How to Play Badugi

Rules

Badugi is a 4 Card Lowball Draw Game that is most commonly played as a Fixed Limit or Pot Limit Variant.
A Badugi is a 4 Card Hand consisting of 4 Cards of different Suit and Different Rank. The aim is to make a Badugi with the lowest possible card rank values. Aces in this variant are Low Cards.

Hand Strengths

The Best Badugi Hand possible is A-2-3-4 Rainbow. Badugi Ranks are valued based on the highest-ranking card in your hand and the lower that value is the better; for example, J-T-9-8 Badugi will beat K-3-2-A Badugi. If both players have the same highest card, then the winner is determined by the second highest card ranking; for example, 8-4-2-A Badugi will beat 8-6-2-A Badugi and so on…

In the event no player in the hand has a 4-Card Badugi the best 3-Card Badugi will take the pot based on the same card value rules above. The lower the values of the 3-Card the better.

Gameplay

Every player is dealt 4 cards and there is a small blind and big blind in play. Action begins as expected with the player to the left of the big blind. Once all action is complete in the opening betting round the first drawing round will take place. Players will choose how many cards to draw in turn, starting from the left of the button. Once all players have acted on the drawing round, there is another round of betting. There are 3 drawing rounds in total and the final round of betting will occur after the last drawing round.

Tips and Strategy

You’ll often want to start with a strong 2-card (A-2) or 3- Card Hand (A-2-3); it can be pretty difficult to make a Badugi so you’ll often find yourself in a situation where both players are still drawing 1 on the last draw. Having a good 3 card can mean taking down the pot when both players are unimproved in the end. You can even bet your 3-card for value in situations like this.

Try not to draw two bad Badugis. You might be 1 suit away from making your hand but drawing to a T-high Badugi is most likely not going to make the cut. You’ll often want to aim for 8 Badugi’s or better and you’ll sometimes end up with a T-8 or J-8 Badugi in the end anyway. Don’t limit yourself by drawing two bad Badugis. You are more often better off drawing to a strong 2-card than a weak 3-card.

Don’t get too attached to bad Badugis. You might have a J high Badugi from the start and pat and play it aggressively but don’t get too attached. Most players will be drawing to much better and when facing a lot of aggression, it might be time to give it up.

Don’t forget to snow! Snowing is when you pat your hand and play it as a bluff. Having a monotone hand, blocking a lot of a single suit, potential cards your opponents might need to improve can sometimes be good snow candidates.

Are you getting the right price to keep drawing? When your opponent is pat and you’re drawing a good hand it can sometimes be tempting to keep seeing 1 more card but make sure you are aware of the pot size and the odds you are getting to attempt to make your hand. In small pots in Fixed Limit games, it can be a common error to keep calling and drawing over the big bet streets when you’re not getting the right price. Similarly in the Pot Limit variant, you and your opponents can leverage your bet sizings to offer difficult decisions for your opponents.

Good Luck at the tables!