Ace to Five Triple Draw

Overview

Ace to Five Triple Draw (often abbreviated as A-5 Triple Draw) is a five-card lowball poker game. The goal is to make the lowest possible five-card hand, with ace considered low. Straights and flushes do not count against the hand’s low ranking, meaning a hand like 6-5-4-3-2 (a straight) is still a high hand and undesirable. The best possible hand is A-2-3-4-5, known as the “wheel” or “bicycle.”

Rules

• Betting Structure: Typically played with fixed-limit or pot-limit betting. There is a small blind and big blind.
• Drawing Rounds: Each player receives five cards face down. Then there are three drawing rounds (hence “triple draw”). Each drawing round is followed by a betting round.
• Drawing: On each draw, a player may discard up to five cards and receive replacements from the remaining deck. After the third draw, a final betting round occurs, followed by a showdown if needed.
• Hand Rankings: Hands are ranked by the highest card in the hand, with lower being better. For example, A-2-3-4-7 (“seven-low”) beats A-2-3-4-8 (“eight-low”). Pair or higher is not a low – any hand containing a pair or better is considered a “badugi” (in context) and will lose to any hand with no pair. The lowest hand that is not a straight or flush is best; straights and flushes are considered “high” (i.e., they are not low).

Strategy

• Starting Hands: Strong starting hands are those with low cards and no pair, e.g., A-2-3-4-7. Hands with a deuce or ace are valuable.
• Drawing: Common draws include drawing to a wheel (drawing to A-2-3-4 with a junk card). Players often stand pat (keep all five cards) when they have a very low hand like A-2-3-4-5 or A-2-3-4-6, hoping opponents will draw and possibly make worse hands.
• Position: Position matters, especially in deciding whether to draw smooth (drawing to low cards) or rough (discarding high cards). Late position allows you to see how many cards opponents draw before acting.
• Bluffing: Semi-bluffing on draws and pat bluffs (standing pat with a mediocre hand) are common. These tactics work because opponents often fear a made low hand.

Comparison to Other Lowball Variants

• 2-7 Triple Draw: In 2-7, straights and flushes count as bad – they actually count as high hands. Also, the best hand is 2-3-4-5-7 (not 6-5-4-3-2 because that would be a straight). This makes 2-7 more restrictive.
• Badugi: A four-card lowball variant where suits matter; you want all cards of different suits and ranks.
• Razz: A seven-card stud lowball game with A-5 ranking (no qualifier). The strategy differs due to the fixed number of draws and exposed cards.

A-5 Triple Draw is popular in mixed games, especially in high-stakes cash games and tournament events like the WSOP. Its simple ranking (ace low, no qualifier) makes it accessible for beginners yet deep for strategy.