5 Card Draw Poker Tips & Tricks

5 Card Draw Poker has been around for a long time, and for good reason. Chances are that this is the first Poker game that players learn, even grow up playing is 5 Card Draw. (not sure about this sentence) Players like the ability to replace the cards that they hold in their hand, and it is an easy concept for beginners to understand. It also gives opportunities to draw better hands and increas the probabilities making the game more enjoyable when just learning. There are still tells and signs to watch for in 5 Card Draw Poker, as there is in any form of Poker, but for most people 5 Card Draw is Poker in its purest form. The game for them is about the cards and trying to get the best hand. To find out the full details regarding 5 Card Draw feel free to read our other articles rules of 5 Card Draw Poker, and 5 Card Draw Poker strategies.

Player discards: Keep an eye on what your opponents are discarding, and how many cards they keep. If they discard 3 cards the best they can be working with is a pair. If they check and fail to discard any they either have a really good hand (in their mind) or they are bluffing. By watching what your opponents discard you will have a bit better idea of how to play out your hand.

Strong Hand Advice: When you are dealt a strong hand, such as a high 3 of a kind, do not bet too high. You don’t want to tip off your opponents and scare them off.

Lower Hand Advice: Similarly if you have a lower valued hand, such as a pair of Jacks, wager higher in hopes of scaring off a couple people increasing your probability of winning the pot.

4 Flush or 4 Straight: Drawing to a 4 flush or a 4 straight can work in your favor and pay off, however drawing on a 3 flush or 3 straight is not as recommended as it is much harder to draw. As well, players do not recommend drawing to an inside straight (where you have 4 cards in a row, and there is only 1 possibility for drawing the card you need Ie, you have Ace, 2, 3, 4 and you need to draw the 5, or you have Jack, Queen, King, Ace and need to draw the 10.) This scenario rarely works and is highly suggested against.

Keep a kicker: When drawing new cards and discarding, keep a high card back. If all you have is a low pair and keep a high card, to your opponents it can seem as though you have a 3 of a kind.

High Betting: After the second round begins judge your hand. If you feel you have a good strong hand, then begin to bet high. Your goal is to get the pot as big as you can, especially now that you have players committed to winning it.

Below are different articles the team at Poker Alley has put together to help you gain an edge while playing Poker:

Texas Hold ‘em: This game has become quite popular in the past few years. To find out rules for Texas Hold ‘em Poker you can view our <-- this will be a link--> article that highlights it.
7 Card stud: This is arguably the most popular form of Poker after Texas Hold ‘em. Casinos have embraced 7 card stud as have players.

Omaha Poker: As with Poker in general there are many types of Omaha Poker games, for this article we will focus on Omaha High Low and take a closer look at some tips to keep in mind when playing.

General Poker Tips: Although every form of Poker varies, and each game offers unique differences, there are still some general tips that can benefit a Poker player regardless of what form of Poker they are playing. This article will focus on some of those key tips and will give a new player a basis and better understanding for Poker.

We hope that you find these articles as informative and helpful as we do. If there are any areas that you would like us to take a more in-depth look at to help you with other variations of Poker please feel free to send us an e-mail and let us know. We would be happy to take your requests and answer any questions that we can.