Triple Draw poker is one of the newest forms of poker to really gain popularity, especially among high-limit players. It's different than other forms of poker, but in some ways it's much easier to understand and play.

There are two variations of Triple Draw that are played today: A-5 Triple Draw and 2-7 Triple Draw. In A-5 Triple Draw, the best hand is A-2-3-4-5; in 2-7 Triple Draw, the best hand is 2-3-4-5-7.

What else makes the games different?

In A-5 Triple Draw, an ace plays as a low card, and straights and flushes don't count against you. In 2-7, you're looking to make what would be the worst hand in traditional poker.

To play Triple Draw, you don't even need to know the rank of poker hands. Full houses are irrelevant as it's all about the numbered value on the card. A jack-low beats a queen-low, and a pair of threes beats a pair of fives.

The game is set up much like a Texas Hold'em match, with a button, a small blind and a big blind. Because there are so many cards in play, the maximum number of players is usually limited to six or seven. Each player is dealt a five-card hand and then has the option to draw as many cards as desired, up to three times.

There is a betting round before players draw cards. In a $200-$400 Triple Draw game, with blinds of $100-$200, the first raise would be to $400. After the betting round, remaining players have the opportunity to draw a card(s).

Then, there is another betting round in $200 increments. After this, there's a second draw, followed by another round of betting; this time the bets double to $400. Finally, there's the last chance to draw cards, followed by the closing betting round.

The pot sizes in Triple Draw tend to be larger than in other games. The game creates a lot of excitement and might be a fun addition to your weekly home game. Here are a few tips:

A-5 Triple Draw
• Only draw to a 6 or better — It's much easier to make a hand in A-5 Triple Draw because there are fewer obstacles than in 2-7. So, it's important to draw to premium hands only. An 8-low will rarely win, and a 7-low is marginal.
• Draw from the bottom up — You always want to draw from the bottom up; you'd rather have A-2-3 than 3-4-5. Hands often come up where both players tie with a 6-low or a 7-low. When that happens, the tie is broken by the next highest card. For example, 7-5-4-2-A beats 7-6-3-2-A.
2-7 Triple Draw
• Always start with a 2 in your hand — A deuce in this game is twice as powerful as any other card. In fact, all of the top eight hands contain a 2: 2-3-4-5-7; 2-3-4-6-7; 2-3-5-6-7; 2-4-5-6-7; 2-3-4-5-8; 2-3-4-6-8; 2-3-5-6-8; 2-4-5-6-8.
• Draw two or fewer cards — If you have a hand like 2-3-4-K-J, you'd actually have a pretty strong starting hand, and would draw two cards to the 2-3-4. As a rule, you want to start with at least three good hole cards in Triple Draw.
• Don't draw to straights unless you have a deuce — Starting hands like 4-5-6 are not playable. The problem with these hands is that they are too likely to land you a losing straight.
The only straight hands you should play are 2-3-4, 2-3-5, 2-3-6, 2-4-6, and 2-5-6. Again, each of these hands contains a deuce.

• Don't draw to a 9-low — Since there are three draws, chances are that someone will eventually make a powerful hand. Drawing to a rough hand like 9-low is simply asking for trouble. Instead, draw for a 7-low or a smooth 8.
By DANIEL NEGREANU