Gameplay

The game of 2-11 is not much different in form and function than the currently popular forms of Texas Hold’em and Omaha Hi/Lo.

  • All three games involve making the best five-card poker hand available from a given number of hole cards and a set of community cards that all players in the hand may use.
  • All three games can be played with anywhere from two to ten players and they all involve ordered betting and a small blind, big blind posting betting structure.
  • The game can be played Hi/Low, ( 7 low condition ) and Hi only.

It is at that point that the similarities end and the unique characteristics of 2-11 Poker begin. Throughout each game of 2-11, each player is allowed to use only any two or three cards from their four-card hand with only any two or three cards from the four-card board to make their best five-card high and/or low hand with a 7 low condition.

 

Dealing 2-11

POST BLINDS
Deal 4 Cards – Face Down to all Players

BETTING ROUND 1

Burn 1 Card Face Down
“Flip 2” Community Cards Face Up

BETTING ROUND 2

Burn 1 Card Face Down
Turn 1 Community Card – Face Up

BETTING ROUND 3

Burn 1 Card Face Down
Turn 1 River Card – Face Up

FINAL BETTING ROUND

Reveal Hands
Determine Winners & Divide Pot

“Special 2-11 Poker Rule”

Players must use only any 2 or 3 cards from their hand
with only any 2 or 3 cards from the board
to make their best 5 card hand(s)

2-11 Rules

The game can be played with anywhere from 2-10 players.
The game is structured at a basic functional level similar to Texas Hold’em or Omaha.
There is a dealer button that is passed around to the left after each hand.
That button marks the dealer.
The player to the left of the dealer posts the small blind.
The player to the small blind’s left posts the large blind which is equivalent to one small bet and is two times the small blind.
The cards are dealt to the small blind first.
Each player gets four cards.

The total hand combinations are thus similar to Omaha where that total equals 270,725 hole card combinations. The total hole card combinations in Hold’em, where 2 cards are dealt, are 1,326. What is important to note in 2-11, is that the total number of possible starting hands can be classified into their equivalent 4-card poker hands. Specifically, it would be nice to know how many of each type of poker hand can be dealt in 2-11.

For a full Statistical Analysis on the game of 2-11 Poker by Precision Consulting – click here.

2-11 Variations

Variation #1 Play 2-11 as pot limit, high only!!! Our analysis says this game will appeal to the pros in the game.

Variation #2Crazy 2-11” Played with 8 players, deal 5 down cards to start and discard one card after the flop. The rest is the same.

Variation #3 In your home games, try adding a ‘joker’ to the deck for use as an ace, any card to complete a straight or a flush for high hands and as any card for a low.

While 2-11 uses community cards like Hold’em and Omaha, the flop contains only two cards, while the turn and river both contain one. Further, the game offers two exciting ways to be played. When the game is played in a Hi/Lo format, there is a 7-low condition as opposed to an 8-low condition that is standard in Omaha.

While the initial concept of 2-11 was as a Hi/Lo game, it was found to be equally exciting when played in the High-only Pot-Limit format. The impact of these rule variations on the play of the game was analyzed by Precision Consulting, LLC. Precision has also provided its statistical services to Visa, Starbucks, Cox Media, Harvard, and Stanford School of Medicine among other National and International Corporations.

Precision found that the rule changes alter the bluffing frequencies due to the increased player choice regarding which cards to use. This choice increases the number of hands that can be helped by any one card and adds to the game theoretic complexity of a given street.

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