Poker game popularity cycles

[Taxman]

I recently found myself playing in a 10 cent ante home game of predominantly five card draw, which I enjoyed immensely though I do not really know the game. Thus the following week I studied the draw poker sections of super system and bought winning concepts in draw and lowball. I enjoyed both but I know that draw poker is rarely played these days so I began pondering if it might rise to popularity once again. Is draw poker dead or will it emerge again as a popular form? Will we simply continue to develop new forms of poker like omaha and play those or will the same varients mostly be receycled? The latter seems more likely to me. Though the question remains, will less popular forms like draw poker return to prominence or will we simply see the popularity cycles concentrate on hold 'em stud and omaha? Or will things stay approximately as they are? This seems unlikely but I suppose it's possible. I guess my ultimate question is if it's worth it to try and master a form of poker like draw. Will awhole new generation of suckers looking for a good game of draw emerge in ten years? Or would my hard earned skills mostly remain unused? What IS the future of poker?

[CrackerZack]

This is addressed in the poker essays book which states that draw poker is easy and with only 2 betting rounds, lacks action, so its dying. Mason states omaha is worthless because of the high luck factor. I think omaha will still grow as people like high luck games but won't be as strong as hold 'em for a long long long time if ever.

[rkiray]

I believe triple draw lowball is gaining in popularity.

[Al_Capone_Junior]

Draw will remain mostly dead because stud and especially hold'em have so much more action. You might still be able to find draw in california, and I did see it once or twice in atlantic city way back when.

al

[colgin]

Draw was the first type of poker my grandfather taught me when I was a little kid. I think that this is true for many others as well. Thus, I think you will see a lot of draw played in home games populated by people who only get together to play poker for social reasons. In a laid back, casual home game of dealer's choice somebody (and often it is me) will eventually call draw. However, I don't think it will become big in card rooms for the reasons that others have stated. Personally, I still enjoy it in the home game context even though I never studied it enough to become particularly good at it.

[ACPlayer]

Also and perhaps more importantly the live ones have no chance in draw. Consider the guy who insists on playing any 2 suited in hold em, he is usually making a small mistake preflop (in loose games) and has a better shot of making a big score than the guy who insists on playing all one and two card flush draws in draw without understanding the odds equations.

[Taxman]

I think it would be great if double or triple draw games gained popularity. That might ruduce some of the simplicity of having only two rounds of betting. I assume that's the primary purpose of multiple draws anyway. Besides being the first form of poker learned by many people, draw poker stands out as the only poker form in which no cards are revealed, something that makes for a very different game at times than stud or hold 'em. Both of these things make the game hold a certain appeal to me above the more common forms found int eh casinos. Personally I would love to see draw gain popularity once more, but at least it will always hold a place in my home games.

[CrackerZack]

That is a fun game. too bad they all dried up on UB.

[LetsRock]

I doubt that we'll ever see draw poker become "popular". It usually provides very little action, and can be very boring. This is very much a "playing the player" game. In light of the recent on-line explosion (where "playing the player" is minimized at best), I find it hard to believe we'll ever see draw poker become back to casino play.

Loball draw is the only form of draw I've ever seen in card rooms.

If the poker indutry changes, I would guess that it would be some variations of community card games. They are easy to learn, and generally provide a lot of action for the gamblers.

[FeliciaLee]

I think mastering any game is to your advantage. Glenn (my husband) plays Draw online and is a consistant winner. He has also taken up Triple Draw Lowball, and we both feel there is easy money to be made in that game.

Draw may not be played live much, but crosstraining yourself is always to your advantage. Studying Mason's book, Concepts in Draw and Lowball has tremendously helped Glenn's Hold'em and Omaha HL games! That is the beauty of 2+2 books, they will help any of your poker games, because of the "general" concepts in all of the books.

I think perhaps TDL has a future in live play. Until recently, I'd only seen it played for high stakes. Fortunately, it seems to be getting popular, especially in the south, for lower stakes. People are talking about it more, asking cardrooms if they spread it. Maybe there will be a future!

Good thinking ahead on your part!