Archie
A five-card triple-draw hi-lo split game requiring a genuine qualifying hand on both the high and low sides, popularized on the Las Vegas mixed-game scene.
Coming soon — not yet playable
Rules
Archie is dealt like a triple-draw lowball game: five cards face down to each player, with three separate draw rounds, each followed by a betting round.
At showdown, the pot splits between the best qualifying high hand and the best qualifying low hand — but unlike many hi-lo split games, Archie requires a genuine qualifier on BOTH sides: the high hand must be at least a pair of nines or better to win the high half, and a genuine low hand (typically 8-or-better, Ace-to-Five ranking) is required to win the low half. If no hand qualifies for one side, the other side's best qualifying hand may scoop the entire pot, per house rule.
Historical note: Archie is documented as having been developed in the 2010s by a mixed-game group in Phoenix, Arizona, and subsequently picked up by the Las Vegas dealer's-choice and mixed-game scene.
Strategy notes: Because both sides require a real qualifier (unlike simpler hi-lo splits where any hand can win half the pot), Archie punishes marginal hands much more severely — a hand that's just barely a low without being high-qualified, or vice versa, is often worth folding rather than continuing through all three draws.
Common house rules
Double qualifier is the defining rule
Unlike most hi-lo games in this library, Archie requires both a genuine high qualifier (commonly nines or better) and a genuine low qualifier (commonly 8-or-better) — confirm the exact thresholds with your table before dealing, since they're not universally standardized.
Unclaimed halves scoop to the other side
If no hand at the table qualifies for, say, the low half, the best qualifying high hand typically takes the entire pot instead of that half going uncontested — confirm this convention before playing.
A newer addition to the mixed-game rotation
Archie is a comparatively recent addition to the competitive mixed-game scene (documented from the 2010s onward) rather than a decades-old classic — worth mentioning as an example of how dealer's-choice games are still being actively invented today.
Related games
Based on shared category, origin, and rules that reference each other.
Badacey
A split-pot mixed game pairing Badugi with Ace-to-Five Triple Draw: the pot divides between the best four-card Badugi and the best five-card Ace-to-Five low hand.
Learn the rules →Badeucey
A split-pot mixed game combining Badugi and Deuce-to-Seven Triple Draw: the pot divides between the best four-card Badugi and the best five-card 2-7 low hand.
Learn the rules →Big O
Omaha Hi-Lo's bigger sibling: five hole cards instead of four, still using exactly two at showdown, split between the best high and best qualifying low hand.
Learn the rules →Mississippi Mud
The hi-lo split version of Roll Your Own: seven-card stud dealt face down, with players choosing their own exposed cards, and the pot split between the best high and low hands at showdown.
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