Louisiana Hold'Em

There’s a new game in town… and it’s chock-full o’ suck outs. As you burn your way through a single deck at a time, and the River rises quickly, this game’s designed for insanely fast play… and some mighty fine pots.

During our traditional weekly post-game email exchange, Hirp, Marneus and I stumbled upon an idea for a new game that’s turned out to be quite fun. As we waxed poetic about the seemingly endless string of River suck outs we’ve all endured at one time or another, we pondered whether or not we should devise a game where you skip the Flop and the Turn… and head straight down to the River to deal with the inevitable draw out.

Hirp and I had a chance to try this new gem of a game out through two rounds of tournament play on Saturday night (the lil’ beyotch owes me $2 as a result).

Here’s how you play:

- With it’s limited betting opportunities, the game absolutely has to be played in a no-limit format to enable bluffing and sizable pots.
- Similar to the more traditional Texas Hold’em, you start out with two cards down, bet and wait for the Flop.
- What’s different between this game and how it’s played in its neighboring state of Texas is that the Flop consists of one card, which also serves as the River and the last round of betting.
- The game is played with a single deck at a time, so Blackjack players and card counters will have a slight advantage over those with short-term memory disabilities.
- The game can be played in either cash or tournament formats. In tournament play, the blinds go up each time you burn through a deck. In cash game play, you play through a deck and reshuffle when you don’t have enough cards for another round. It’s recommended that you burn through at least three decks before the end of the game and the pass of the deal to a different format cash game.
- Information is king in this game. With a single deck in play at any one time, knowing what cards have been played will allow players to make better decisions later in a round.
- If all players check at the River, all must show their cards. If a bettor is not called, he need not show his cards (nor would the players who folded their hands).
- With three cards, Full Houses and Quads are not possible, nor are simple straights or flushes honored. However, to add some spice, the Straight Flush is in play – and as such beats Three-of-a Kind, a Pair and High Card.

Can’t wait to put this one in play at our next cash game.