432A Badugi Poker

There is a lot of BS floating around this planet of ours. Such a limitless supply that if we could bottle and burn it as fuel, this rock we live on just might be Ok till the sun decides to swallow us whole or some humungo feral space rock feels we looked at it funny so he’s gonna headbutt downtown New York. (nothing personal NY I just hate the Rangers)

Lots of stories floating around about the origins of Badugi. Truth is not much is really known about where the game originated. Most popular (and with the info at hand most probable) theory is that the game originated in Korea. One popular myth is that ‘Badugi’ is Korean for ‘spotted dog’ but apparently no such word exists for spotted dog in the Korean language and the only usage of the Korean word for badugi is when speaking about the game. David Lenton has the best article about the origins of Badugi on his site playlowballpoker.com.

It is widely accepted that Paul Eskimo Clark introduced the game to the US after his tours in Vietnam. Interesting story about my father here, I’ll save for another post.

I’m sure there is a bunch of BS floating around about badugi which is fitting since there is so much room to BS within badugi!

Snowing in Badugi

If you google define:snowing you will see

Definitions of snowing on the Web:

• Snow is a type of precipitation in the form of crystalline water ice, consisting of a multitude of snowflakes that fall from clouds. …
  en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Snowing

* deceiving, misleading, or winning over by glib talk, flattery, etc.

www.cliffsnotes.com/WileyCDA/LitNote/The-Catcher-in-the-Rye-Study-and-Homework-Help-Full-Glossary-for-The-Catcher-in-the-Rye.id-53,pageNum-137.html

• deceiving, misleading, or winning over by glib talk, flattery, etc.

Yep, that’s snowing. I did that search as I write this. I had no idea if I would get a result I could use here but I was pretty sure I would which is why I always feel surprise when someone asks what snowing is. It’s bluffing. It’s deceiving and misleading your foes so that you might win with the worst hand.

“Ah HA!” you say “the fun stuff, well bring it on!”

Snowing is the art of making villain believe he is second best and getting a fold. Some think snowing is “standing pat when you don’t have a badugi” and yes you are doing that but it’s not always just about making your opponent think you have ‘a badugi’. You will face opponents who will make their hands, have your imaginary badugi beat and you can still convince them that getting away from the hand is the best option. You have to pick those spots carefully as they will be WAY too costly when you make a mistake and get called.

I’ve seen a lot of questions about snowing in badugi and most seem to think you want to snow with hands like

or

or even

These are not good hands to snow with. They are worth too much drawing with them to waste them with a snow. No the whole idea behind snowing is to turn losing cards in to winning cards. Winning cards don’t need ‘help’ they know how to win on their own it’s the crap cards you have to help along.

One strategy I’ve seen is to use flushes as snowing hands and it’s not a bad strategy at all. A flush in badugi is tied for worst hand with 4 of a kind. Both are one card hands in badugi and should never be drawn to but they do offer snowing potential. You’re turning cards that lose to over 270,710 hands or so into a #1 badugi in the mind of your opponent and baby 432A just don’t lose.

Using flushes to snow with can give you a nice natural frequency to your bluffs. They are rare enough that you won’t be snowing too often yet common enough to be a useful too in your arsenal. Quads or trips could be another good hand to snow with as are weaker 3 card hands such as 789×. The possibilities are limitless just make sure you’re not falling into the trap of thinking snowing with a hand like 32Ax is a good idea because “if I get looked up I’ll have the winner”.

There are times you will want to semi-bluff a hand like 32Ax because you know your image and a bet will induce a look up call from a weaker hand but again it’s dependent on the situation and you’re knowledge of the table conditions/villains.

I’m going to show some basic snows here, it’s up to you to figure out more creative lines.

Feral Cow Poker Hand Converter
PokerStars Limit Badugi t400/t800 – 3 players

SB: t2,420 (Hero)
BB: t7,110
Button: t2,470

Dealing Hands: (t0) (3 players)
Button folds, Hero raises to t800, BB calls t400

First Draw: (t1,200) (2 players)
Hero stands, BB discards 1,

Hero bets t400, BB folds

Hero collected t1600

Real basic snow here. It’s three handed I’m in the SB the BTN folds so this starts out as a blind steal and when he calls it turns into a snow. I stand, he draws 1, I bet he folds.

Next up green snow!

Moooooooooooraaawwwr.
PokerStars Limit Badugi t200/t400 – 2 players

Button: t6,900
BB: t5,100 (Hero)

Dealing Hands: (t0) (2 players)
Button calls t100, Hero raises to t400, Button calls t200

First Draw: (t700) (2 players)
Hero discards 1, Button discards 2,
||
Hero bets t200, Button folds

Hero collected t800

I play this like it’s a premium 3 card draw. Villain knows I’ll hammer all manner of premium 3 card hand HU if he calls the bet at first street I would have stood pat and fired out again. It looks like you made your one card draw and are strong.

