7 Card Stud Rules

General Background
Stud is a game of drawing to the best hand. Each player receives seven cards throughout the play of a hand. They are dealt three cards down and four cards up, which gives other players in the hand an idea of what their opponents have. The object of stud is to have the highest five-card hand made of the seven dealt to you.
Betting
Betting occurs six times in a full Stud hand. Betting occurs in a clockwise pattern, and continues until everyone has folded, put in all their chips, or matched the amount bet by all players. If a player is first to act, they can check. Checking is the act of passing on a bet, or a bet of 0. The next player can also check. If every player checks, the betting round will end and action will progress as usual. Pre flop, only the big blind will have the option to check, unless he faces a raise. The act or wagering more chips than the current bet is known as a raise. A raise has to be at least two times the current bet. In the event the player wishes to match the current bet, it is known as a call.
Hand Play
First, three cards are dealt to each player. The first two cards are dealt face down, and the third card is deal face up. After this, there is a forced bet known as the bring-in. The bring-in bet is a small wager equal to half of the minimum bet, and the player with the lowest card showing has to post it. The player making the bring-in also has the option to complete the bet which is equivalent to two times the minimum bet. From there, betting continues clockwise until everyone has called, folded, or moved all-in.
Fourth Street
The next card is dealt face up to everyone in the hand still. The person with the highest card is dealt to first. After a card is dealt to each player, the person with the best two card hand starts the betting. Betting continues clockwise until completed. A “double-bet” is also allowed here if any of the players have a pair showing. That person can bet the regular amount, check, or throw out a bet double the size of the blind.
Fifth Street
Another card is dealt face up to everyone in the hand still. The person with the highest two card hand showing is dealt to first. After a card is dealt to each player, the person with the best three card hand starts the betting. Betting continues clockwise until completed.

Sixth Street
Another card is dealt face up to each player. The person with the highest three card hand showing is dealt to first. After a card is dealt to each player, the person with the best four card hand starts the betting. Betting continues clockwise until completed.
Seventh Street (the River)
The next cards are dealt face down off the top of the deck. The final round of betting takes place, starting with the player with the best 4 card hand showing, and the hand is over. The pot is then awarded to the player with the best hand (see hand ranks below). In the event of a tie or a split pot, the chips are evenly distributed to the winning players.
End Hand Ranks
The quality of a players hand is determined by the best combination of five cards picked from the seven cards in the player’s hand. The following are the ranks of hands from best to worst.

The quality of a hand is determined by the size of the highest card. For example, a straight from 3 to 7 is weaker than a straight 5 to 9. Also, a pair of tens beats a pair of nines. But, the suit of a card has no influence on hand strength. 8♥ 8♣ and 8♦ 8♠ have the same exact strength.

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