Badugi: A beginner's guide by Artanis

Basic rules
There are three draw rounds in which you can discard as many cards as you wish. The goal is to get the lowest 4 cards of diffrent suits, without pairing your hand. The best hand that's possible is A234 rainbow, after that the best hand is A235r, A345r, A236r, et cetera. Note however that KQJT rainbow beats A234 if the A234 is not of diffrent suits. Pairs negate the diffrent suit.

Basic Strategy - 8max
The first thing that I'm going to discuss is the 8-handed play. The starting hands you want to be playing in general are 3 cards under 8 of diffrent suits, A2 or A3 of diffrent suits (in late position if people folded to you), and all badugi's (a badugi is 4 cards of diffrent suits that isn't paired). You will want to raise all of these hands. If someone raised before you and he is unknown, I would suggest to 3bet whenever you have 3 low cards of 6 and under, or a made badugi. I would flat with hands like A377 though, as they are most valuable as well. Very critical information: In a heads up pot, you should almost always bet if your opponent discarded more cards then you did, regardless of what you drew. Put pressure on him.

Basic Strategy - HU
Obviously, HU is a very villain-dependant game. I would open the button every time I have 2 cards under 7, or 3 cards under T, and obviously any badugi. The key thing is adapting to reads of your opponent. Does he ever stand pat as a bluff? Does he open hands in which he discards 2 cards? This should determine your calling and/or raising range when you're in the bb. I can't say much more about it as it's really all about adapting to your opponent.

Adapting to new information
The most crucial thing to use is information. If someone is standing pat, it generally means he has a made badugi. If you don't have a badugi, you can be quite certain that you're an underdog if you don't haveo ne. This is however where our hand selection comes into play. Say you have A23r3 and villain has 27TJr. We have 3 draws and 7 outs. Depending on the odds, you'll have to decide whether to draw or not. Please note that people are very bad at folding badugi's, even king high ones when their opponent is standing pat, so don't worry about them possibly folding when you hit your badugi and they're standing pat. They'll accomodate.

Folding Badugi's?
There are definitely situations in which you want to fold a badugi. Say you're playing a competent player. He raises UTG and you look down at KT78r and 3bet him. He calls and discards 1 card, you stand pat. He then proceeds to checkraise you after the first draw. This could definitely be a point in which you want to muck your hand since it's unlikely that he will bluff someone that's standing pat. I believe you can fold badugi's up to 9 high with the right read, so don't be shy to fold if you do think you're beat, even though you think you'll look silly for folding after standing pat. Make the right decision!

Common situation
You raise in MP with A255 and get 3bet from the BTN. You call and discard 1 card, BTN discards 1 card too. What should you do here? It depends on the villain. In general, I would opt to checkcall this street and checkraise him after the second draw, assuming you both discarded 1 card on the second draw and you didn't improve. This is because if you both don't improve, you are very likely to have the best hand with a 5-high 3card badugi. This means you're actually a big favorite. I'd also wait until after the second draw because the bets will double as big, so you get to build a pot twice as big. He will also often call a river bet if you discard a card on the third draw simply because he's clueless (most Badugi players still have no clue what they're doing). This depends on what level you're playing at though.


I hope that you've learned something from this article, as it is one of my first for LP. If you have any questions, don't be shy to ask.

I am waffling between trying to get reasonably good at this game or continue trying to playing NL. It is actually a fairly interesting game.

Ooh cool, I've been wondering about general strategy for this game for a while. Thank you!

Ow, thanks.

One question: card that I discard can be received by another guy or return to me?

sweet, just started putting some hands in at 1/2

Thanks for this!

fuck this game is not easy!

so far -$30 ....

