7-A Five-Card Draw “Italiano” Poker

The combinations in 7-A Five-Card Draw “Italiano” Poker are as follows, in order of decreasing value:

• Royal flush
• Straight flush
• Four of a kind
• Full house
• Flush
• Straight
• Three of a kind
• Two pairs
• Pair
• High card

Notice that Flush and Full house hands are ranked differently than in most other poker games.

Click here to learn how to use the various combinations to make a poker hand.

A marker, called the puck, is moved clockwise around the table one player position at a time as the game progresses, to determine the order of distribution of cards and the order during the betting rounds. When play begins, the puck is placed in front of the first active player next to the dealer, who is the equivalent of the traditional casino dealer.

Before any cards are dealt, the first player next to the puck in clockwise order places the small blind bet. The next player in clockwise order then places the big blind bet. The actual amounts of the blind bets will vary in accordance with the type of limits of the table.

Starting with the first active player next to the puck, the dealer deals five face down cards one at a time to each player. Once all players have received their five cards (the "pocket" cards), the first betting round starts with the player following the player who placed the big blind bet. In each betting round, as the situation permits, players have the following options:

Check: If no player has placed a bet, you can check, i.e. not bet but remain in the game.

Bet: Add a bet to the pot.

Call: Put the same bet into the pot as the previous player.

Raise: Place a higher bet than the previous player.

Fold: Not bet and lose the right of winning the pot (forfeit the game).

If no player has raised the big blind, the player who placed the big blind has the option of checking or raising.

The next betting round starts once all players remaining in the game have checked (whenever this choice is available) or have put bets of the same amount into the pot.

After the first betting round, each player can discard up to five cards and draw new ones by clicking on the cards to be discarded–which will become grey and rise above the other cards–then clicking on DISCARD. Players who do not wish to replace their cards click on STAND PAT. The number of cards discarded by players will be displayed and this number is available for all until the second betting round.

NOTE: If an insufficient number of cards remain in the deck for the needs of all players who wish to draw new ones, the discarded cards are shuffled and re-used.

When all players have discarded and drawn new cards, the second betting round begins with the first active player following the puck, with the same options as before.

After the second betting round, all the players who still have their five cards show their hands to try and win the pot. The first player to show his cards is the player who bet or raised last. If no one bet in the previous round, the first active player next to the puck (in clockwise order) shows his hand first.

The player with the highest ranked hand in the showdown or when all other players have folded, wins the pot. The pot is shared equally among players having identical whinning hands. Wins from the pot are added to the winning player’s total stakes on the table. If the player is sitting at a cash game table, total stakes will automatically be paid into his or her Espacejeux account upon leaving the table.

Loto-Québec’s online gaming website offers you 7-A Five-Card Draw “Italiano” Limit and Pot Limit poker.