Table Of Contents

• Games
• Triton Poker Short Deck Cash Game
• Short Deck Strategy
• Triton Short Deck Cash Game 2019

• The deck is shortened by removing all card 2 through 5. Short Deck Poker is therefore played only with cards from 6 to A. That’s why the game is sometimes also referred to as Six-plus Hold’em.
• The deck is shortened by removing all card 2 through 5. Short Deck Poker is therefore played only with cards from 6 to A. That’s why the game is sometimes also referred to as Six-plus Hold’em.
• Triton Twitch Channel: Website:: bestofeditor@gmail.com.

Short Deck, or 6+ Hold’em as it’s sometimes known, is the game of choice for the high stakes cash games and tournament specialists around the world. Check out the GGPoker lobby and you’ll see daily tournaments with $10,000 buy-ins that are frequented by the game’s superstars.

Playing a new poker variant can be daunting, but if you’ve ever played Texas Hold’em, you’re already more than halfway there to being proficient at Short-Deck.

The game takes its name from the fact you play with a stripped, or short, deck. The 6+ Hold’em moniker was given because all cards from deuces through fives are removed from a standard 52-card deck. Only sixes through aces remain. This leaves you playing with a 36-card deck, which alters some of the hand rankings, more on that a little later.

Ipoker Network has offered short-deck poker since 2016, but as its popularity has grown in the live arena, so have rumours that a major online poker room might soon offer the game too. Just a few days ago, Winning Poker Network introduced the game, and now rumours from online source ‘Pokerfuse’ suggest that industry giant PokerStars may be. An ace can be high or low in both short deck and regular hold’em, but when played low, aces act as a 5 and thus in short deck, the lowest straight is A-6-7-8-9. Due to its structure, short deck is being widely played in the high-stakes community. Among famous high-rollers who play the game are Tom Dwan and Phil Ivey.

Just as in a traditional Hold’em game, aces can be high or low when it comes to making a straight. The lowest possible straight you can make is , think of the ace as the missing five!

The Difference in Hand Rankings

Check the hand ranking rules the online poker site you’re playing Shot Deck is using. There are slight variations and you don’t want to be left with egg on your face when you think you’ve won a big pot only to see it slide to one of your foes.

You can see the different hand rankings in the table below. You’ll see the three weakest and three strongest hands are exactly the same regardless of the most common rules. It’s in the middle of the pack where the rankings alter, with straights sometimes losing to three of a kind, and flushes beating full houses.

This is because of the stripped deck, meaning the math behind each hand is altered.

What's This? No Blinds?

Be aware there are no small or big blinds in Short-Deck because the game uses an ante-only structure. This can take some getting used to because it’s completely different to what you’re used to, but it is what drives the action.

Everyone at the table pays an ante and the button pays a double ante. The order of action is clockwise from the player to the immediate left of the button. This ante-only format creates more action for two reasons. First, there is more money in the pot compared to a traditional hold’em game. Second, more players stick around for the flop because they’re often priced in to do so.

For example, in a standard $0.50/$1 hold’em cash game there is $1.50 in the pot before the preflop betting round: the $1 big blind and the $0.50 small blind. The same game but in Short-Deck format has $7 in the middle before the hands are dealt. This is made up of five $1 antes and a $2 double ante.

It doesn’t take a genius to see why pots grow larger faster in Short Deck games.

Being Adaptable Is The Key

Games

Short Deck experts excel in adapting to these new rules and conditions, but those new to the game often approach Short Deck in the same way as a traditional hold’em game.

Triton Poker Short Deck Cash Game

They forget suited hands lose value because flushes are harder to make. Looking down at in normal hold’em results in your considering entering the pot and hoping to flop a monster. In Short Deck, this hand is the equivalent of however.

There’s also a lot more limping preflop compared to a traditional game. This makes note-taking very important because some players have a loose limping range with others playing far more tightly.

The best way to improve at Short-Deck is the same way for any other poker variant and format: practice. Nothing makes up for racking up experience by playing the game, so go do that.

Short Deck Strategy

If you want arming with some more Short Deck info, why not give a click to the links below as they’ll whisk you away to several different Short Deck strategy articles.

More Short Deck Reading

Triton Short Deck Cash Game 2019

Table Of Contents

One of the latest crazes in the poker world puts a twist on the popular game of no-limit hold'em by removing part of the deck, resulting in new rules, new strategy, and more action. Aware of the growing popularity of the new variant, PokerStars has begun rolling out their version of online short deck poker games with 6+ tables now live in the client.

Short Deck Hold'em Structure and Rules

Whether you call it short deck or six-plus hold'em, the game is the same with the cards numbered two through five removed from the deck. The blind structure is also different, with all players at the table posting an ante, and the player on the button posting a single blind.

With the deuces through fives removed, hand frequencies change and with it, hand rankings. With only nine card ranks, sets are easier to make, as are full houses. Flushes become more difficult with only nine of each suit, and thus a flush beats a full house in 6+ hold'em. Like in regular hold'em, aces can be high or low, but act as a five when played low. The lowest possible straight in short deck therefore is ace-six-seven-eight-nine.

Bringing 6+ Hold'em from High-Stakes to All

With equities that run closer and the action-inducing ante and button blind structure, short deck has become very popular among high-stakes players. You can watch some top pros battle in high-stakes short deck from episodes of Triton Super High Roller Jeju cash games, and see these short deck tips from Phil Ivey and Tom Dwan.

“6+ is an exciting poker variant that often produces big hands and a lot of action.'

Like many trends in poker, what has started in the high-stakes community trickles down to smaller stakes games, and now players can try out the hold'em variant at affordable stakes online at PokerStars.

“6+ is an exciting poker variant that often produces big hands and a lot of action, so we’re excited to bring it to the tables,” said Chris Straghalis, Director of Poker Product at PokerStars. “While the format has proven popular with high stakes players, the range of stakes available on PokerStars and similarities to hold’em mean that it should appeal to those who may want to try a new game but don’t want something too different. We’re looking forward to seeing what people think.”

Six-max tables of 6+ hold'em are now available at all stakes for both real and play money at the .DK, .EE, and .NET clients, while the game is scheduled to hit the lobbies of the .COM, .EU, .UK, and .SE sites on January 16. Players will find the new games in the 6+ tab of the lobby. Also, look out for PokerStars ambassadors to stream sessions of the new variant on Twitch to help get players schooled up on the game.

_{The Stars Group owns a majority shareholding in iBus Media.}

• Tags

  Short Deck pokerSix-Plus Hold'em6+PokerStarsPhil IveyTom Dwan

• Related Room

  Full Tilt

• Related Players

  Phil IveyTom Dwan