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To change things up a bit poker games have been developed that use a different ranking system than has been shown. Some of these games reverse the order of things and the goal is reversed as the players try to form the lowest ranking hand rather than the highest, these are called "low" games. There are several of these games and they differ in ranking criteria and in other rules. It is a good idea to study the rules to determine, among other things, how the hands are ranked before playing them. Some games for example ignore Flushes and Straights, while Aces are sometimes counted as the lowest valued card rather than the highest.
Most "low" poker games (with flushes and straights not being counted) rank the hands in the following order:
No Pair - The best hands in "low" type poker games are the straight or the flush as usually these don't count. Therefore your hand is just a bunch of single cards. While this hand is not very highly ranked in normal games it is highly desirable in "low" games. In determining the winner the highest cards in the players hands are compared and the lowest ranking card wins. In the event the highest cards are equal, the next highest cards are compared to determine the lowest ranking card. If once again these cards are equal the process continues, comparing one pair at a time until lowest card is found and a winner is determined.
Examples:
10-8-7-3-2 beats 10-8-7-5-3 (the 3 is a lower value card than the 5).
Q-9-4-3-A beats Q-9-4-3-2 (the A is a lower value card than the 2).
8-6-5-3-2 beats 8-7-5-3-2 (the 6 is a lower value card than the 7).
One Pair - If two players have a hand containing a pair, the lowest ranked pair wins the hand. When the pairs are equally ranked, you compare cards starting with the highest valued card in each hand, with the lower value card winning. If the cards are of equal value the next highest card is compared and the process continued until a winner is determined by having the lowest ranked card. If the hands have the same cards in them it is a tie and the pot is split among the winners.
"Low Hand" poker games use a similar method in breaking ties as normal versions of poker, the difference being that the rankings are reversed so that lower values win rather than the highest values.
Some "Low Hand" poker games count Flushes and Straights and Aces are ranked normally. One game called Deuce to Seven Triple Draw, has the best hand being the straight 2-3-4-5-7, thus the name of the game.
Eight (8) or Better Rankings - Low Hands
A few poker games allow for a hand to have two winners, these games are referred to as "Split-Pot" games. Two winners are declared, one being the player with the highest hand and the other the player with the best "qualifying" low hand. For the hand to "qualify" as a low hand all of the five cards must have a ranking lower than 8. If no hand "qualifies" the hand has only one winner, as the lowest hand doesn't share the pot if it doesn't qualify.
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