to make your second pair or trips should be live.
Except for aces, pocket pairs  for low play should really only be
played at a table that is short handed.

Three-card straights and three-card flushes all with
numbers 8 or lower are also excellent starting hands for low play.

Starting Hands for High Play

This type of starting hand is recommended only
if the table is short-handed, or the odds for a low to qualify are very,
very slim. In the case that completing a qualifying low appears to be
dead at the table, high combinations can be played, expecting a full
scoop of the pot.

Starting hands for high play against a table of low
draws should consist of cards that leave outs to high straights,
flushes, and filling up to a full house. These hands should also be kept
as discreet as possible so that other competitors for high don\’t know if
you are playing for high or playing for low. Having an ace in your
combination is highly preferable. Your door card should not
reveal that you are playing for high unless the odds for making a low
at the table are very, very slim. For example:

Pocket pair:

As I mentioned earlier, playing a pair of kings is
usually a big mistake with all of the aces in play in hi-low and should
usually be folded usually right away. (see Deadly
Cowboys)
Aces will usually counterfeit the kings by the showdown. Seemingly the
hand above is a nice hand. It has a low card in it that is suited with
one of the kings if a miracle backdoor low were to happen. However, if
this hand were to be played (and it shouldn\’t unless the odds for making
a low at the table are dead), it should more preferably look like this:

With the 4c being the door card, the rest of the table
has no idea whether you are playing for high or for low until about
fifth street, depending on the next cards that turn for you.

A fifth street example for the discreet pocket pair hand
which will keep the players guessing is:

A hand like this is very strong as long as there are no
threats of paired aces, trips or flushes showing at the table, as well
ace aces that turn up that may have paired.  The strength of this
hand is that the fifth street turn of the 6d is a scare card. Meaning
that anyone in contention for the high sees that you have either a
possible low, a straight or a scoop. It is also a scare card for players
drawing lows because your hand appears to have cards that would make one
of the best lows or have outs to the best low of A2345.

Other  fifth street examples of this hand that may
cause some serious confusion for other players is:

Catching a high card early in the hand may confuse them
into thinking that you caught a bad card and that you are continuing
play hoping to catch one last low card to qualify a low hand. Naturally,
on sixth street if you have not caught a second pair to couple with your
kings, you are in danger of losing to a hand that has caught bad cards
that appears to be playing for a low. For example:

This hand appears to be playing for a low with no
obvious threat of a flush or trips. Keep in mind that straights are
always a threat in stud hi-low and are often well hidden, if not,
rivered. However, the hand is actually being called with the player
playing for high with:

The player  initially called this hand because it
qualified to achieve a low with outs to a back door high. This hand now
has two pair on sixth street vs. the hand with pair of kings. Because
this type of hand is only usually played at a short handed table, the
kings are favored to pair also making a backdoor low even with the other
hand showing two low pair on fifth street. However, at the same time, at
a short-handed table, the low two-pair also has odds on a backdoor low
and has odds on rivering a full house. Odds for the pair of kings to
make a full house are slim this late in the hand, yet still possible.
(Anything can happen in poker!)

Being that both hands are showing lows at a
short-handed table, the action at the table dwindles because of the
confusion over who is playing what. Most likely there will be no raising
under the assumption that both hands have a low and it is a matter of
who\’s is better. If both players know that they are playing for high,
still the action is very little because there are no obvious tells on
what kind of high each player is playing for.

This is why playing with high pairs at a hi-low table
is not recommended unless the high pair contains pocket or split aces.
The action is sparse and it is often a waste of time and effort for a
small pot unless a scoop is imminent.

For three card flushes:

Your combinations for playing three-card flushes should
include as many outs as possible to a high and/or a low in case your
cards do not catch. For example:

If the hand on the left does not catch the flush, it has
outs to at least a very high pair which can double up (making two pair),
and it also has possibilities to a very good low. If the hand on the
right does not catch a flush, it also has outs to a double open-ended
straight, and a very good low.

