How to Play 7-27 Poker

7-27 is a combination of a poker game mixed with a bit of blackjack. This game allows players to play for two pots and uses basic card counting. The object of 7-27 is to have the hand with a point count closest to 7 or 27 without going over. If someone is playing for low and manages to go over their goal of 7, that player continues to take cards and will play for 27. If their hand goes over the 27 mark, the player loses the game and mucks their cards.

This game requires at least four players and up to 7 players. There are no wild cards used in 7-27 Poker.

Points in 7-27

Each card has a value and players must add their cards to equal 7 or 27 in order to win the pot. Aces are played as high or low, depending on what the player needs. An Ace has a point value of 1 or 11. All face cards are counted as ½ a point while any card under a 10 is counted as face value.  As an example let’s assume you have A-5-7-J-J-8-Q. Your hand would equal 22 ½ (A=1 5=5 7=7 J=1/2 J=1/2 8=8 and Q=1/2).

Taking Extra Cards

The dealer will give each player the option to take additional cards similar to blackjack. This is a great opportunity to see where your hand is in relation to the other players at the table and is why players will often pass on any new cards. Once a player has passed on the new cards three times, their hand is locked and they will not be able to take any additional cards.

How to Play 7-27 Poker

Players will need to ante before any cards are dealt. Once the antes are in the dealer can begin to deal each player one card face down and one card face up. Players can look at their down card, but that card needs to remain face down throughout the course of the game. The first betting round will start with the player who has the highest point card. Remember, cards 10 – K are counted as ½ a point, so you’ll start the betting with the first player whose hand is closest to a nine.

The dealer will ask each player if they want an extra card. Once each player has made their choice another round of betting takes place, again with the player holding the highest hand based on points.

This cycle continues until all of the players have passed on taking cards and don’t have the option to take any.

A final betting round will take place and the player whose hand is closest to 27 without going over will win half of the pot. The player with the hand closest to 7 will win the other half of the pot.

The best possible hand in 7 – 27 is A – A – 5 which would give a player both 7 (A=1 A=1 5=5) and 27 (A=11 A=11 5=5). In the event that a player does manage to luck out and receive these cards, they win both pots uncontested regardless of whether another player manages to hit 7 or 27 dead on.

Other Dealer’s Choice Games