Badugi is a lowball draw game where the goal is to make the lowest possible rainbow, unpaired hand. A-2-3-4 in all different suits, is the best possible hand, also known as wheel or number 1. If you got a hand with four different suits and four different ranks it’s called a badugi, all badugi hands beat hands that are not badugi. If two players get a badugi, the player with the lowest highest card wins. For example Q-9-7-6 beats K-3-2-A, if both players have the same highest card, then we go to the second highest, third highest, then if all four cards got the same rank, it’s a chop pot.

The second best hand to make is a 3-card badugi, that means 3 cards with different suits AND different ranks, if no player has a 3-card badugi the best 2-card badugi wins and so on. The strength of your 3-card badugi is based on the highest of the cards that make up your 3-card badugi, the 4th card is ignored and doesn’t play.

The betting and drawing works just like in 2-7 Triple Draw, you get dealt four cards, and can draw as many cards as you like, up to three times. The betting starts with a small and a big blind, action starts to the left of the big blind pre draw, and to the left of the button after the draws. There is a betting round before/after every draw round, for a total of 4 betting rounds. Before the first and second draw there will be small bets (equal to one big blind) and after the second and third draw there are the big bet streets (two big blinds). A total of one bet and four raises is allowed on each street.

Please note the difference between a hand such as 3c-2h-2s-Ac and 3c-2c-2s-Ah, the first one is only a 2-card badugi as you got Ac-2s, the other 2h and the 3c doesn’t help you making a 3-card badugi. In the second example you have a 3-card badugi Ah-2s-3c, which is a powerful starting hand!

• Read your hand carefully, it’s easy to assume a hand is a 3-card badugi, when it’s in fact a 2-card badugi, as shown in the example above.
• Make sure to show down your hand if you’re in any doubt, hands get misread in badugi more often than in most other games.

• Snowing is a powerful move, as making your hand is harder in badugi than in other draw games. Be aware that snowing after 1 or 2 drawing rounds usually represents a stronger range!
• Be aware to not play too many 8 and 9 draws, and take note of other players over valuing these types of hands. A2 is a favorite over a hand like A79 with 3 draws to go, because it’s so much more likely to make a strong 3-card badugi.
• Price aint always right! In very small pots you usually do not get the right price to continue vs a made badugi when you get to the big bet street.