Badugi

Badugi (also known as badougi, paduki or padooki) is a draw poker variant that belongs to the lowball family of games. It uses a unique hand-ranking system where the goal is to make the lowest possible four-card hand with no pairs and no cards of the same suit.

The betting structure and play of the game follows the format of a standard poker game with blinds. It features three drawing rounds, during which players can exchange up to four cards from their hands for new ones from the deck, in an effort to improve their holdings. The winner of each pot is the person with the best badugi at showdown.

Badugi is played in cardrooms worldwide, as well as on online platforms such as PokerStars.^[1]Since 2003, the World Series of Poker has featured a $1,500 Badugi tournament, and it is also featured in the Dealers Choice and Triple Draw Mix events.^[2]

Origin

Game origin and etymology

The exact origins of Badugi are uncertain, though the game has been played since at least the 1980s in South Korea and is generally believed to have originated in Asia. The name badugi is derived from a Korean word meaning "black and white spotted dog." The Korean name for the board game Go, “baduk”, comes from the same root.

Play of the hand

Play begins with each player being dealt four cards face down. The hand begins with a "pre-draw" betting round, starting with the player to the left of the big blind and continuing clockwise. Each player must either call the amount of the big blind, fold, or raise. If a player raises then any remaining player must call (or raise) the bet to remain in the hand.^[1]

After all players have either contributed an equal amount to the pot or folded, the game advances to the draw phase. This phase starts with the player to the dealer's left and proceeds clockwise. Each player can discard and replace any number of cards from their hand. If the deck is exhausted during a draw, the discarded cards are reshuffled to create a new deck, enabling the draw to proceed.

The first draw is followed by a second round of betting, after which comes another draw and a third round of betting. After that there is the final draw, followed by a fourth round of betting and the showdown - where the player with the best hand wins the pot.

Hand evaluation

Cards are ranked from low to high, similarly to traditional poker, but with aces always counted as low. Unlike traditional poker, Badugi features a unique hand ranking system where hands composed of cards with differing ranks and suits are more desirable. Furthermore, among hands of the same size, those with a lower rank of cards are considered superior, aligning with the principles of lowball poker.

A badugi hand can consist of 1–4 cards of distinct rank and suit. Any duplicated suit or rank in a hand is disregarded.^[3] Any four-card badugi hand beats a three-card badugi hand, a three-card hand beats a two-card hand, and a two-card hand beats a one-card hand.^[4] A four-card badugi hand that consists of all four suits is called a "badugi".^[5]

When two Badugi hands have an equal number of cards, they are assessed by comparing the highest-ranking card in each, with aces counting as low. The hand with the lower high card wins. In case of identical high cards, the next highest card is compared. If all cards in both hands are of equal rank, the hands are considered a tie.

The best possible hand is A234 of four different suits. The worst possible hand is K♣ K♦ K♥ K♠.

Some example hand match-ups are detailed below:

2♠ 4♣ 5♦ 6♥ beats A♠ 2♣ 3♦ 7♥ (both are four-card hands) since the highest card is compared first and the 6♥ is smaller than 7♥.
4♠ 5♣ 6♦ K♥ beats 2♠ 3♠ 4♦ 7♥ since the former is a four-card hand and the latter is a three-card hand. (The 3♠ is disregarded as a duplicate spade, so the hand is a three-card 247.)
A♠ 5♦ 9♦ 9♥ beats A♣ 2♠ 2♣ J♦ They reduce to the three-card hands A59 and A2J.
2♠ 3♠ 4♦ 7♥ beats 4♠ 5♠ 6♦ K♥ both are three-card hands, but the highest in the former is the 7♥ while the highest in the latter is the K♥.
A♠ 2♣ 3♦ 3♠ and A♦ 2♥ 3♣ K♣ are of the same strength, since both of them reduce to the three-card hand A23. The redundant (3♠ and K♣) do not affect the strength of the hands as they are disregarded.
5♦ 7♣ K♣ K♥ beats 2♠ 3♦ K♠ K♦ as the former is a three-card hand (after disregarding the K♣) while the latter is a two-card hand (both kings are disregarded since each is the same suit as another card in the hand).

If one can construct two (or more) different badugi hands with the same four cards (as in the final example), the better badugi hand is evaluated against the other hands. This occurs when there are at least two cards of the same suit; one of which is paired. Here, disregarding the paired, suited card generates a better hand than disregarding any other card.

