How to Play the Card Game "Guts"

Tired of the traditional poker games? Want to play an exciting game that's easy to learn that can really get your blood pumping? Look no further than a 2-card game called "Guts." It may be simple but it truly takes what the name implies to be successful.

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Deck of Cards
• Money
• 2 to 8 players

1. Decide the ante amount. The antes can raise as the game progresses. However, all amounts must be agreed upon by every person playing.

2. Determine the first dealer by high card dealt face-up. The dealer becomes the captain of the table and will deal out the entire deck before passing the cards to the player on his left.

3. Start placing antes into the pot with the player left of the dealer. Then the player to the left of her and so on. This specific rotation assures that each person's ante is accounted for. All antes are to be placed in the middle of the table. Say the ante is $1 each and there are 5 people playing for a total of $5 in the pot.

4. Deal 2 cards face down to each player. After all the cards are dealt out, the players may look at their 2 cards.

5. Determine whether you are going to hold or drop your hand. The best hand in Guts is 5-3. The second best hand is 6-9. Then it goes by pocket pairs starting with A-A, K-K all the down to 2-2. The next caliber of hands begins with A-K, A-Q, all the down to A-2. The next set of hands is K-Q, K-J all the way to down to the worst hand which is 3-2.

6. Place your hand in the middle of the table holding both cards face down. The dealer must make sure that it is raised at least 6 inches from the surface. The dealer will then count out in a clear, steady, loud voice, "1, 2, 3, drop."

7. Drop or fold your hand when the dealer says "drop." If you drop here, you're out for this round and will not lose any money. If you hold here you either win the pot or pay whatever is in the pot.

8. Determine the winner of the pot. If everyone folds, then all players must re-ante and a new hand is dealt from the same deck. If one player holds, they automatically win the pot and take the money. All players would then re-ante. If more than 1 player holds, the cards are turned over. The winner is determined based upon hand strength. Ties split the pot and everyone would re-ante for the next round.

9. Take down the pot if you're the winner.

10. Pay what you owe. If you held and lost then you would pay whatever is in the pot. The pot builds because often times there is more than 1 holder. If 4 people hold and lose, then there would be $20 in the pot for the next round. If a player has a 5-3, the loser(s) must pay double the pot. If a player holds 6-9, the loser(s) must pay 1.5 times the pot.

Tips & Warnings

• Any pocket pair is usually a winning hand in Guts.
• Any hand that holds an ace is strong. However, holding an A-10 with $15 in the pot is not a big deal. Holding an A-10 with $115 in the pot becomes much more difficult.
• The dealer must make sure that everyone is ready. All hands must be in the middle of the table set to go on the dealer's count.
• The dealer must count in a steady, clear voice. On drop all players must be anticipating the count. If there is a fast count and people are not ready, turn over all hands. The best hand automatically wins.
• Late drops count. If the dealer says, "1, 2, 3, drop" and a player takes an extra second to drop their cards, they are automatically in the pot.
• Guts is a dangerous game. Pots can build very quickly, getting into hundreds or even thousands of dollars. If you can't afford it, don't play.
• If you don't have a strong stomach, don't play.
• There is no "safe way" to play this game. It's not like Poker where you get information from your opponents. You can go into a Guts game with the strategy that you're only going to hold top hands. But if you have a 6-9, the second best hand, you can still lose double the pot to a 5-3.
• Play with people who pay.
• If a person is too drunk, they shouldn't be allowed to play. More times than not, they will disrupt the game with money on the line.

[RubiJune]

on 1/19/2008 Love your guts! Thanks for this!