With a three-card flush in your hand it is advisable as
well that your door card  is a card that is equal to or lower than 
the number 8, however, if a possible flush in your suit is fully live
and you have other outs, calling one bet to see the fourth street card
regardless of what your door card shows is still a good play. For
example:

Both of the hands above are showing door cards that
reveal you are playing for high. The other players may put you on
several different combinations, which they will never know for sure as
long as you are aggressively either betting, calling or raising the
hand. At minimum they will put you on a pair of jacks or a higher pocket
pair with the jack as your kicker. They may also put you on having two
low cards for a late low with one of the cards being an ace.

Be very aware that when you have revealed to the table
that you are playing for high, that when a fifth or sixth street low is
made and you are still in the hand, the expense will go up with the low
hand raising to make you and your other high-play competitor pay for the
split.

My rule for door card aces: (adjusted from the stud-hi section for hi-low)

When beginning to establish myself at a table, (and certainly a disputable
strategy), is; do not play a door card ace unless you can raise
with it. If other players are seeing you fold your ace, later on when you do
raise your ace with nothing in your hand you will most likely take the pot
without seeing the river or showing down. It allows room for bluffing. Playing
raise-or-fold with your door-card ace will save frustration and stress in later
rounds. It will also confuse the players as to how you are playing your ace. A
low? Pair? Flush? Straight?

This is a rainbowed starting hand, meaning that odds to make a flush begins
dead. There are also no odds on this hand to make a straight. If there are other
door card aces at the table, the ace is most likely dead or already paired in
someone else\’s hand. Raising the ace here would be detrimental and most likely
seen as a blatant bluff. If there are no other aces facing up at the table you
can take your chances with raising, hoping that someone doesn\’t have a nice
flush-draw, straight-draw, or pocket pair combo in their hand.  It may be
worth a cheap call if you hope to turn other aces or nines, but really, early at
the table, I personally wouldn\’t bother with this hand because it lacks many
outs for bettering the hand.

Aces to raise with in hi-low are hidden pocket pairs with the ace as your door
card, pocket and split aces, three-card flushes, and three-card outside
straights.

At a hi-low table, depending on the types of players at
your table, it can be to your advantage to slow-play pocket or split
aces to keep the action going with other players competing for the high.
It also prevents them from knowing that you have a strong hand and what
direction you are playing the hand. (High or low). Calling with pocket
or split aces is also a way to get in the hand cheaply as the later
streets begin to reveal straights and flushes. Remember that in hi-low,
aces are often dead and your pair of aces may be outdone by low-card
trips that get caught on fifth and sixth street. For example:

The low pair that just turned in this hand could very
well be a hidden three-of-a kind and even possibly a fifth street full
house.

As usual, when a fourth street pair shows on the board,
fold your hand unless you have one more draw card to a low. Even still,
it is best to just fold the hand while the pot is small since continuing
on a low draw will cost at least one more bet and the pot will most
likely be split anyway and both players push. (no loss or gain, just
time spent betting and calling for little reason). It could also be the
case that the player with a fourth street pair may not only have trips,
they may also have a very excellent chance at sweeping the pot with a
potential low with  three more draw cards. Be disciplined, save
money and fold.

Bet Strategy

Controlling the bets and raises at the table is an
especially key element.

Playing for high in a high-low game runs very
expensive. Once a low hand is made especially on fifth street, the low
player will (and rightfully should) raise any bets made on the table to
make the players who are still drawing for lows, really have to pay for
it. It also makes it very expensive for the hands competing for the best
high, increasing the payout even if the pot is split.

On the other hand, playing a very strong starting high
hand allows continuous raising to get the low draws to really pay for
seeing if they will catch their lows without missing their cards. A high
hand that is not in betting position should raise with their high unless
there is the threat of trips, straights, and flushes that you have no
outs for.

Raising with a made low is a must if you are not in
first position and there is no danger of a possible A2345 hand on the
table. A fifth street \’made\’ low should always raise, except when your
low is made with an 8 as one of your active cards and there is another
made low on the table with a number 7 showing in their hand and you are
in danger of not having the lowest low. For example:

Player 1:

Player 2:

Player 3:

Player 1 in this hand has been in first betting
position since fourth street. There is really no way to tell if this
player has trips, turned a full house, or is playing two pair if they
have continued betting without hesitation.

