Razz Strategy

See Razz Poker Rules

Razz Poker Strategies

Once you learn the basic rules of Razz its time to start focusing on a winning strategy. Razz is a poker game that demands Strong Starting hands. 

Being a low ball game the lower your starting cards the stronger your hand. To be a winner more often you should try to pay good attention to the up-cards of your opponents. 

Like all forms of stud, razz is primarily a board game, where the strength of the opponent's up-cards can be more important then the true strength of their hand. 

Generally only starting with 3 cards to a 7 low is a good strategy for any multi-way pot. As a rule you want to draw from the bottom on up. Three cards like 237 is a much stronger hand then 567.

It is also very important to realize is that if you had to play a 567 you would much rather have the 5 face up then the 7 because this would put a lot more pressure on your opponents on later betting rounds. 

In Razz, any time you have the best up card and have decent hole cards and no opponents behind you with a better low card showing, a raise is a good strategy. You don't need a great hand to play aggressively when you are playing heads up, you just need a better hand then the other player.

Bluffing is also an important part of playing the game of Razz. If you have a very low card showing but high cards in the hidden part of your hand it may be advisable or possible to make a bluff raise.

If you catch other low cards on the next streets and bet into your opponents they would probably give you credit for making a low-hand and fold. This is particularly the case when opponents catch high cards themselves.

If you are called in several places or raised then you must give up on the bluff quickly. The size of the pot compared to the bets on later streets will sometimes ensure that opponents will call.

Good luck and have fun.