Short Deck: the final exam
Everything odd about Short Deck comes from one change: no cards below the 6. Lock these visual checkpoints and you'll make the right call at the table.
A leaner, hotter deck
Short Deck is Hold'em on 36 cards — every 2, 3, 4, and 5 is gone. Ranks run 6-7-8-9-10-J-Q-K-A. Fewer cards means hands connect far more often.
The ranking flip
In every standard game a flush beats a full house; in some rooms three of a kind (a set) also beats a straight, though Triton-style games keep the straight higher. Suits are thinner and straights are cheap, which drives both shifts.
Both players are all-in on the river. Which hand wins?
The double-ended ace
The ace anchors both ends of the ladder. A-K-Q-J-10 is the nut high straight; A-6-7-8-9 is the wheel. There's no A-2-3-4-5 — those cards don't exist.
Which hands travel well
Pocket pairs gain value (sets are easy to make and, in some rooms, beat straights), and suited connectors in the 6-to-A range are premium because straights run so live.
What is your best 5-card hand here?
Fix these four leaks
Overvaluing flush draws, forgetting that some rooms rank a set above a straight, mucking the A-6-7-8-9 wheel, and playing too tight when button-antes beg you to see cheap flops. Patch those and you beat most casuals.
- 36-card deck (6 through A) — this one change drives every strategic difference.
- Flush beats a full house nearly everywhere; a set beats a straight only in some rooms. Confirm before you sit.
- The ace is double-ended: A-K-Q-J-10 high, A-6-7-8-9 wheel.
- Straight draws are gold, flush draws are lead — only 9 cards per suit.
- Pocket pairs and suited connectors gain value; set-mining and position rule preflop.
Test yourself
Answer them all — 20/25 to pass. Every answer gets an explanation.
Which cards are removed to create the Short Deck?
Short Deck removes every 2, 3, 4, and 5, leaving a 36-card deck ranked 6 through Ace.
How many cards are in a Short Deck?
Removing 16 cards (four each of 2, 3, 4, 5) from 52 leaves 36.
In the standard Short Deck ruleset, which hand is higher?
With only 9 cards per suit, flushes are harder to make than full houses, so a flush outranks a full house.
In the common Triton ruleset, three of a kind versus a straight:
Triton and most big rooms keep the classic order — a straight beats trips. Set-over-straight is a separate variant that only some rooms use.
What is the lowest possible straight in Short Deck?
Since 2-5 are gone, the ace plays low to complete the wheel A-6-7-8-9.
What is the highest straight in Short Deck?
The ace still plays high, so A-K-Q-J-10 (Broadway) is the top straight.
Why are flush draws weaker in Short Deck than in Hold'em?
With only 9 cards per suit, far fewer flush cards are left to hit than in a 52-card deck.
Which draw is generally strongest in Short Deck?
The connected deck makes open-ended straight draws complete far more often than any flush draw.
Short Deck is a variant of which base game?
Short Deck (Six Plus) Hold'em uses Hold'em rules with a reduced deck — you get two hole cards.
How many hole cards does each player receive?
It's Hold'em, so every player is dealt exactly two private cards.
Why do pocket pairs gain value in Short Deck?
With fewer cards you hit your set more often, and it gets paid by the field's straights and flushes; some rooms even rank a set above a straight.
What betting/ante structure is most common in Short Deck?
Short Deck typically uses antes from all players plus a button blind, creating larger starting pots.
You hold Ah-6h and the board shows 7h-8h-9c. What made hands and draws do you have?
A-6-7-8-9 is the wheel straight, and two more hearts on later streets would make a flush.
Before sitting in a new Short Deck game, what should you confirm first?
Rankings vary by room, and these two rules define your whole strategy, so confirm them up front.
A common Short Deck leak is:
New players chase flushes that are much weaker in Short Deck than they intuitively feel.
On a board of 6-6-9-9-K, you hold pocket kings. What is your hand?
Your pocket kings pair the board's K and combine with a board pair to make a full house.
In standard Short Deck rankings, which is the strongest of these hands?
A flush tops these four in Short Deck, ahead of the full house, then the straight, then three of a kind (some rooms swap those last two).
You have 10s-9s and someone deals a flop that includes a deuce. Is that possible in Short Deck?
All 2s, 3s, 4s, and 5s are removed, so no board card can be lower than a 6.
With 10-9 suited, why is it a premium Short Deck hand?
The connected, reduced deck makes suited connectors hit big draws and made straights very frequently.
If a room ranks a full house ABOVE a flush, how should you adjust?
Ranking rules directly change relative hand values, so you must adapt to whichever ruleset is in play.
On a board of 7-8-9-J-Q you hold 10-6. What's your best hand?
Your 10 fills 8-9-10-J-Q; the 6 doesn't play since 5 and below don't exist.
Which statement about the ace in Short Deck is correct?
The ace is double-ended, completing both the Broadway straight and the wheel.
How many cards of each suit are in the deck?
Each of the four suits keeps only 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, J, Q, K, A — nine cards.
