Deuce To Seven Triple Draw: Important Player Reads

Gathering accurate player reads is as critical to your success in Deuce to Seven Triple Draw Lowball (2-7) as it is in any form of poker. Whenever we discover something that may be of future benefit, we need to make a note and should continuously update our player profile whenever new evidence arrives.

So what types of reads are we looking to obtain on our opponents? This article will highlight some that I have found to be most useful.

1. Identify Opponents Who Love To Snow

Some players are always on the lookout for snowing opportunities and have a tendency to overdo it. Snowing takes many different forms and the most common type is the “Gentleman’s Snow,” which is when an opponent shows strength on the first betting round, takes one card, and then pats a busted hand after the first draw.

An aggressive opponent will target a late position opener (that is more often weak) with sub-standard one card holdings such as 4-6-7-8 or 3-6-8-9. They will then draw to their hand at least once, and if they either make a straight or a pair, they will then often turn their holding into a bluff.

Creative villains will take other snowing lines, and can make plays at the pot even when they were drawing more cards than their opponent. For example, if they were drawing two on the second draw they might be capable of check-raising two pair (e.g. 2-3-3-8-8) and patting against someone that was only drawing one.

Snowing right from the onset is also a maneuver that some players will make and is typically done with a hand containing three deuces or three sevens. This play isn’t that common since a hand such as 2-7-7-7-K should first want to draw and attempt to make a real hand, and if they instead had 7-7-7-Q-K their hand range will look stronger by initially faux drawing one to a real low (i.e. executing a Gentleman’s Snow.)

Finally, there are some players who you can feel quite confident would probably never snow. Most often these are players found in the live arena that are relatively new to mixed games in general.

Against players who never snow, we don’t have to pay off without a legitimate holding. But against those that are capable we may have to see showdown with a hand that can beat a bluff. This would especially be the case if we originally opened a hand from late position, thus our opponent has reason to believe we often started with a weak draw ourselves.

2. Weak Out-Of-Position Turn Leads

In this section we are considering a heads-up pot where both players each took one card on the second draw. Standard play would entail the out-of-position player leading any nine or better low along with some select tens, perhaps around 20% of them.

An opponent playing in a somewhat non-standard fashion would lead most if not at all tens and possibly jack-lows as well. Against opponents such as these we should usually slightly increase our freezing range, in addition to more often testing our opponent with turn raises with good draws in an attempt to get him to break. If our opponent tends to lead light and generally refuses to break, we can slightly increase our turn value-raising range.

3. Non-Standard River Action After Both Players Draw One On Final Draw

Game theory optimal play typically calls for bluffing only when catching the worst possible card for our holding, such as when we make top pair or a straight. Bluffing other hands such as a medium pair will cause your value to bluffing ratio to get completely out of whack.

For example, if someone ends up with 2-4-4-6-7 and chooses to bet the pair of fours, they are greatly over-bluffing. They would also be slightly over-bluffing with a pair of sixes. Some relative novices take it to an extreme and might even bluff hands such as a pair of deuces or even ace high.

Against an over-bluffer we have to be quite showdown bound and also possibly mix in more bluff-raises than the GTO solutions would probably suggest. Versus an opponent who may only be overdoing it by just a little bit, we can simply call down with a pair of fours. However, against someone who may be actually betting a pair of deuces or ace high, our best play might actually be to raise that hand.

On the other end of the spectrum are those players who never bluff in these spots. For example, if the last betting round gets checked down and your opponent rolls over 2-4-6-7-7, take an immediate note of it. In the future, you can possibly exploit this opponent by making tight laydowns with your pure bluff catchers. If your read gets stronger, it’s possible to take it to a greater extreme and only call down with holdings that beat some of the holdings that he may be betting for value.

What hands your opponent tends to bet for value is another read that you should gather. For example, some players don’t bet tens and some might even check nines. This would also cause their value to bluffing ratio to be unbalanced and may prompt you to call down a little lighter, even if their bluffing strategy is more or less GTO approved.

4. Bluffing The River Against A Pat Hand

Here we are considering the propensity of an opponent who was drawing to try and buff the river against someone who was pat on the final draw. Some players will never bluff in this situation, and for obvious reasons it’s worth figuring out if your opponent potentially falls into this category. This read takes time to develop, however, if you observe them checking a made pair of sevens it becomes more likely that you don’t have to worry about them bluffing in this spot.

Deuce to Seven Triple Draw Lowball is a very mechanical game, and our actions should mostly align with those considered standard and balanced for the situation. However, we must deviate from this when our opponent has shown that he may play in an unbalanced manner. Against tighter players not apt to bluff we can save a crying call, and against those who over-bluff, it’s imperative to become quite showdown bound and at the appropriate times, put them to the test. ♠

Kevin Haney is a former actuary but left the corporate job to focus on his passions for poker and fitness. The certified personal trainer owned a gym in New Jersey, but has since moved to Las Vegas. He started playing the game back in 2003, and particularly enjoys taking new players interested in mixed games under his wing and quickly making them proficient in all variants. Learn more or just say hello with an email to [email protected].