Player 2 in this hand has an obvious low. This player
would be raising the initial bet of Player 1. However…

Player 3 in this hand has an obvious low and possibly a
straight since fifth street. The rounds of betting would very possibly
look like this on the river with a possible straight, full house, and
low on the board between these three players. Assume that player 1 does
have a full house. Player 2 is has been betting on a low, and player 3
is betting on a competing low and also competing for a high to scoop.

 In the above table, Player 1 is betting his pair.
Player 2 is calling on a low draw, Player 3 is calling either because
they have a pair higher than the 8s, or is also betting on a low draw.
Next:

Player 1 has turned an ace in betting position and
bets. Player two has a made low and raises with the low to get an idea
of whether or not player 3 has made a straight. Player 3 simply calls.
Player 2 now does not know if player 1 is playing high or low or both.
If indeed Player three has made their straight which he thinks would
scoop the pot, simply calling keeps the other two players in the hand to
get them stuck in the hand calling until the end which will be a large
pay-off if he scoops. Next:

Above, Player 1 who is still in betting position is
raised by Player 2 who believes that Player 3 has not yet made their low
or is still guessing as to what the hand consists of. Player 3 again
simply calls and now it is up to player 1 to decide to either re-raise,
since all players are still in, or simply call. Player 1 re-raises
player 2 identifying to player 3 that his high hand is most likely
better than a their straight if they have made their straight. Player 3
simply calls, again  not revealing to player 2 what their hand is
made with to call a re-raise. At this point player 2 should have folded
to the straight draw in Player 3\’s hand. However the pot at this point
is very big, and player 2 has a large investment in the hand already so
his expense must be played to the showdown. Next:

Player 1 who is still in betting position is called by
Player 2. Player 3 knows from the re-raise made on the sixth street that
the hand that player 1 is playing is very strong. Player 3 now raises.
This is a signal to player 1 that they have a sure-best low and possibly
the best high if they Player 1 has not filled up with a full house by
now. Player 1 and Player 3 will team up to get as much action as they
can out of player 2 so that the pay-off for the possible split on the
pot will be maximized, or player 3 will scoop the pot.

Since player 2 is in this far he is at the mercy of the
re-raising with the hopes that his low will qualify for the payout.
Player 1 and player 3 re-raise to the cap, forcing player 2 to call the
bets.

Assuming that Player 3 had their low straight all
along, the best play was to simply call raises made by Players 1 and 2
until sixth street to keep player 2 in the hand. Re-raising too early
would have revealed to both players that player 3 had the straight early
and Player 2 would be likely to fold. The pot would be split between
player 1 and player 3 with little profit resulting from diminished
action.

Remember when raising in a three-way-action pot that
you are not raising out the player with the sure losing hand. If you
raise too much too soon they will fold and the potential profit is
diminished.

Where to Raise

Fairly assume that any hand you go into at a Stud 8/b table is going to be
split. Maximum profitability for the time and energy involved in this
game should not be taken lightly. Too many split pots is equivalent to
no profit except to the card room that is taking the rake each hand. Not
to mention all of the ante money that is spent waiting to catch a hand
that ends up winning. Using the following strategy assumes that you know
when to fold a hand regardless of how much of an investment has been
made on your part.

As a general rule of thumb, if you
have a playable starting hand, complete the bet if it has not been done
already, and do not give the bring-in a free card. This is all-to-often
seen at the tables encouraging split pots that would probably not have
been split if the bring-in were to be raised out. If you are the high
draw calling to play the hand, by not completing  the bet  it
encourages being counterfeited on later streets.

I do
encourage an opening  three-bet rule at a stud 8 table to maximize
profit. This is a standard for professional play and is not often
seen at the tables online as most players are shy on draws and do not
bring a bankroll to the table large enough to handle the variances that
occur with this type of play. More information regarding this type of
strategy is also located in the Advanced Strategy
section of the site, and should also be used when playing tournaments.