Approximately how often does an open-ended straight draw complete by the river in Short Deck?
The 36-card deck makes open-enders complete far more often than the ~32% seen in full-deck Hold'em.
Why does the ante structure encourage looser play?
Everyone anteing builds a larger pot preflop, so speculative hands get a better price to continue.
Review — all 25 questions & answers tap to expand
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Which cards are removed to create the Short Deck?
Answer All twos, threes, fours, and fives
Short Deck removes every 2, 3, 4, and 5, leaving a 36-card deck ranked 6 through Ace.
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How many cards are in a Short Deck?
Answer 36
Removing 16 cards (four each of 2, 3, 4, 5) from 52 leaves 36.
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In the standard Short Deck ruleset, which hand is higher?
Answer A flush beats a full house
With only 9 cards per suit, flushes are harder to make than full houses, so a flush outranks a full house.
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In the common Triton ruleset, three of a kind versus a straight:
Answer A straight beats three of a kind
Triton and most big rooms keep the classic order — a straight beats trips. Set-over-straight is a separate variant that only some rooms use.
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What is the lowest possible straight in Short Deck?
Answer A-6-7-8-9
Since 2-5 are gone, the ace plays low to complete the wheel A-6-7-8-9.
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What is the highest straight in Short Deck?
Answer A-K-Q-J-10
The ace still plays high, so A-K-Q-J-10 (Broadway) is the top straight.
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Why are flush draws weaker in Short Deck than in Hold'em?
Answer There are fewer cards of each suit, so fewer flush outs remain
With only 9 cards per suit, far fewer flush cards are left to hit than in a 52-card deck.
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Which draw is generally strongest in Short Deck?
Answer An open-ended straight draw
The connected deck makes open-ended straight draws complete far more often than any flush draw.
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Short Deck is a variant of which base game?
Answer Texas Hold'em
Short Deck (Six Plus) Hold'em uses Hold'em rules with a reduced deck — you get two hole cards.
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How many hole cards does each player receive?
Answer 2
It's Hold'em, so every player is dealt exactly two private cards.
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Why do pocket pairs gain value in Short Deck?
Answer Sets are easier to make and get paid off big
With fewer cards you hit your set more often, and it gets paid by the field's straights and flushes; some rooms even rank a set above a straight.
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What betting/ante structure is most common in Short Deck?
Answer A button-ante with everyone posting an ante
Short Deck typically uses antes from all players plus a button blind, creating larger starting pots.
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You hold Ah-6h and the board shows 7h-8h-9c. What made hands and draws do you have?
Answer A made wheel straight (A-6-7-8-9) plus a heart flush draw
A-6-7-8-9 is the wheel straight, and two more hearts on later streets would make a flush.
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Before sitting in a new Short Deck game, what should you confirm first?
Answer Whether a flush beats a full house and whether a set beats a straight
Rankings vary by room, and these two rules define your whole strategy, so confirm them up front.
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A common Short Deck leak is:
Answer Overvaluing flush draws
New players chase flushes that are much weaker in Short Deck than they intuitively feel.
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On a board of 6-6-9-9-K, you hold pocket kings. What is your hand?
Answer A full house, kings full of nines (or sixes)
Your pocket kings pair the board's K and combine with a board pair to make a full house.
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In standard Short Deck rankings, which is the strongest of these hands?
Answer A flush
A flush tops these four in Short Deck, ahead of the full house, then the straight, then three of a kind (some rooms swap those last two).
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You have 10s-9s and someone deals a flop that includes a deuce. Is that possible in Short Deck?
Answer No, twos are removed, so that flop cannot occur
All 2s, 3s, 4s, and 5s are removed, so no board card can be lower than a 6.
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With 10-9 suited, why is it a premium Short Deck hand?
Answer It flops straights, straight draws, and flushes far more often than in full-deck Hold'em
The connected, reduced deck makes suited connectors hit big draws and made straights very frequently.
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If a room ranks a full house ABOVE a flush, how should you adjust?
Answer Value flushes less and full houses more than in the standard ruleset
Ranking rules directly change relative hand values, so you must adapt to whichever ruleset is in play.
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On a board of 7-8-9-J-Q you hold 10-6. What's your best hand?
Answer A straight, 8-9-10-J-Q
Your 10 fills 8-9-10-J-Q; the 6 doesn't play since 5 and below don't exist.
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Which statement about the ace in Short Deck is correct?
Answer It can be the top of A-K-Q-J-10 or the bottom of A-6-7-8-9
The ace is double-ended, completing both the Broadway straight and the wheel.
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How many cards of each suit are in the deck?
Answer 9
Each of the four suits keeps only 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, J, Q, K, A — nine cards.
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Approximately how often does an open-ended straight draw complete by the river in Short Deck?
Answer Around 45-48%
The 36-card deck makes open-enders complete far more often than the ~32% seen in full-deck Hold'em.
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Why does the ante structure encourage looser play?
Answer More dead money in the pot improves the price to see a flop
Everyone anteing builds a larger pot preflop, so speculative hands get a better price to continue.