How to play
Irish poker starts like Omaha and finishes like Hold’em. You get four hole cards, play the first two betting rounds with all of them, and then throw away two after the flop. Here you sit at a no-limit cash table with one to five computer opponents. Everyone starts with 1,000 chips, the blinds are 5 and 10, and a fresh 52-card deck is shuffled for every hand.
- Four hole cards. Everyone gets four cards face down; the button (D) moves each hand and the two players to its left post the blinds.
- Bet before the flop and on the flop with all four cards: fold, check, call, or bet and raise any amount up to your whole stack.
- Discard two after the flop betting. Everyone still in the hand, including all-in players, throws away two cards face down, in turn from the left of the button. Tap two cards and press Discard.
- Turn and river. The last two community cards follow with a betting round after each.
Your hand is a Hold’em hand. Unlike Omaha, you don’t have to use exactly two hole cards: the best five cards from your two remaining hole cards and the five on the table win, so you can use one, two or even none of your own cards.
Side pots, the uncalled bet and split pots work as in Hold’em. When an opponent runs out of chips, a new player takes the seat with 1,000 chips; if you run out, you can get 1,000 free credits at a new table. Your table is saved between visits.
Strategy
Four cards connect with many flops. Hands with pairs, suits and connected cards flop something more often than in Hold’em. Before the flop, prefer hands where all four cards work together.
The flop is the big decision. You bet on the flop with four cards but you’ll keep only two. A flop that gives you a set and a flush draw in different cards forces a choice; usually keep the made hand.
Hands end up strong. Each player picks their best two cards after seeing three community cards, so sets, straights and flushes come up often at the showdown. Be careful with one pair.
Count the dead cards. Two cards per player are discarded unseen. You can’t know which ones, so don’t count on outs too precisely.
More poker. For three hole cards, try Pineapple or Crazy Pineapple. For four cards all the way, play Pot-Limit Omaha.
If you enjoy Irish Poker, try Jackpot Roulette or Jackpot Sit & Go next.