If you hold three cards to a low, with the bring-in in front of you:

• And an Ace in front of you with no complete bet 
  made, complete the bet.

• And an Ace in front of you with a complete bet 
  made, re-raise.

• And an Ace behind you, with or without a complete bet
  made, simply call.

• And an Ace behind you re-raises, simply call.

Basically, three-bet any hands that have an ace in
front of you, and simply call when there is an Ace behind you.

The reasoning for this is to lock out any other players who do not have a
competitive scooping hand while allowing you to freeroll your
bets once you have made a low. An Ace calling in late position is often
noted as being in contention for a scoop, which is why you will simply
call. Early position door-card aces that make complete bets or call
complete bets are usually in contention for taking the high end of the
pot which is often counterfeited by the late callers with three-card
straights and three-card flushes.

33% of the time hands are won with no low. This
is why it is important to maximize the amount of profit early on
assuming that the pot will be split. By raising you are cutting out
starting hand combinations that not only shut out other low draws, it
increases the percentage of you turning your low draw into the high hand
that will scoop the pot when your cards pair.

What
this also does is allows other players to fold down when they see that
you have an \’obvious low, and they are basically \’giving\’ you the pot
not knowing if you are also threatening to scoop if the hand continues
to the river.

While the pots may be won little pots at a time, the
dollars do add up, especially if they are not being split. This is, of
course, to your benefit.

On
fourth street:

• If your hand contains a one-card draw to a low, and
  players are checking to you, bet.

• If your hand contains a one-card draw to a low, and a
  bet is made, raise.

• If your hand contains a one-card draw to a low and
  there is a raise ahead of you, re-raise.

• If your hand contains a one-card draw to a flush or a
  straight vs. a hand that is obviously calling with high pair(s) raise.

• If you have hit a brick such as a paint card and there
  is at least one obvious low at the table that is betting,  fold.

• If you started your hand with a three-card flush and
  you have hit a card that does not improve your hand to hitting what you
  originally intended, (a flush or a low) then fold the hand.

• If you have made two high pair without the
  threat of a flush or a straight and there is an obvious low on the
  board, check to the low if you know they will bet out, and then raise.
  (not using the low to produce a check-raise is often overlooked and is
  what helps create the most profit out of the hand in a multi-way pot
  that is sure to be split).

On fifth street:

Fifth street
in Stud 8/b is a critical street for players to determine whether to
stay in the hand or fold. If you have a made low you do not want to
necessarily raise out the players who will be feeding money into the
pot. You also do not want to give cards cheaply so that you will
possibly be out-drawn if you decide to stay in. It is also the street
where a pair or two pair often becomes counterfeited by better draws
such as trips, straights, and flushes.

If you have
a low in a multi-way pot:

• And another hand obviously has a low or is representing
  to have a low that does not show the threat of a straight, check-raise
  if you know that they will bet out.  It is likely that they may
  have a low as well, however with a high playing the board you will want
  to maximize profit should the other low actually not be the low, or even
  not be the best low.

• If an obvious high pair hand is betting out with
  over-cards to other high-hand players simply call or you will raise
  other players out of the pot, minimizing potential profit.

• If an obvious high pair hand is betting out and there
  are flush and straight draws at the table, it is wise to raise in this
  case, because the straight and flush draws will most likely pay to see
  the next card.

If you have the high in a multi-way pot:

• And there is a low on the board, check to the low and
  then raise.

• And there is no low on the board, continue to bet. If
  you carry high two-pair such as AA535 vs a hand showing QK79 that bets
  out, raise.

Always raise in accordance to position in the case
you have live outs to:

• One-card draw to an open-ended straight, a flush and a
  low, or any one-card draw combination that allows for two or more outs.

_________________________________________________________________________________

After i can post awesome advanced strategies for this game if you enjoy this..

Best Regards,

Renan.

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Hi! My name is Renan, i\’m brazilian and I play stud H/L at PokerStars and FT.  I\\\’m new here and i will try to make this a good blog! I ever visited the pokerweblogs blogs and i really like this..  ENJOY!

*Sorry, my english is poor. :/