California Lowball
The classic single-draw lowball game: five cards, one draw, lowest hand wins using Ace-to-Five ranking where straights and flushes don't count.
Coming soon — not yet playable
Rules
California Lowball is dealt like standard Five-Card Draw: five cards face down to each player, followed by a betting round.
Draw: players may discard any number of cards (zero to five) and draw replacements once, followed by a final betting round — a single draw, unlike Deuce-to-Seven Triple Draw's three draws.
Hand ranking uses Ace-to-Five low (the same ranking used in Razz and Kansas City-style A-5 variants): aces always play low, and straights and flushes are ignored entirely when evaluating a low hand. The best possible hand is A-2-3-4-5, commonly called "the wheel" or "the bicycle."
Showdown: after the single draw and final betting round, the lowest-ranked hand among remaining players wins.
Strategy notes: Because there's only one draw, starting-hand standards are tight — players generally need to already hold four or five low, unpaired cards to justify continuing, since there's no second or third chance to improve as in triple-draw variants.
Common house rules
Joker as 'the bug'
Many California cardroom traditions add a single joker to the deck, usable only as the lowest rank needed to complete a hand (not fully wild) — confirm whether your table includes this before dealing.
Blinds instead of antes
Modern home games often run California Lowball with two blinds (like Hold'em) rather than antes from every player, keeping the forced-bet structure consistent across a mixed dealer's-choice rotation.
Confirm Ace-to-Five vs. Deuce-to-Seven
Because there are two major single-draw lowball traditions, always confirm which ranking is in use before dealing — Ace-to-Five (this game, sometimes called 'California') and Deuce-to-Seven (Kansas City Lowball, also in this library) produce very different correct strategy.
Related games
Based on shared category, origin, and rules that reference each other.
A-5 Triple Draw
Ace-to-Five lowball played with three separate draw rounds instead of one, giving players up to three chances to improve toward the best possible hand, the wheel (A-2-3-4-5).
Learn the rules →Deuce-to-Seven Triple Draw
A five-card draw lowball game with three separate draw rounds — the lowest hand wins, and straights, flushes, and aces all count against you.
Learn the rules →Five-Card Draw
The simplest and oldest form of poker: five private cards, one chance to trade in cards you don't want, and a single showdown.
▶ Play nowKansas City Lowball
A single-draw version of Deuce-to-Seven lowball: five cards, one draw, and the lowest hand wins, with aces high and straights/flushes counting against you.
Learn the rules →