Badugi
A draw poker variant where the best possible hand is four low cards of different ranks and different suits, with no pairs.
iGaming Journalist & Crypto Casino Analyst
What Is Badugi?
Badugi is a lowball draw game where hand rankings work opposite to most poker variants -- players want the lowest possible hand made up of four unpaired cards of different suits, known as a 'badugi.' Players are dealt four cards and can draw up to three times to improve their hand, discarding cards that pair up or share a suit with another card. It is often played as part of mixed game rotations like HORSE variants or dedicated triple-draw formats.
Examples
A hand of A-2-3-4 with all four different suits is the best possible badugi, often called the 'nut badugi.'
A player draws two new cards after discarding a pair of sixes and a duplicate suit to improve toward a badugi.
Strategy Tips
Prioritize keeping low cards of different suits during the draw, since both pairs and duplicate suits break your badugi. Starting hands with three-card badugis already made, such as A-3-5 offsuit, are strong and worth playing aggressively. Remember that only four-card badugis beat three-card or two-card hands, so drawing to improve your card count is often more valuable than simply lowering your cards. Study standard badugi starting hand charts since the game's math differs significantly from Texas Hold'em.