• Four Of A Kind

Six Plus Hold'em could be the future of Poker. Due to its potential appeal to recreational players, Six Plus Hold'em could one day become more popular than Texas Hold'em Poker. The game of Six Plus Hold'em follows the same rules as Texas Hold'em with a few differences. In Six Plus Hold'em the deck consists of 36 cards (compared to the full 52-card deck dealt in Texas Hold'em). In the game of Six Plus Hold'em, all cards ranking 2, 3, 4, and 5 are removed from play. The chart of hand rankings is slightly different between the two games and basic poker strategy must be adjusted to playing with a smaller deck.

For money bet over $5, the house edge goes up to 19.38%, because the win for a 6-Card Super Royal is capped at $100,000. Version 3 — Millionaire Maker Version 3 is the same as version 2, except pays $1,000,000 for a 6-Card Super Royal in diamonds. Six Plus Hold'em is an action-packed variation of Texas Hold'em that is mainly being played in the high stakes casinos of Macau, the Chinese equivalent to Las Vegas. In Six Plus Hold'em, the amount of cards in the game is reduced and the hand ranking adjusted. Six Plus Hold’em is an exciting and fun poker variant based on Texas Hold’em where the game is played with a deck of 36 cards as opposed to the usual 52 cards in traditional hold’em. Deuces through fives are removed from the deck giving the game its name Six Plus Hold’em/6+ or Short Deck Poker. Although Six Plus Hold'em is for the most part played as the traditional Hold'em in terms of streets, the main difference comes on the river, at least in some variations of the game, when, instead of dealing a community card, every player is dealt one extra card. The charts helped me make a good start in mastering 6+ Hold'em. Literally in 10k hands I mastered the preflop game at the proper level. Without them, I would surely have lost a lot of time and money understanding this on my own.

Six Plus Hold’em and Texas Hold'em Comparison

Six Plus Hold’em Strategy

As there are only 36 cards in the deck, the likelihood of being dealt good cards is higher and the odds of getting specific cards dealt in the flop/turn/river are also increased. Although the rules of playing Six Plus Hold'em are the same as those in Texas Hold'em, certain strategy considerations must be adjusted to the smaller deck.

** In Six Plus Hold'em, the odds of being dealt pocket aces are double the odds in Texas Hold'em.

** Flushes are extremely difficult to make, as there are only 9 cards in each suit. As a result, a Flush is ranked higher than a Full House.

** Straights are much easier to make. Therefore, a Straight is ranked lower than Three of a Kind.

** It's easier to make two-pair hands in Six Plus Hold'em.

Six Plus Hold’em Origins and Ambassadors

Where the game of Six Plus Hold'em originated is not entirely clear, but it is highly likely that it made its first major appearance on the cash tables in Macau. It was there that the game was discovered by poker pros Phil Ivey and Tom Dwan. Both have spoken highly of the game and its potential and admitted that they are still in the process of mastering its strategy.

According to Ivey, 6+ Hold'em is 'a little bit more exciting than playing regular No Limit Hold'em because you get to play more hands and there's a lot more luck involved,' Ivey said. 'I think it's a lot more exciting for a new player,' he added.

Despite the differences, Ivey said the game of Six Plus Hold'em is 'still poker, you know. You have to be patient when you need to be patient, and be aggressive when you need to be,' he said.

Why Play Six Plus Hold’em

The game of Six Plus Hold'em Poker is still a novelty but it will appeal to many groups of players:

** Players who are bored with Texas Hold'em and seek a change.

** Players eager to learn as many varieties of Poker as possible.

** Players seeking to be the first to master a new game and thereby gain an advantage over other players.

** Recreational players who will be happy to be dealt many more 'good' hands.

Will Six Plus Hold'em appeal to you? The best way to know for sure is by playing this new exciting variety of Poker. You could be the first one to know the ins and outs of the game. Invite your friends to join you for a Six Plus festival of Poker.

Photo of Phil Ivey credit: Flickr upload bot, CC-BY-2.0.

Four Of A Kind