Top Three Tips for Five Card Draw Poker

Five Card Draw is a favorite for old timers, and has seen a bit of resurgence online as of late. The game is extremely simple to play, but you should brush up on your Five Card Draw strategy before you hit the tables so you won’t get eaten alive. This article will provide the top three tips for new five card draw players, so you can take care of your chips on the felt:

Be Picky

The biggest mistake that new five card draw players make is to play too many hands. Before the draw you should only consider playing premium pairs (Queens or Better), two pair, open ended straight draws, and flush draws. Even the draws should be let mucked if the betting gets too expensive.

Make sure to remember that your hand selection will be largely dictated by your position. If you’re in late position you can open up your range to include Jacks and Tens, but if you’re in early position you should tighten up and fold everything except Aces or better. Five card draw is a very positional game, and the initial hand selection relies heavily on your position at the table.

Also remember that if there are fewer players at the table you can open up your hand selection. A short handed game with only 5 or 6 players calls for looser hand selection, while a 10 handed game calls for tighter hand selection. In the smaller game blinds are coming around more often, so you need to loosen up to avoid getting blinded away.

Be Aware

Another important tip is to remain aware of your opponents. This isn’t video poker – you’re actually playing against other humans with emotions and tendencies. Try to pick up your opponents’ habits – for example, does one player always raise pre-draw with a flush draw? Does another player always reach the draw regardless of the price? Does another player always bluff after missing his draw? This is all important information, and if you’re playing at an online poker room you can easily keep track of this info with the note taking feature.

Also be aware of the action before you. It’s so easy to be playing a few tables online and call a three bet with just a pair of aces because you weren’t paying attention. Those mistakes can become extremely costly, especially if you make three of a kind aces and are forced to call down a large bet only to find out your opponent had a pat flush all the way. Pay attention at all times, and you’ll be just fine.

Know the Stakes

It’s always extremely important to know the stakes of the game you’re playing. Five Card Draw is offered in No Limit, Fixed Limit, and Pot Limit varieties. Fixed limit games require a far different approach than No Limit or Pot Limit games. If you’re playing Fixed Limit, you’ll focus more so on the player’s hand and how many cards he discards, because that’s all the information you really have.

In No Limit or Pot Limit you have the additional information of bet sizes, and that is something you need to factor into your decisions. Put yourself in the other players’ shoes and imagine “Why is he betting the pot before the draw? Why did he draw three then check? Why did he stand pat then make a small bet?” It’s always important to realize that every bet is made for a reason, and if you can figure out that reason the other player will have no chance.