this game is tilting the fuck out of me

fuck this TILT INDUCING stupiAD !#@%!%^!^% !#@$ASSS GAME

On January 01 2009 19:22 Artanis[Xp] wrote: Basic rules There are three draw rounds in which you can discard as many cards as you wish. The goal is to get the lowest 4 cards of diffrent suits, without pairing your hand. The best hand that's possible is A234 rainbow, after that the best hand is A235r, A345r, A236r, et cetera. Note however that KQJT rainbow beats A234 if the A234 is not of diffrent suits. Pairs negate the diffrent suit. Basic Strategy - 8max The first thing that I'm going to discuss is the 8-handed play. The starting hands you want to be playing in general are 3 cards under 8 of diffrent suits, A2 or A3 of diffrent suits (in late position if people folded to you), and all badugi's (a badugi is 4 cards of diffrent suits that isn't paired). You will want to raise all of these hands. If someone raised before you and he is unknown, I would suggest to 3bet whenever you have 3 low cards of 6 and under, or a made badugi. I would flat with hands like A377 though, as they are most valuable as well. Very critical information: In a heads up pot, you should almost always bet if your opponent discarded more cards then you did, regardless of what you drew. Put pressure on him. Basic Strategy - HU Obviously, HU is a very villain-dependant game. I would open the button every time I have 2 cards under 7, or 3 cards under T, and obviously any badugi. The key thing is adapting to reads of your opponent. Does he ever stand pat as a bluff? Does he open hands in which he discards 2 cards? This should determine your calling and/or raising range when you're in the bb. I can't say much more about it as it's really all about adapting to your opponent. Adapting to new information The most crucial thing to use is information. If someone is standing pat, it generally means he has a made badugi. If you don't have a badugi, you can be quite certain that you're an underdog if you don't haveo ne. This is however where our hand selection comes into play. Say you have A23r3 and villain has 27TJr. We have 3 draws and 7 outs. Depending on the odds, you'll have to decide whether to draw or not. Please note that people are very bad at folding badugi's, even king high ones when their opponent is standing pat, so don't worry about them possibly folding when you hit your badugi and they're standing pat. They'll accomodate. Folding Badugi's? There are definitely situations in which you want to fold a badugi. Say you're playing a competent player. He raises UTG and you look down at KT78r and 3bet him. He calls and discards 1 card, you stand pat. He then proceeds to checkraise you after the first draw. This could definitely be a point in which you want to muck your hand since it's unlikely that he will bluff someone that's standing pat. I believe you can fold badugi's up to 9 high with the right read, so don't be shy to fold if you do think you're beat, even though you think you'll look silly for folding after standing pat. Make the right decision! Common situation You raise in MP with A255 and get 3bet from the BTN. You call and discard 1 card, BTN discards 1 card too. What should you do here? It depends on the villain. In general, I would opt to checkcall this street and checkraise him after the second draw, assuming you both discarded 1 card on the second draw and you didn't improve. This is because if you both don't improve, you are very likely to have the best hand with a 5-high 3card badugi. This means you're actually a big favorite. I'd also wait until after the second draw because the bets will double as big, so you get to build a pot twice as big. He will also often call a river bet if you discard a card on the third draw simply because he's clueless (most Badugi players still have no clue what they're doing). This depends on what level you're playing at though. I hope that you've learned something from this article, as it is one of my first for LP. If you have any questions, don't be shy to ask.

wat

i was doing very well in this game at first, but the last 2 days have been awful. At first, my Jack and Ten hi badugis were winning many pots. Then people started drawing out more often. Also, my 8 and 7 hi badugis were good very often. The last couple days, many of my hands have notched and i am losing some confidence. This guide has helped and I will start posting more hands for help.

In your first paragraph A245 should be in there as the third best hand^^

nice little guide though, ive played a few hours of this and the players have been very poor, I find it to be very profitable

thanks for the article, nice read, problem is that in cash game, there is no traffic ( 30 players) and probably 1 fish.
but i have to agree that this game is fun,
stand pat as a bluff is so good when they keep chasing

Submitted by : copsnrobbers

PokerStars Game #23485474041: Badugi Limit ($0.25/$0.50) - 2009/01/02 5:14:14 ET
Table Reginita II 8-max Seat #1 is the button
Seat 1: Pa_Ohulahan ($9.70 in chips)
Seat 2: Ihsmael ($13.55 in chips)
Seat 3: copsnrobbers ($10 in chips)
Seat 4: migu_r ($7.60 in chips)
Seat 5: epacse ($17.40 in chips)
Seat 6: B0DYPUMP ($23.75 in chips)
Seat 7: Iserl ($10 in chips)
Seat 8: nthedark2 ($8.55 in chips)
Ihsmael: posts small blind $0.10
copsnrobbers: posts big blind $0.25

Holecards
Dealt to copsnrobbers
migu_r: folds
epacse: calls $0.25
B0DYPUMP: folds
Iserl: calls $0.25
nthedark2: folds
Pa_Ohulahan: folds
Ihsmael: calls $0.15
copsnrobbers: raises $0.25 to $0.50
epacse: calls $0.25
Iserl: calls $0.25
Ihsmael: folds

First draw (Pot : $1.75)

copsnrobbers: stands pat on
epacse: discards 2 cards
Iserl: discards 1 card
copsnrobbers: bets $0.25
epacse: calls $0.25
Iserl: calls $0.25

Second draw (Pot : $2.50)

copsnrobbers: stands pat on
epacse: discards 1 card
Iserl: discards 1 card
copsnrobbers: bets $0.50
epacse: calls $0.50
Iserl: folds

Third draw (Pot : $3.50)

copsnrobbers: stands pat on
epacse: discards 1 card
copsnrobbers: checks
epacse: checks

Showdown
copsnrobbers: shows (Badugi: 9,8,6,2)
epacse: mucks hand
copsnrobbers collected $3.35 from pot

Summary
Total pot $3.50 | Rake $0.15
Seat 1: Pa_Ohulahan (button) folded before the Draw (didnt bet)
Seat 2: Ihsmael (small blind) folded before the Draw
Seat 3: copsnrobbers (big blind) showed and won ($3.35) with a Badugi: 9,8,6,2
Seat 4: migu_r folded before the Draw (didnt bet)
Seat 5: epacse mucked
Seat 6: B0DYPUMP folded before the Draw (didnt bet)
Seat 7: Iserl folded after the 2nd Draw
Seat 8: nthedark2 folded before the Draw (didnt bet)

I haven't even played this game, but I'm like 99% sure you should vbet there. I mean just think about it, hes still drawing and you have a 9 high badugi.

