Dating back to the times of the American Civil War, five card stud was once the most popular variation of stud poker played. Still played regularly in many parts of the world, the game of five card stud is seen as greatly less popular game than it once was, with its demise often cited due to the popularity of seven card stud poker and more recently Texas Hold Em poker, the most popular poker game played today, which is a variation of five card stud poker.

Five card stud is still regularly played in many set places around the world, most notably Finland and Scandinavia in general. Only slightly different, five card stud is known as Soko in Finland and is the most popular poker variation played in the country.

Similar to seven card stud poker, five card stud is started with an ante and a bring in, although some smaller games simply use an ante. Each player in the game, which can consist of up to ten players, is then dealt two cards, once facing up and one facing down. Betting begins and a second face up card is dealt to each player once betting is complete, followed by a further round of betting. A third face up card is then dealt, followed by a round of betting and a final face up card. As with seven card stud poker, a showdown can then occur, where all players show their hand and the winner takes the entire pot.

The popularity of five card stud can be seen in its involvement in the World Series of Poker. Throughout the 1970s, five card stud was a preliminary event every year from 1971 to 1974, until 1975 when it was dropped from the tournament and never reintroduced. Whilst five card stud no longer features in any of the major tournaments, it is still a popular game in many small to medium tournaments and competitions, particularly in Europe.

Although five card stud is a variation of stud poker itself, there are many variations of five card stud poker played around the world today. Of the many variations that are available, the High Low game is one of the most popular. Similar to other High Low card games, such as Omaha High, when in use with five card stud the main aim is to achieve the best high or low hand possible out of the given cards. The pot will generally be split into two sections, one for the low card hand and one of the high card hand and to win the low hand, most games require a five or lower, although a six or lower is not uncommon, especially in the European games.

Five card stud is a fantastic card game that has seen a steady decline in play since the introduction of seven card stud and Texas Hold Em. Still played around the world today, five card stud offers players the opportunity to play a card game that many of their ancestors would have played over one hundred years ago.

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