Endgame Betting Question.

Seven-stud, $1-3, Mohegan Sun:

On the river hands are as follows:


(K7K) K-2-2-2 (me)

(xxx) 6-7-K-9 (lady to my left)

(xxx) 5-3-7-10 (guy to her left)


I bet, lady calls, guy raises.

I re-raise, lady folds, guy re-raises.

I try to re-raise, as we're now head up, but dealer says can't do it as the round started with 3 players. Is this correct?


The guy had me on deuces full and probably would have kept popping with his fives full. I'd seen one of all his up cards except 3s, so knew he had only one quad possibility. The lady had a middle str8.

Dear MRB,

Good question. In all my years of poker (99% played in Arizona) I've never seen that call by a dealer.


As a matter of fact, I can remember multiple times, (in identical situations) when dealers have announced after a third player has dropped out that "the hand is now heads up" implying that there is no longer a cap on the bettting.


I use to collect Poker rule books, and I have never seen a rule on that particular question.


It would seem that since you put in the first bet and then the hand became two handed, that the only player that was potentialy put at risk would be the third player. But then he decided to come out with a re-raise AFTER the hand had become two way.


If I was playing in higer limit game, and the dealer told me that I couldn't reraise a player who had reraised me AFTER the hand had become two way. I'd be calling for a decision by the floor man. And if I got a poor decision, I would say "I'm certain that you are right, but I would appreciate it, if you would check with the senior manager on the floor.


But as I said I don't the rule for certain. I only know what I have seen called at the 5 different Casino card rooms in the greater Phoenix area.


It will be interesting to hear what the other forum members have to say.


Most sincerely,


Doc AZ

I have seen this rule before. I'm not sure what the rationale is but my understanding is if the action doesn't begin heads up on a particular betting round there is a cap on the betting for that round...

This is the correct ruling. It comes from the old Hilton rule book. The reason is that your opponent could not know that the third player would drop out, and had a reasonable expectation that the pot was (or would be) capped.

I encountered this rule at a small casino in Oregon Kla-Mo-Ya. Did not understand why, after the third person was out that it would matter, but the dealer, and floorman both said that the action must start heads-up.


todd