Example hand

Here is a sample deal involving four players:

Compulsory bets: Alice is the dealer. Bob, to Alice's left, posts a small blind of $1, and Carol posts a big blind of $2.

First betting round: Alice deals four cards face down to each player, beginning with Bob and ending with herself. Ted must act first because he is the first player after the big blind. He cannot check, since the $2 big blind plays as a bet, so he elects to fold. Alice calls the $2. Bob adds an additional $1 to his $1 small blind to call the $2 total. Carol's blind is live, so she has the option to raise, but elects to check, which ends the first betting round. The pot contains $6.

First draw: Each player may now opt to draw up to four cards in an attempt to improve their hand. Bob, who is to the dealer's immediate left, is given the first chance to draw. Bob discards two cards and receives two replacement cards from the top of the deck. Carol now also chooses to draw two. Finally, Alice chooses to draw one.

Second betting round: Bob is now first to act and chooses to check. Carol bets, adding $2 to the pot. Alice and Bob both call, each adding $2 to the pot. The pot contains $12.

Second draw: Bob draws one. Carol opts not to draw any cards, keeping the four she has (known as standing pat). Alice draws one.

Third betting round: Bob checks again, and Carol bets $4. Alice raises, making the total bet $8. Bob folds and Carol calls the additional $4. The pot contains $28.

Third draw: Carol is now first to act and draws one. Alice stands pat.

Last betting round: Carol checks, and Alice bets $4. Carol calls.

Showdown: Alice shows 2♠ 4♣ 6♦ 9♥ for a nine-high badugi (or four card hand). Carol has 3♠ 5♦ 7♣ 8♥, an eight-high badugi. Carol wins the pot.

Betting structures

In casino play, it is common to use a fixed limit and two blinds. The limit for the first two rounds of betting is called a small bet, while the limit for the third and fourth betting rounds is called a big bet and is generally double the small bet. The small blind is usually equal to half of a small bet, and the big blind is equal to a full small bet.

Badugi can also be played pot-limit, half-pot-limit, or no-limit.

Strategy

The best starting hands are 'pat' (made) 8-high badugis or better, followed by three wheel-card badugis like A23 or A45. 10 and 9-high pat badugis are also profitable to open, unless the hand is multiway. If nobody has a badugi then a premium tri (three-card badugi) is a very strong hand. The current best hand is generally a large favourite when there is only one draw remaining.

Position is an important component in badugi strategy.^[1] Players in late position are able to determine the strength of their hands more accurately by observing the actions of the other players. Players who are last to act also often have an opportunity to bluff since they are able to observe the actions of the other players before they act. Bluffing in badugi generally means 'snowing' - standing pat with a weak hand in order to appear strong and steal the pot with a bet.

If a player has a three-card badugi and is drawing one card, then there are ten cards that will make a badugi - the cards of the missing suit that don't pair the three cards in their hand. A player holding a badugi can use this information to estimate odds. For example, a player with an 8-high badugi facing an opponent drawing one card knows that they can only hit five cards to win/tie - assuming they are currently behind, and drawing with a three-card badugi.

If a player has a one-card draw, then the chance of making a badugi is approximately 21% per draw.^[6]If a player has a three-card badugi such as A♣ 2♠ 3♦ 3♥ in the first round, the probability of making a four-card badugi in three draws is about 51%.

References

^ ^a ^b ^c "Badugi Rules - How to Play Online Badugi Poker". PokerStars.com. 2014-03-10. Retrieved 2015-06-06.
^ "World Series of Poker 2023 - Event #20: $1,500 Badugi". PokerNews.com. 10 June 2023. Retrieved 2025-08-15.
^ Broman, Joanna (2024-01-29). "How to Play Badugi | Basic Badugi Rules & Tips". Sportslens.com. Retrieved 2024-02-20.
^ "Badugi - Planet Poker Online Rules". Planetpoker.com. Archived from the original on 2015-04-01. Retrieved 2015-06-06.
^ "Badugi Poker - Learn how to Play Badugi". Badugiclub.com. Archived from the original on 2014-12-19. Retrieved 2015-06-06.
^ "Badugi Odds Chart". Badugiplayer.com. Archived from the original on 2016-01-13. Retrieved 2015-06-06.