Try This Poker Game At Your Next Home Event :Vanunu

[Kramer]

A Fun Game to Try at Home
Daniel Negreanu

While I do realize that no limit Texas Hold'em is sweeping the nation, it's not the only fun and exciting form of poker that involves a great deal of skill. In fact, the one game that taught me more about poker than any other game was a game we called Vanunu. What is Vanunu you ask? Well it's a mouthful: 7 Card Stud Hi-Lo, no break, roll your own all the way, pitch and a buy, with declaration at the end.

Need some help with that? Ok, well the game is played with an ante ($1 should work) and everyone is dealt three cards face down to start. Then, each player turns over whatever card they wish in turn. There is a betting round (anything from $1 to $5 should suffice) and then another card is dealt face down.

Once again each player can choose which card they want the other players to see. Another betting round, followed by fifth street. This continues until each player has seven cards, finishing with two down cards and five cards that are face up for all to see.

Once the betting round is over, players have the option of exchanging one card from their hand. If they want to pay $5 to swap one of their up cards there replacement card would come face up. If they wanted to exchange one of their concealed cards they would have to pay double ($10) and their replacement card would come face down.

There would then be one last round of betting followed by a declaration. All of the players remaining in the hand would now have to decide if they wanted to go for the high side of the pot, the low side, or get greedy and go for the whole pot!

For those unfamiliar with hi-lo poker, the best poker hand is entitled to half of the pot while the five lowest cards, A-2-3-4-5 being best (aces count as low) would be entitled to the other half of the pot. You can use any of five of your seven cards for low, and a different set of five cards for high.

So for example if you had: Ah 3 4h 5h 6 Kh Jh you would have a powerful two way hand and could declare yourself eligible for the whole pot. You would have:

A-3-4-5-6 for a powerful six low and:

Ah-Kh-Jh-5h-4h for a powerful flush

With a hand this strong you may consider declaring "both." The dangerous thing about going both however, is that if you lose to a better low or a better high you automatically lose the whole pot!

When it's time to declare, every player that remains in the hand will put coins in their hand. One coin if they are going for low, two coins for high, and then three coins if they want to go for the whole pot.

If only two players remain in the pot and one declares high while the other declares low, the pot would automatically be split regardless of the strength of either players hand.

If there were three players left in the hand and two players went high while the other went low, the player who declared low wins the low side regardless of his hand. The winner of the high side would be decided by whoever had the best hand out of those players that declared high.

If there were only three players left and all declared high, then there would be no low side and the best high hand would win the whole pot. All that may sound a little confusing, but once you get the hang of the game you'll see how much you and your friends will enjoy it.

There are so many exciting variables and scenarios that will arise that will keep you thinking. So many great poker questions you'll have to ask yourself:

Why did he bet when he caught the King?
Why would he roll an Ace?
Are they both going high? Should I go low even though I have a weak low hand?

This game is the epitome of physiological warfare and will sharpen your poker skills immensely.
If you become a great Vanunu player, all of the other games, including no limit Texas Hold'em will seem easy!

[jaypasco]

kramer the greatest game ever is called 2 or 22 its a split pot game. you get 2 cards one down one up and then go around the table and draw cards if you want until everybody says there good (betting after every round). whover closest to 2 ahnd whover is closest to 22 you have to be right on the number or over. faces or worth half a point and aces worth 1 or 11. so much action and more skill in this game than poker cause so much bluffing. A A obv can scoops both pots. any body ever play this game?