The object of Stud8 is to make the best high five-card hand, and/or the lowest hand consisting of five different cards ranked eight (8) or lower. You get dealt a total of 7 cards and Stud8 is, in a way, a combination of Stud and Razz. That being said, there is no guarantee of a low hand being made at showdown, as you need 5 different ranked cards 8 or lower to qualify. Each player is initially dealt two cards face down and one card face up, this is called the 3rd street, as you have been dealt 3 cards. You then get dealt 4th, 5th and 6th street face-up, while 7th street is dealt face-down. At showdown, the pot will be split between the best high hand and the lowest qualifying hand, a player can have both the best hand, and the lowest (scoop the pot). If there is no low at showdown, the player with the best hand will scoop the pot. Aces act as a high card for the high hand, and the lowest card for the low.

In Stud8, there is no button in play . On 3rd street the player with the lowest up card (ace is the highest, deuce is the lowest) acts as the ‘Bring-in’, which can effectively be looked at in a similar light to posting a blind. If two or more players have the same lowest card, the bring-in will be determined by lowest suit (from high to low: Spade, heart, diamond, club). The bring-in size compared to the limits will vary from level to level when playing live, but is usually around 1/3 of a small bet, the player could also complete for a full bet instead of putting the bring-in, but it’s almost always the wrong play. After the bring-in is posted, the action will start to the direct left of the bring-in and go round the table clockwise.

From 4th street onwards the action will always start on the best board, the one with the highest showing poker hand. Therefore position can change between hands. Stud8 follows a limit bet structure with a small bet on 3rd and 4th street, and bigbets on 5th, 6th and 7th street. On every street there can be a maximum of one bet and four raises.

• If you find yourself heads-up the dealers will leave the chips in front of you, instead of bringing them into the pot. This is to save time when chopping, but is done regardless of the possibility of a low. You can make change with your own bets as long as you at least put out the current total.
• Keep in mind the order of your opponents cards, a player starting out with a high card will almost always be going for a high hand. A player with a low card is slightly harder to predict, but will often have a hand with low potential.

• Make sure to not put in too many bets when it is likely you are getting freerolled. This occurs when your opponent has one part of the pot (usually the low) locked up, with a chance to hit for example a gutshot or a hidden full house, to scoop the pot.
• When having a low board playing against a likely high hand, be sure to only bluff on 7th when you actually have a low, as your opponent is likely to hero call you expecting to get half back.
• Stealing is not as straightforward in this game as it is in Razz and Stud, low cards in general have a slight advantage on the high cards, but the difference is marginal. Aces are however a small joker in this game, acting as high and low, giving you the opportunity to steal wider when it’s your door card.