Global Sports: Advice On The Play Of Manila Poker

Friday, October 8, 2010

Advice On The Play Of Manila Poker

By Thomas Kearns

One of most unusual elements of Manila poker is that it is played with a deck shortened to 32 cards of eight or higher. This particular variant is also known as Seven-Up Poker and is played primarily in Australia and Asia. It is it's own peculiar variation of Texas Holdem wherein each player is dealt two cards. This is where the similarity ends for the most part, as there are major separations in how the two games are played from this point on. The game is gaining in popularity in Australian casinos as well as some home games where the objective is to mix up play. You will rarely encounter it online.

So, How Do You Play Manila Poker?

The game is comprised of five betting rounds with one card face up at each turn, and both cards must be used in showdown to produce the best five-card hand. Also, odds are not good of drawing into certain hands based on the deck structure and that a flush beats a full house and an ace is only high when part of the make up of a straight. Fixed limit betting is Manila's usual format and you can meet up with regional variations where three betting rounds are the rule. Five betting rounds tend to prolong the evening and casual players don't want to strain their brains and concentrate for a long period when they are, after all, out to have fun.

Ideal Strategy in Manila Poker

Because of the condensed deck, you strategy should include that you draw for a full house or more, which means that table position is vital in creating your strategy. In the early position, pair cards are your best bet as are high-suited connectors like Jack-Ten, which allow for the most possible draws as this dynamic duo is present in every straight in Manila. You are competing against opponents with high card hands so be choosy with your hands and play pairs, high suited connectors, and draw hands while in a good position. Manila allows discards of any hand lower than a King-Jack suited. The majority of winning hands are comprised of a ranking of at least a full house, though drawing to a flush can occur.

It is usually a good move to discard straight draws as the board will often pair, trouncing your straight if you do happen to draw into it. Be extremely aware of your opponent's betting patterns throughout all rounds. They may often be drawing to a full house and given that the board pairs, or a player gets forceful, you must attempt to put the kibosh on them on any given hand. A plethora of players are very picky when selecting their initial hand unless the pot odds are really good indicating a strong draw to a flush or better. Should this be the case, those five rounds of betting give you an even better perspective on recalculating your chances of a victorious hand.

A bluff is not a good idea because players usually stay in the pot due to the limit bet form and the smooth pathway to drawing a good hand. So be on the alert when playing pugnaciously in a multi-way pot unless you have the utmost confidence in your hand, i.e. the nuts. If pot odds are looking up for you, you might want to remain on a strong draw because of the fixed limit format, but don't let yourself be too pugnacious and find yourself in the midst of all out multi way betting war.

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