hold'em vs stud popularity

[grapes]

In a recent thread, I asked about why there is so little stud literature compared to hold'em. Obviously (at least I thought) part of the reason is that hold'em is just more widely played. Those who replied generally agreed, and in my experience (which has been mostly online) hold'em games are much more prevalent than stud.

So, I was surprised to read Tom McEvoy say, in "Tournament Poker", that "across the nation, you will you will find more seven-card stud side games than hold'em, although in tournament action, hold'em is still king" (this is from the first paragraph of his stud chapter).

Is this true? Obviously it is for tournaments, but is there more side game stud than hold'em? Maybe things have changed since he wrote it (though my edition is 2001), or maybe he is just talking about very high limits that pro tourney players play on the side?

[Al_Capone_Junior]

The bottom line is that there is more action in a good holdem game than a good stud game. While stud might be (debatably) slightly more profitable for the expert player, holdem is simply more action packed, at least in my experience. this implies that it will inevitably be more popular than stud and therefore there will be more games.

[Andy B]

McEvoy has written silly things before. Stud is more popular on the east coast, but hold'em is king in the rest of the country. $30/60 is the biggest game allowed by law in my area, but my understanding is that stud is favored in very high-limit action.

[Dynasty]

In Vegas, 1-5 stud is a little more popular than 3-6/4-8 hold'em. However, in the 5-10 to 30-60 range, hold'em is dominant by about a 3 to 1 factor.

[JTG51]

...my understanding is that stud is favored in very high-limit action.

This is certainly true in the Connecticut casinos. At Foxwoods, there is almost never a hold'em game higher than 20/40. Sometimes a 40/80 game will go on the weekends. The 75/150 stud game goes pretty much 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. There is often a 150/300 stud game going also.

[Rick Nebiolo]

Holdem is a lot more popular in most spots but there is an even greater disparity in the number and quality of poker books available and the number and quality of stud threads on this and other forums. I think this is largely because it is a LOT harder to write about a stud hand. I find that I can reconstruct most holdem hands without elaborate notes, but this is nearly impossible for a stud hand (at least for me).

~ Rick

[SittingBull]

with the idea that most recreational players saturate the low-limit stud games and the serious players saturate the hold'em games.
hmmm
Happy pokering,
Sitting Bull

[MRBAA]

I think the main reason he is more popular is that it is faster and simpler -- much less to remember. Even here in the east, where there are more low stakes stud than HE games, I'd say the HE players skew quite a bit younger. So I wouldn't be surprised to see a gradual transition towards HE.

[Marco Trevix]

In my opinion most stud games have the 1-5 structure with no ante and these games are very boring to play (especially against old people who play veeery tight...)
The only higher stud games I know are spread at Bellagio, Mirage, L.A. cardrooms, SCottsdale (AZ), Connecticut poker-rooms, and definetely in Atlantic city.
In Europe you can find stud games with "decent" limits only at Concord Club in VIenna (and at Victoria in LOndon but it's a different matter since games are played pot-limit)
The remaining poker universe is dominated by hold'em (sigh)

Marco