How to Play Five Card Draw

Five Card Draw poker is popular among casual players because the rules are quite simple. It is rare to see it in use at real money ring games or tournaments, but not totally unheard of. Because of its popularity at home games, there are many house rules that vary from one venue to the next.

Five Card Draw Rules

• The two players to the left of the dealer pay the blinds.
• Five cards are dealt face down to each player.
• There is a round of betting that begins with the player to the left of the big blind.
• Next, the players may choose any number of cards from their hand and discard those cards. Those players will then receive an equal number of new cards from the deck.
• There is one more betting round. This round begins with the first player remaining to the left of the dealer.
• The remaining players have a showdown. The player with the best poker hand wins the pot.

About the Dealer

In many home games, the players take turn acting as the dealer. In these games, the dealer’s position moves one seat to the left at the beginning of each hand. Other home games use a full time dealer. In those games, a small token called the “dealer’s button” is used to represent the position of the dealer at the table. This makes it so that all players take turns paying the blinds and acting first/last.

About the Blinds

The blinds are small, forced bets that serve to generate action. The player to the left of the dealer must pay the small blind and the player to the left of the small blind must pay the big blind. The big blind is equal to a full small bet and the small blind is equal to half a small bet.

The blinds in a $5/$10 fixed limit 5 Card Draw game would be $2.50 and $5.00 because the minimum bet is $5.00. The blinds in a $5/$10 no limit game would be $5.00 and $10.00 because the minimum bet is $10.00.

About the Betting Rounds

The first betting round begins with the player immediately to the left of the small blind. This person must either call, raise or fold to stay in the hand. The action moves to the left around the table.

If there has been no raise by the time the action gets around to the small blind and big blind, those players’ blinds are considered “live.” What that means is that if there have been no raises, the small blind only has to pay half a bet to see the flop. The big blind can then choose to check and see the flop without paying any additional money. These players also have the option to raise if they desire.

The second betting round begins with the first remaining player to the left of the dealer. This time, that player may check, bet, raise or fold. The option to bet moves to the left around the table.

About House Rules

Before you start a home game of Five Card Draw, you’ll want to make sure everyone understands and agrees to any house rules. One of the most common house rules is that the players may only discard three cards at a time, unless they have an Ace. In that case, the player may discard four cards and keep the Ace. This rule is usually only used in big games in which there is a risk of depleting the deck.

If you would like to learn more about the game, other than how to play, you may want to check out our five card draw overview page.