Here villain and I have been going back and forth HU for a while and he has a tendency to chase me down if I’m betting and drawing so soon as I saw the cards preflop I knew this next one was going up on the blog.

Milked from the teat of a feral cow
PokerStars Limit Badugi t400/t800 – 2 players

BB: t6,250
Button: t5,750 (Hero)

Dealing Hands: (t0) (2 players)
Hero raises to t800, BB calls t400

First Draw: (t1,200) (2 players)
BB discards 2, Hero discards 1,
||
BB checks, Hero bets t400, BB calls t400

Second Draw: (t2,000) (2 players)
BB discards 1, Hero discards 1,
||
BB checks, Hero bets t800, BB calls t800

Third Draw: (t3,600) (2 players)
BB discards 1, Hero stands,

BB checks, Hero bets t800, BB folds

Hero collected t4000

With this hand I know as soon as I stand pat the hand is over but if I keep betting and drawing I can string villain along and then pat on last street. As you see the bet gets a fold.

Like I said these are all very basic snows and will generally look as such but when you’re SH or HU great cards are harder to come buy. As long as you’re not bluffing at every pot snowing in badugi can earn you profits you otherwise had no right to.

Here are a couple examples of snow attempts I’ve busted.

This first one wasn’t a bust but it’s one I took note of as a probable snow and later on in the game I do bust the same guy it will be the second hand.

Hmm the cows keep spitting that hand back out at me. I can’t seem to find anything wrong with the HH so I’ll type this one out.

The table had just gotten down to four handed. UTG raises, I fold, SB folds, BB calls. UTG stands pat, BB discards 1, BB bets, UTG calls?!?.

The BB just went fishing and he’s caught something. UTG has been playing any rainbow and he’s been pushed off some weak badugis this game already. Villain (BB) knows this so he tests the waters with a lead out bet. I suspect it’s a feeler because this guy knows how to check raise and being only 1st street he knows psudo-Hero would bet any 4 cards into a draw. Other than him catching a really marginal badugi and he does not want to risk a CR no other conclusions make sense to me here.

If Hero raises here villain would call and continue his draw but with the weak call he’s knows humpty’s on the edge of the wall all he needs is a good push.

Play continues with (BB)Villain stands pat now and (UTG)Hero discards 1. The transformation is complete. Hero keeps chasing last street only to fold at showdown. This was the first time in a long time during this game that villain did not show his pat hand. Generally means little but here with how everything made complete sense to me at the time I’m pretty sure this was a snow. So I make a mental note and play on.

A few hands after we got down to 3 handed this hand happened.

Milked from the teat of a feral cow
PokerStars Limit Badugi t300/t600 – 3 players

BB: t4,645
Button: t4,030 (Hero)
SB: t3,325

Dealing Hands: (t0) (3 players)
Hero calls t300, SB folds, BB raises to t600, Hero calls t300

First Draw: (t1,200) (2 players)
BB discards 1, Hero discards 1,
||
BB bets t300, Hero raises to t600, BB raises to t900, Hero raises to t1200, BB calls t300

Second Draw: (t3,600) (2 players)
BB stands, Hero stands,

BB bets t600, Hero calls t600

Third Draw: (t4,800) (2 players)
BB stands, Hero discards 1,
||
BB bets t600, Hero calls t600

BB showed , a 3-card: K,Q,6
Hero showed , a 3-card: 3,2,A
Hero won t6150

To be honest I wasn’t thrilled about calling the raise preflop but I remember thinking “Ok shady…we’ll play” I took an extra few seconds and I’m thinking he took that to mean I was weak and exploitable. We both draw 1 but I toss the wrong card. I chuck the 7 instead of the J. >.< Luck is with me though and I catch a the 2 for a J32A.

He bets out again. I really get the feeling this is turning into a snow line for him so I raise. He RRs so I cap it. He stands pat. This was exactly what I was expecting so I stand. I was considering breaking the hand here and probably should have but I wanted to see what he was going to do in the face of a pat hand. He bets out! Gawd I luv’em. He’s not going to budge. Ok in the off chance I’m wrong I call and break.

I’ve already decided in my head I’m calling down with 3 cards if I have to I’m about 90% sure this is a bluff and sure enough…Villain gave me a NICE CALL! after that one. He said the hand started with trip-K’s one of which he tossed to help sell the bluff.

Snowing can be a great tool if like all tools you use the right one for the job at the right time. Same thing with looking people up. Either one done too often will cost you a lot of chips over the long haul. Pick your spots!

432A