Playing this instead of Razz is pretty much like playing Triple Draw instead of HE. Dont

ez valuebet I do believe. definitely wouldn't reraise a raise though

definitely worth a river bet cops, especially with him still drawing on the last draw

Ok thanks guys. I played a 550 hand session this morning and I 100% agree. At first I thought people may only put more money in if they hit a good badugi, but they do call with 3 card badugis and worse 4 card badugis all day so yeah im vbetting this every time w/o a read.

Thanks for this guide artanis. In 1 day of playing badugi I've equalled my best day playing nlhe cash games after playing them for a year lol. Up $70

lol ure best NL holdem cash day after 1 year of play was 70$

fuck your life imo

haha

you're cool....

lol don't be a dick pplus :D!

I am afraid with the low traffic badugi has that it will become overly flooded with regs..

You should be v-betting almost any badugi after the last draw. I mean the probability of even hitting one if you have triple suit in the beginning is roughly 50% ;D Guess it's pretty transparent what you ahve, but most of these guys probably don't even know the rules. And even if they have a badugi, it's fairly likely to be smaller than yours.

cops you have to bet/call on river. if you had like 8 or 7 badugi then we might need to bet/raise/call but meh i guess that's player dependent.

Say we had a badugi preflop and ended up heads up. We stood pat and bet every street while getting our bet called every street. Assuming he discarded 1 card every single time, would we not want to check the last street with a high badugi (e.g. 9 or bigger)? We probably wouldn't beat anything that calls us. I do figure if we woke up with like a sick low badugi, then we should bet with the intention of 3betting.

Might be exploitable but people thinking past 1st level in badugi right now seems pretty lol

On January 04 2009 01:22 edzwoo wrote: Say we had a badugi preflop and ended up heads up. We stood pat and bet every street while getting our bet called every street. Assuming he discarded 1 card every single time, would we not want to check the last street with a high badugi (e.g. 9 or bigger)? We probably wouldn't beat anything that calls us. I do figure if we woke up with like a sick low badugi, then we should bet with the intention of 3betting. Might be exploitable but people thinking past 1st level in badugi right now seems pretty lol

yea that is a stupid spot, i feel like when we are called at the end, we are rarely good. So let's see, if we check and our opponent bets i figure we also rarely good(against a standard player). So if our opponent has a worse hand, it's the same result. If our opponent has a better hand, by betting we lose a bet(assuming we fold to a raise) and by checking we may lose a bet. This is all quite vague. This is why I feel badugi is a very read dependent game. Initially, many players overvalue certain hands and our 8 and 9 hi badugis will take down more pots than we would against a more competent player. It's just as important to understand what goes through our opponents' minds as our own.

pplus is just rude - he's from germany

Added an odds chart to the OP.

--- Nuked ---

how much do you buyin to this damn game?

20 bbs is more than enough...

On January 07 2009 03:21 palak wrote: how much do you buyin to this damn game?

duh

Badugi is fun, but I lost $20

christ hopeless game.

guy discarded 3 cards on river and got a low badugi. fucking ridiculous

he took my 4 dollars pot

On January 09 2009 17:42 SpasticInk wrote: christ hopeless game. guy discarded 3 cards on river and got a low badugi. fucking ridiculous he took my 4 dollars pot

outplayed

Thaanx for this strategy.

I play Badugi in tournaments a few years and can tell you:
- 3/4 of badugi players loose before 1-st break
- Players cannot fold badugi
- Play Strategy Basic strategy - 8max, but modified to 7max
- never bluff for first 85% time of tournament, start bluffing in ending phase
- in most hands A23 is better than A58J

Badugi is hard, but interesting game. Good luck

On January 02 2009 21:48 PplusAD wrote: lol ure best NL holdem cash day after 1 year of play was 70$ fuck your life imo haha

you're such an asshole sometimes, most of the time

hey guys, any of you still playing badugi? Just wanted to ask what is the best poker room to play this game at, preferably with good NL20 or NL10 traffic.

Also stupid question - what happens with the cards you discard? Do they go back in the deck? I thought they wouldn't, but there wouldn't be enough cards if all 8 players are playing and discarding..

amazing thread revival
time to learn another form of poker

Must have missed this the first time. Solid contribution Artanis

Nice article indeed.
So, how big is the average swong? How much BBs (limit badugi on PS) is proper BR?

SWITCH TO BADUGI EVERYONE IS SOLID IN HOLDEM D:

if you sucked in holdem you'll suck in badugi too.

not really a spoiler tho.