Jason Mercier Reveals the Purest Form of Poker

(Photo: Jayne Furman)

If you’re looking to spice up your game with a little non-hold’em action then we may have the perfect game for you. Jason Mercier just described NL 2-7 Lowball as ‘the purest form of poker’ in an interview for PokerNews.

The three time bracelet winner with over $16million in lifetime tournament cashes, was talking to PokerNews just as the WSOP’s Event #7 – the $1,500 2-7 Lowball (No-Limit) kicked off. That particular event ended up with Ryan D’Angelo taking it down for $92,338 and his first bracelet.

What is 2-7 Lowball?

For those of you under 30, 2-7 Lowball is a draw variant of poker. Draw being the version where everyone receives five cards face down, blinds are posted, then a round of betting.

After that every player can discard between zero and five card, receiving new ones from the deck. There is another round of betting and a showdown.

The ‘lowball’ part refers to the fact that the lowest hand wins. In Ace-5 (or California) lowball flushes and straights don’t count and the aces play low.

In the 2-7 version flushes and straights count against your hand; and Aces are always high. 2-7 is by far the more popular nowaday, with all the Lowball events at the WSOP being 2-7 (except for the rounds of Ace-5, in the Mixed-Lowball event).

‘The Purest Form’

"2-7 single draw is one of the purest forms of poker, in terms of reading your opponent, whether he has it or doesn't, and whether he has the best hand or your do," Mercier told PokerNews, drawing a distinction between 2-7 lowball, and games like hold’em where a player's moves are dictated by other concerns like equity and pot odds. He continued:

He feels an ability to read your opponents is key:

Another selling point in Mercier’s opinion it plays well in tournament structures. Whereas in many games you start deep and end up playing short stack poker by the end, in 2-7 players get knocked out at a steady rate allowing for more consistency in the way it works. He does add that:

Winning at 2-7 NL Draw

In the interview, Mercier even offered a crash course in playing the game.

On starting hand selection he advised avoiding straight draws, preferring a hand like 3x-4x-6x-9x to seductive hands like 3x-4x-6x-7x because the 5s aren’t outs for the latter. Even saying you should fold the latter most of the time unless for example “unless maybe you're raising the button.”

He also talks about the importance of being in position, allowing you to adjust when you stand pat in response to your opponent's moves, telling the interviewer that with a Qx-9x hand you are better standing pat than drawing to the nine if your opponent is drawing 2.

He also points out that if the opponent draws 3 then Jack-high becomes a strong enough favourite after the draw to call most bets. He says:

And if that opponent who drew three did so after calling a bet, then you’ve got yourself a fish worth playing against as much as possible.

Read the full interview here, and let us know in the comments if Mercier managed to sell you on 2-7 single draw.