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In 2-7 triple card draw each player is dealt 5 cards. The aim of the game is to make the
There are 4 rounds of betting and 3 rounds of drawing. The first round of betting is before any draws are made, and each bet is worth one small bet. This means that if the limit is 10/20, each bet will be for 10 chips and the betting will be capped at 40 chips.
After the first round of betting, players can now discard as many of their 5 cards as they wish. Eg. you choose to change 3. You hand these 3 (face down) back to the dealer and then you are dealt a different 3 cards from the top of the deck.
Once all players have made their first draw, there is another round of betting. Again each bet is worth one small bet.
When every player has invested the same amount into the pot, the second round of drawing can begin. This plays out exactly the same way as the first, except afterwards the bets are now worth one big bet (or two small bets).
The third round of drawing follows this. This is the last draw, and if you reach showdown your result will be based on the value of this hand.
Third round bets are also worth one big bet. If two or more players stay in the pot after the third draw, showdown is reached. The player with the worst ranking hand wins the pot.
Strategy
Starting hand selection is important. You do not want to be drawing to a weak hand with a small number of outs. A hand like 3,4,5,6,x is a classic example. While it may look tempting to play, it is a lot weaker than it first seems. Any 2 or 7 will give you a straight, so you are really only drawing to an 8 or 9, and even then your hand is far from invincible. As a guide, you should aim to always be drawing to at least an 86 (this means any hand where the highest two cards are 8 and 6). Obviously if you are drawing to a wheel (7,5,4,3,2) then your hand is much stronger.
The deuce is the key card. If your hand contains a deuce and a 2 or more cards under 8, you will probably have a playable hand. The reason this card is so powerful is that it will not complete a straight (except 23456, which even then is not that bad as you can discard the 6 to aim for a 7 or 8), and most of the strongest hands contain a deuce. In fact if you don't have a deuce in your hand, you can only make the ninth best hand.
Keep an eye on how many cards people change. If you are a draw ahead of them it is usually a good idea to bet, regardless of whether or not your hand improves. This means that if you have 2,3,7 and draw 2, and your opponent draws 3, it would be correct to bet even if you drew something terrible like A,K.
If you draw the same number of cards as an opponent and improve to a better draw, it is also worth betting.
Another thing worth knowing is that after the third draw, you should only be betting with hands that you are confident are ahead. If you pat 9,5,4,3,2 and your opponent draws 1, should you bet? Probably not. It is likely that the opponent was drawing to a better hand than your made 9, such as an 8 or even a 7. This means that betting here should only be called if the opponent has outdrawn you. They may even raise you and then you'll have lost two bets when you could have lost just one. Bet with strong hands at the end and check-call with medium strength ones.
Information on your opponents is also very important. Make a note if you see them bluffing or betting a weak hand. You should be more willing to call them down with marginal hands than against a player that you know is tight and will only bet monsters at the last round of betting.
Hand Value
Starting hands:
Good starting hands are 3 card hands or better. If you are intending to play a hand and discard more than 2 cards, you should probably just fold it and save yourself the trouble (unless you are in the blinds).
Premium 3 card hands include:
2,3,7
4 card hands are even stronger. If you get one of the following hands you will have a high chance of hitting a winning hand before showdown and should bet accordingly:
2,3,4,7
If you are lucky enough to be dealt a pat 86 or better, you should definitely raise it up as much as possible, only backing off if another player pats their hand. If this happens, use your judgement to decide whether more bets are in order.
Pat 87s and worse can also be played aggressively while opponents are still drawing, but should be treated with caution if another player pats.
Hand value:
Finally here is a list of the top 20 hands in 2-7 triple draw, ranking from best to worst.
7,5,4,3,2
2,4,7
2,5,7
2,3,4
2,3,5,7
2,4,5,7
2,3,4,8 (this is slightly worse than the other 3 as you are not drawing to a wheel, but is still definitely a strong hand)
7,6,4,3,2
7,6,5,3,2
7,6,5,4,2
8,5,4,3,2
8,6,4,3,2
8,6,5,3,2
8,6,5,4,2
8,6,5,4,3
8,7,4,3,2
8,7,5,3,2
8,7,5,4,2
8,7,5,4,3
8,7,6,3,2
8,7,6,4,2
8,7,6,4,3
8,7,6,5,2
8,7,6,5,3
9,5,4,3,2
9,6,4,3,2