Thanks in part to the rise in popularity of mixed games such as H.O.R.S.E. Razz (the R in H.O.R.S.E) is now more commonly spread by online poker rooms and as a result new players are trying out this fun, yet sometimes frustrating, game.

One of the most common mistakes made by new and experienced players alike is slowplaying a good starting hand. Since the best possible hand, or nuts, is 5-4-3-2-A, players often decide to slowplay a starting hand such as A-2-3 in order to try and win a large pot. This is wrong for a number of reasons, including the fact they are just begging to be outdrawn over the next four streets of action with the majority of the deck still to be dealt. The only time it would be correct to slowplay would be if you had the nuts and nobody else was showing a card lower than a six.

Impatience is another flaw many Razz players possess, especially as it is quite common to fold a large percentage of your starting hands. In Razz you have to post an ante regardless of if you want to continue with your hand or not and this can become very frustrating if you see your chip stack dwindling while you are receiving unplayable cards. However, sitting tight and waiting is much better than playing sub-standard hands and potentially losing even more money.

The biggest mistake any Razz player can make, regardless of their skill level, is failing to follow correct bankroll management. The game itself is naturally high in variance and there will be periods of time where you are simply paying the antes or bring-in bets and then folding your hand. In order to be able to outlast these barren spells you should make sure you sit at the table with at least 50 big bets and have at least 500 big bets in your overall bankroll. This means to sit at a table with $1/$2 blinds you should sit down with at least $100 (and be prepared to re-buy) and if you plan on staying at these stakes you should have around $1,000 at your disposal.

To a beginner, Razz hands can be as confusing as the Omaha poker rules are to those used to playing Hold’em.

However, if you stick with it you’ll find Razz makes a nice change from the more commonly found forms of the game.

If you mention that you play poker to the average person on the street, they will almost always assume you mean Texas Hold’em. Tournament Texas Hold’em was accepted as “the poker game” when the poker boom hit the United States in 2003, after Chris Moneymakers historic World Series of Poker Main Event victory. Millions of college students, middle aged men and women, and retirees began playing the game which was made famous through ESPN’s coverage.

Many people inside the game of poker only play Texas Hold’em and many of these people do not even understand the other forms of poker that are our there. I recently hosted my weekly home poker game and decided to make it a dealer’s choice game. I selected Omaha Hi/Lo, Razz, and 7 card stud as my dealer’s choice games and had to explain the rules and concepts of the games numerous times. A few of my friends, who are quite talented Texas Hold’em players, were not big fans of these new games, as they did not fully understand the strategies to excel at the new games and could not be bothered to apply themselves. A few of the other players at the game, loved the new additions. They liked the added action created in Omaha, as well as the new information and betting rounds created in Stud and Razz.

There are so many different and unique caveats of each game, that it creates new and different challenges amongst each game. I, like many, first learned how to play Texas hold’em competitively. I got into Razz by playing online and reading books such as Super System. At the time I first got into these other games, I was a bit burnt out on Texas hold’em. That’s what really turned me onto playing Razz competitively. Learning the nuisances Razz and different strategies involved with the game brought back my passion for playing poker. I became a student of the game again, studying and learning everything I could about the game. In the end, I became much better at Razz, but these strategies and new thought processes also helped me in my Texas hold’em game as well.

Some sites do not offer every form of poker or have as high as volume of games in these different games that they do in Texas hold’em. However, most of the large sites and many medium sized sites have many game types. Paddy Power Poker, Virgin Poker, and Ladbrokes Poker all offer games in Texas Hold’em, Omaha, Omaha Hi Lo, Razz, 7 Card Stud and 7 Card Stud H/L. Just like Texas Hold’em, these sites offer micro stakes, .01/.02, low stakes, $1/2, medium stakes, $10/$20, and large stakes, $50/$100 and above. I would suggest starting at very low stakes if you are just learning the game of Razz. It can be very confusing at first and you don’t want to blow your whole bankroll before you even understand the game.

Throughout the next few weeks, I will take you on a journey through the game of Razz. I will not only give you a better understanding of the game, but I will teach you some proven winning strategies for this form of poker and the various opportunities involved with Razz.

I decided to strike up a conversation with Barbara and she was very gracious and very friendly.  I told her how that I was new to poker tournaments etc, and we got into a discussion about Las Vegas etc.  I knew from what I had read about her that she was a fantastic stud player and as a result, I decided to try and get her advice on Razz.   I had never played the game and I knew it was offered at the World Series.  I asked for her advice on the game and it was a very helpful piece of advice.  She said, “Play your boards strong.  Razz is a game of strong boards.”  As I started playing the game, I discovered that she was correct.  Today, I am going to talk a bit about playing your board in a Razz game.

As we all know, Razz is a game where the worst hand wins.  There are many times in this game that you can force a person out of a hand based on what you are showing on your board.  Of course, part of this requires that your opponent is astute enough to be able to put you on a better hand, and if they are willing to fold.  You cannot bluff a calling station, so if you are against one, don’t try.

For others, there are many times where you can force them off of a hand based on what you are showing.  For example, let’s say you are on fifth street showing 9-8-7.  You right now at best could have a made nine.  If you catch perfect, you may be able to draw to a seven, assuming your hold cards are good.  Now let’s look at your opponent’s board.  They are showing 8-8-J.  What is the best they can hope to draw to?  An eight is the best hand they can make, and right now they are still drawing.  In this type of situation, you will want to bet to force them out of the pot.

Part of being able to bet someone off of a hand is showing a hand that has looks strong compared to theirs.  The other part is determining what they could draw to?  When on Fourth Street, what can they draw to if they catch three cards perfect?  If on fifth, what can they catch?  You need to be able to put them on potential hands.

Did you notice in the examples above that I did not involve my hole cards?  There is a reason.  In the case of playing your board, you are betting based on your perceived strength and not on the actual strength of your hand.  It is another form of bluffing, and a very profitable form for this game.