Five and six-card stud variations:      Five card stud was the original form of open poker, and it was a major big-bet game for over a century. In some places outside the USA it still is. All the games here are based on the same principle as five-card stud in that they have only one concealed live card, and as a result they all provide excellent opportunities for bluffs based on upcard strength: if you don't scare the hell out of your opponents when you play these games, and get the hell scared out of you sometimes, you ain't playin 'em right. I strongly recommend that you play these games with any form of betting other than limit,for maximum enjoyment, with half-pot being the ideal form in my opinion: it gives reasonable odds for a call, doesn't require a huge bankroll, and allows you to make a pretty strong bet at any stage.

 
                                              Alligator Stud.m

mmmmm     mm          m mmmmm
                 Start                     flop                  turn              river
Alligator  stud, 1999: (1)1+2+1+1.
1.Ante, then deal each player one hole-card and one upcard. Bet.
2. Deal each player two more upcards: bet.
3.Deal each player a fourth upcard: bet.
4.Deal each player a fifth upcard: bet and show.

 Inserting a two card flop and turning the river card face up instead of down has the same effect on six-card stud as it does on seven-card stud: it speeds up the game, gives more incentive to call, and makes the game ideal for big-bet play.  If you don't start with a pair and none of your cards are dead, the two card flop gives you nearly a 1/3  chance of making a pair (including running pairs).  When you start with a pair you have about a 1/6 chance of improving to at least two pair on the flop, which is a big increase from five-card stud or conventional six-card stud, where your chances of improving your pair by taking the third card are only about 1/22. Alligator stud is a no-gimmick big-bet game with solid playing values and is ideal for bluffers.

Zanetti Stud.
mmmmmmm mmmmmmm
             start                            flop                   turn          river

Zanetti stud: only one hole-card is live, so there are three nines on the flop, which improves to aces full at the river.
 
Zanetti Stud, 1999. (1,1)1+2+1+1.
1. Deal each player two hole-cards and one upcard: only one hole-card is live. Bet.
2.Deal each player two more upcards, bet.
3. Deal each player a fourth upcard:  bet.
4. Deal each player a fifth upcard, bet and show.
When you start with three live unpaired cards you flop at least a pair over forty percent of the time, and trips in 1/133 hands.    When you start with a pair the chances of improving on the flop are 16%,  considerably better than the 12% of holdem or omaha, where you must make trips to improve.  And you can bet the house on your baby two-pair if no one else is showing a pair at the end.  It is possible to flop two-way hands such as top pair and a four straight or flush, giving up to 20 improving cards.
 
Taupo stud, 2000. (1,1)*1+2+1+1.  Named after Lake Taupo, New Zealand, the trout capital of the world.   (The "tau" rhymes with cow BTW).
1. Deal each player two hole-cards and one upcard: bet, then discard one hole-card.
2. Deal each player two more upcards: bet.
3. Deal each player a fourth upcard: bet.
4. Deal each player a fifth upcard: bet and show.
 
                                             Crocodile stud
 mm nnn,mmnmmmmm m  mmmmmm 
              start                        round 2         round 3         round 4

Crocodile stud: only one hole-card is live, so this hand starts with a pair of nines, improves to a pair of aces, then improves again to three nines.
Crocodile stud, 1999, (1,1)1+1+1+1. (1999)   This is five-card stud with an extra half-live hole card added at the start.
1. Deal each player two hole-cards and one upcard: bet.
2. Deal each player a second upcard: bet.
3. Deal each player a third upcard: bet.
4.Deal each player a fourth upcard: bet and showdown.  Only one hole-card may be used in the final hand.
The extra card livens up five-card stud considerably without changing hand valuations dramatically: a pair of aces is still the absolute nuts until someone pairs their board, and trip aces is just about unbeatable.  Your chances of starting with or making a pair are considerably increased by the extra hole-card, but your kicker cannot help you improve to two-pair or trips, so your chances of improving beyond one pair are the same as in five-card stud, and are only 1/22 when you take the third card.

Holdit games.

Chances of improving at the second round, one card start games.
make a pair make two pair 
or better		 make four 
to straight		 make four 
to flush
(1)+1+1+1+1 pistol pete  6%
(1,1)+2+1+1 wallaby stud 28% 0.5 % 
(1,1)+3+1+1 holdit 34%  7% 1.8% 2.2%
While games with only one live card to start are an acquired taste - did anyone ever actually play pistol pete more than once? -  they nonetheless work well enough when extra half-live cards and a multi-card flop are used.    There's certainly plenty of scope for action revealed in those stats.

Wallaby stud, 1999, (1,1)+2+1+1 (mixed betting.)  The start looks like holdem, and the betting works the same way for the first round, but only one of the two hole-cards is live, so no pair is possible. Starting with only one fully live card is pretty wierd at first, but in return for your opening bet you get two upcards, with a 28% chance of making a pair and 1/200 of making trips.    A big-bet game which also works for limit betting.
1.Post blinds then deal each player two-hole cards: only one hole-card is live.  Bet.
2. Deal each player two upcards: highest hand speaks first and can bet or check.
3.Deal each player a third upcard: bet.
4.Deal each player a fourth upcard: bet and show.

Hold-it and super hold-it: May 18th, 2000.  These two games are a late addition to the list of no-limit variations, and were discovered using the no-limit game formula.      As in wallaby stud there is only one live card in hand to start, but you get a three-card individual flop when you call, so there are considerable compensations.  In holdit and wallaby, as in all single live hole-card games, there is an awful lot of bluffing to be done on upcard strength, and a pair of jacks or queens can be the absolute nuts at the end.

1. Post blinds and deal each player two (for holdit) or three (super holdit) hole-cards.  Bet.
2.Deal each player three upcards, bet, with highest hand speaking first.
3. Deal each player a fourth upcard, bet.
4. Deal each player a fifth upcard, bet and show.  Only one hole card may be used in the final hand.
Your chances of flopping at least a pair (you can't start with a pair)  in holdit are a massive 44%, and you flop two pair better than 1/20 of the time, and trips about 1/50.  Super holdit has even more inviting odds.  (Last year I invented a seven-card game which I called hold-it, but it breaks some structural rules and can't be used for no-limit play, so I am recycling the name.)
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