Badugi is a variation of four-card lowball poker that is played all around the world. Although Badugi originated in Korea, it has reached global popularity and is now offered in online poker games and even in casinos. Many people who first start to play Badugi assume that it’s easy to win, but once you learn the ins and outs of the game, you’ll see how challenging Badugi can be.

The dealer gives four cards to each player, one at a time. The players would then choose to bet, fold or raise their bets based on their first hand. A hand with all suits – Heart, Diamond, Club and Spade – is known as a ‘true Badugi’.

The best possible hand in Badugi is an A-2-3-4 of four different suits. However, you can only use one of each suit and one of each value in your hand. Meaning, if you a 4 of Clubs, 3 of Hearts, 6 of Diamonds and 6 of Spades, you need to choose between the two sixes and drop one, so you could make a 3-card hand. Similarly, if you have a hand with a 7 of Hearts, 9 of Hearts, 5 of Diamonds and 8 of Clubs, you need to drop one of the hearts.

You can choose to draw up to four cards to make a better hand. Just like other variations of poker, you should turn in all unwanted cards before getting new cards. Depending on your new hand and your opponents’ bets, you can bet, fold or raise the bet. Trust your instincts and your poker knowledge in deciding if you a winning hand. You have a choice to draw from 0 to 4 cards again depending on which cards would make the best hand. All players would then reveal their cards to determine who wins.