How to Play Short Deck Poker (6+ Hold'Em)

Co-authored by Hunter Rising

Last Updated: October 28, 2022 References

If you're looking to spice up poker night, short deck poker is an exciting variation on Texas Hold'em that you should try out. Also known as Six Plus Hold'em, short deck poker uses a smaller deck, so you have better odds at high-scoring hands. Even though you probably know most of the rules, there are some key changes you should know before you start playing. If you’re curious about how short deck poker is different, keep reading to learn the rules and best strategies.

Things You Should Know

Play short deck poker with a 36-card deck that doesn’t use any 2s, 3s, 4s, or 5s. Aces can count as both high and low cards in a straight.
A flush is stronger than a full house since it’s more difficult to make in your hand. You can also play so a three-of-a-kind beats a straight.
Straights, three-of-a-kind, and two-pair hands are more common, so starting with a pair of cards isn’t as powerful as in Texas Hold’em.
Place bets based on the 2 cards in your hand and the 5 cards on the table. The person with the highest scoring hand wins the round’s pot.

Section 1 of 3:

How is short deck poker different from Texas Hold’em?

1
Short deck poker uses a 36-card deck without the 2s–5s. Short deck poker is really similar to playing Texas Hold’em, but there are fewer cards. With a smaller deck, you’ll have higher-valued cards and be more likely to draw what you need to make a strong hand. Since a lot of starting hands give you a good shot at winning a round, players are less likely to fold early on.^{[1]
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Aces count as the high or low end in a straight. You can use an ace as both the highest or lowest value in your hand. Just like in Texas Hold’em, a hand with a 10, jack, queen, king, and ace counts as a straight, but in short deck poker, you can also make a straight with an ace, 6, 7, 8, and 9.^{[2]
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3
A flush beats a full house in short deck poker. Since there aren’t as many cards of the same suit in a short deck, flushes are tougher to make than when you’re playing Texas Hold’em. Since getting pairs and sets of cards are more common, a full house loses strength. The hand rankings from highest to lowest are:^{[3]
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- Royal flush
- Straight flush
- Four-of-a-kind
- Flush
- Full house
- Straight
- Three-of-a-kind
- Two pair
- One pair
- High card
- Variation: Some short deck poker tables rank three-of-a-kind stronger than a straight.

Section 2 of 3:

Round Overview

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Ante in. All the players make the same minimum bet by adding poker chips to the pot, starting to the left of the dealer and going clockwise around the table. When it’s the dealer’s turn, they pay twice the amount to ante in.^{[4]
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- If you’re playing at home, change who deals after each hand.
- Some short deck poker tables have two players pay “blinds” instead. The small blind is the person to the left of the dealer and pays half of the minimum bet. The big blind is the person to the left of the small blind and places the minimum betting amount.
2
Deal 2 cards to each player. The dealer shuffles the cards and passes them out 1 at a time to each of the players face-down. Every player can look at their own cards, but should keep them a secret from one another.^{[5]
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Make bets based on your starting hands. Starting with the person to the left of the dealer, players can choose whether they want to check, call, or raise the bet after looking at their 2 cards. If a player isn’t happy with their hand for the round, they can fold and go out for the round instead.^{[6]
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- If you check, you decide not to make a bet. You can only check if no one else made a bet this round.
- When you call or raise, add your poker chips to the pot in the middle of the table.
- Once all the players have made or called the same bet, the betting round ends.
4
Put 3 face-up “flop” cards on the table and place bets. The dealer “burns” the top card of the deck by setting it aside face-down. Then, they reveal the next 3 cards, known as the “flop.” Starting to the left of the dealer, players now check the value of their hands including the flop cards and can choose to check, call, raise, or bet again.^{[7]
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5
Reveal the “turn” card and make another round of bets. After everyone finishes their second round of bets, the dealer burns the top card again and flips the next card over, known as the “turn”. Players go through another betting round, checking if the new card helps them make a high-scoring hand.^{[8]
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Flip the “river” card and make final bets. The dealer burns the top card and flips over the next card, also known as the “river”. Any player that’s still in makes one more round of bets, trying to make the best 5-card hand using their 2 cards and the cards on the table.^{[9]
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- Any player can use one, both, or none of the cards they were initially dealt to form their highest scoring hand.
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Players reveal their cards and the highest hand wins. Any player that was still in after the final bet reveals the 2 cards they were holding. Everyone compares their hands to see who has the highest value, and whoever ranked highest wins all the money in the pot.^{[10]
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Section 3 of 3:

Strategy

1
Check at the start of the hand if you’re dealt connecting cards. Connecting cards are two cards that are in sequence no matter their suit. Connecting cards give you a lot of opportunities to form straights in the game, but you can’t be sure how strong your hand is until you see the flop cards. If you’re early in the betting rotation, check the bet so you can see what other players are going to do first.^{[11]
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- Checking the bet is also known as “limping.”
- You have a 19% chance of getting flop cards that form a straight if you have a ten & jack or 9 & 10, a 12% chance if you have a queen & jack, and a 6% chance if you have a king & queen.^{[12]
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2
Make bets larger than the pot if you have a high hand. Overbetting is when you place a bet that’s more than the total value of the pot. If you have two aces or an ace & king, you have a pretty high hand and good chances of winning the round. After the flop cards are revealed, if you still have a high-valued hand, raise and make a larger bet to put pressure on the other players.^{[13]
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- The other players will either have to call to match your bet if they want to stay in, or they’ll fold if they’re less confident. Since you still have a strong hand, you’re still more likely to beat the other players out.
3
Be conservative with your bets if you’re only showing a pair. While a pair of cards normally does well when you’re playing standard Hold’em, they’re more common in short deck poker and rarely win on their own. Rather than risking your chips, make the minimum bets to stay in and see the cards that get revealed in the flop to see if you can make a better hand.^{[14]
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- If you’re still only showing a pair after the flop or turn, don’t be afraid to fold and ditch your cards when other players are raising the bet.
4
Calculate odds for the turn and river cards with the rule of 3 and 6. Estimate the chances of drawing a card you need if you’re showing cards for a straight, flush, or full house. Determine how many “outs”, or cards that would improve your hand, you have and multiply it by 3 for the odds that it will be revealed during the turn. Instead, you can multiply your outs by 6 for the odds you’ll get the cards during the turn and river.^{[15]
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- Example: If you’re missing the first or last card of a straight, you have 8 possible outs. That means you have a 24% chance to draw the card you need by the turn, and a 48% chance to draw it by the river.
5
Consider the other players’ hands before betting. Pay close attention to the other players and how they act during their bets. If a player is making large bets and is acting confident, it could be a sign they’re showing a high-valued hand. Think about the card combinations that your hand could beat and what could beat your hand. If your opponent has more opportunities to beat you, it’s best to fold and go out.^{[16]
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- Some players will bluff to make you think they have a better hand, but you can tell if they’re lying based on if they have fidgety body language or have played similarly in past hands.