Seven Card Stud Strategy Index:
Seven Card Stud Basic Strategy
Advanced Strategy
Starting Hands
Seven Card Stud Odds
Playing at PartyPoker

Seven Card Stud Basic Strategy

Learn the seven card stud starting-hand rules, seven card stud playing strategies, and what to look for at poker tables to increase your winning percentages. Winning poker hands involves much skill and is not about who has the lucky cards. It's about who is able to out-play their opponents with their strategy. Adjust the strategy you are using to your specific table. Constant adjustment and focus in seven card stud game is crucial. Seven card stud strategy is adjusted for:

• Cards on the table
• The type of seven card stud game
• Poker table stakes
• Character and behavior of your opponents
• Number of poker players at the table
• Number of poker players in the betting rounds

Seven Card Stud Basic Strategy for PartyPoker:

• Pay attention to the first three cards:
  In any seven card stud poker game there are essential things that you must focus on when the starting hand (the first three cards dealt to each player) is dealt out. Don't lose your focus on these things at any time, it could cost you the hand. If you weren't paying close enough attention to these things or were distracted during the deal, fold your hand immediately. Your opponents will pay attention to these things and you don't want them to take advantage of your lapse of concentration. You will probably not remember the cards specifically on later streets but you will generally have a hunch if an opponent's hand is real or if it is a bluff.

  Having general knowledge about the other cards on the table will determine whether it best you call, raise, or fold. If your cards combination are live, you will have a higher rate of success in achieving a winning end result.
  Again, if cards have been folded around the table, and you have missed the opportunity to view those door cards, think about folding unless you have an extremely strong hand and no one has raised the bring-in.

When the starting hand is dealt and all the door cards are showing you will need to do this as quickly as possible before players start folding their hands:

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  1. Look at all of the door cards showing on the table.
  2. Count how many of cards of each suit are out.
  3. Look at what card numbers are out.
  4. Remember which player was the first to raise the bring-in bet (if any) and how far away they are in position from the bring-in.
  5. Remember if the player with the bring-in bet calls any raises.
  6. Let the players know that you are not afraid to raise or re-raise.
  7. Let the players know that you can lay down a very good hand, even after re-raising.
• Bluff very little in low limit Seven Card Stud:
  For some reason, players at the low limits, especially casual, infrequent players (tourists) don't like to fold. They seem to think that because they're playing 7-card Stud, they have to see all seven cards. Because of this, there's plenty of opportunity for them to take a mediocre hand to the river (seventh street) and drown your hand.
• Counting other player's cards:
  You are not only counting the cards for your own hand, you are counting cards and suits to determine what is live for other players' hands for later rounds as well. If your cards are not live - fold.
• If you find on fifth street that you are chasing to make a hand against an aggressive better, it is probably best to fold. Naturally you may not know this until the show-down and you've lost. Use the experience of knowing when you are chasing cards for your hand against a player betting aggressively, that they probably already have a made hand. Then fold earlier next time. In the late streets they are highly unlikely to fold what they've invested into the pot when they've been betting aggressively.

Determining if you have a live flush combination:
If you have a 3 flush starting hand, the other door cards you have viewed will determine the odds of you hitting your flush. You are counting how many of the cards on your table are of the same suit as your flush draw. In later rounds, for anyone else who is showing a flush-draw in their up-cards, you will need to know how live their flush is before betting or calling.

A general rule of thumb to determine the odds of you hitting your flush at a full table is if there are more than two players (without counting yourself) showing the suit you need to make your flush, consider your flush dead. If the table is short-handed you may call for one bet. Especially if you have other outs. If any cards that turn at fourth street that you need for your flush appear in other player's hands, really consider your flush a goner. At a short-handed table you may adjust the fourth street rule to suck-out a back-door flush, however the door-card suit-count rule should remain the same; consider the flush dead if there are more than two of the same suit you need in other players' hands.

Determining if you have a live straight combination:
If you have a combination in your starting hand to possibly hit a straight, you will be looking to see that the cards that you need to complete your straight are still live.  In later rounds, for anyone else who is showing a straight draw, you will need to know how live their straight is. If you have a connector combination such as 789 and you see 5's, 6's, 10's, or J's around the table, consider your straight dead. Also consider that if you see other 7's, 8's and 9's at the table, the cards that you need to make pairs for this hand should be considered dead to your draw.

2 Pair Play:
If you have a combination in your hand where you can make 2 pair, you want to see who's cards may be higher than yours. You will also be looking to see if the cards you need for pairs will still be live or if they are out of play.

The first player to raise the bring-in bet probably has a fairly strong combination. Most likely a pocket pair or split pair. The position that they raise from may determine if they are attempting to steal the pot or if they really have a hand to play.

Playing at Partypoker

In Partypoker, players at the table usually play pretty straight-up, with little bluffing and will fold in earlier rounds when they know the cards in their hand are beaten. The exception to this usually occurs during tournament play.

PartyPoker - Players Notes
The longer you sit at a table with the same players, the more you get a feel for their strategy, what they raise and call with, and how easy or difficult it is for them to fold. Take notes about each player and adjust your strategy according to which players are in the hand with you. This way you will improve your play by keeping player notes on your opponent. Just right click with the mouse on your opponent's image and choose notes. Type in your notes in the text window. To read the notes on your opponents, repeat the same actions and the notes will be displayed. These are private notes and will be automatically saved once you close the text window and are not visible to others at the table.

Move on to the next level of play in Seven Card Stud - the Advanced Strategy page teaches you how to cope with what you are up against with experienced and very loose players.