OTHER GAMES & THE POLITICS OF WILD CARDS
There are countless variations on the staple games of poker. Many of these games employ wild cards, in which a cards can have any value. Hardcore poker players turn their nose up at wild cards, since they throw off the probabilities and change the nature of the game. However, for the rest of us, wild cards can be a fun way to spice thinking up a little. Keep in mind that wild cards affect the ranking of the hands : five of a kind is now the best hand. Not surprisingly, players stick around longer when wild cards are involved, pot tend to be bigger, and you might even see a royal straight flush lose to a five of a kind.
It is up to the dealer to decide what cards are wild in each game. He can essentially choose any card he likes to be wild. Common wild cards are deuces, threes, one-eyed Jacks, and the suicide Kings (King of hearts). Other games, such as Follow the Queen, have changing wild cards. And still another variations is to have the low card in the hole wild for each player. For instance, in seven card stud, if you have a 5-9-10 in the hole, then all 5s in your hand, whether face up or down, are wild.
Follow the Queen
Follow the Queen is a fun variation on seven card stud in which your hand can potentially change and change dramatically with each new up card. Since the wild cards can change, it is difficult to have a strategy, but if you have a couple of Queens, you are in good shape. In follow the Queen, Queens are always wild, whether exposed or in the hole. If a Queen is dealt faceup, then the next up card following the Queen is also wild. However, if the up card after that is a Queen, then the other wild card is replaced. For instance, let’s say a Queen is dealt face up to Player 1, and then Player 2 gets a 3 up card. Queens and 3s, either up or down, are wild. But in the next round, Player 3 gets another Queen face up and Player 4 is dealt a 6 up card. Now 6s are wild, and 3s are just 3s.
With wild cards changing, a potentially winning hand in Follow the Queen can turn into a lousy one. Likewise, a hand going nowhere can be transformed into a full house or better. Unlike regular seven card stud, in which the final card is dealt down, many people Play Poker that each person can opt to have his final card either up or down.
Roll Your Own
Roll Your Own is a variation on seven card stud where each player decides what his hole cards are as the hand progresses.
The game begins with three cards being dealt face down to each player. The players then choose one of their three hole cards to reveal to the table. For instance, if a player is dealt a 10♥ -10♦ -J♦, he can decide to keep the 10♦ -J♦ in the hole and expose the 10♥ . There is a round of betting and then another card is dealt face down. Once again, each player chooses one of his three down cards to expose. This sequence continues until each player has four up cards and two cards in the hole. The last card stays down as in regular seven card stud.
An important decision in Roll your own is if, and when, to reveal your good cards. For instance, if dealt a pair, you can expose them, split them, or keep both hidden. Since players choose their hole cards, the game allows for bluffing and surprise endings.
Note: Roll Your Own is a fun game with plenty of suspense, but patience is required because it takes time for players to decide on their hole cards.