Chicago

How to Play

Chicago is seven-card stud with a twist that doubles the suspense: the pot is split in two. Half goes to the best five-card poker hand, just like regular stud. The other half goes to whoever holds the highest spade among their face-down (hole) cards — the Ace of spades in the hole is the dream. Because the spade has to be a down card, nobody knows who's chasing the spade half until the showdown. Everyone antes $1; bets and raises are a flat $1, capped at three raises per round.

A hand, step by step

1. Ante. Each of the four players antes $1, so the pot starts at $4. The dealer calls "Chicago — high hand splits with high spade in the hole."
2. The deal. Two cards face-down and one face-up to each player. The highest up-card starts the betting.
3. The streets. Three more cards face-up, one at a time, with a $1 betting round after each (max three raises).
4. Final card. A seventh card face-down, then a final $1 betting round.
5. Showdown — high hand. Remaining players reveal. The best five-card poker hand takes half the pot.
6. Showdown — high spade. The player holding the highest spade among their hole cards (the down cards) takes the other half. (Standard "Chicago" is high spade; some tables play "Low Chicago" for the lowest spade.)

Watch a Full Hand — step by step

A complete 4-player hand from the dealer's view, with real $1 bets and raises. Use Next to advance turn-by-turn, or Auto-play to watch it deal out. Player 1 (Dana) is "you" — only you can see your own face-down cards until the showdown.

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