If you have a big pair in the hole, you usually should bet it all the way through and hope that someone does not beat you.
When your opponent pairs his small door card, he typically has three low cards with a pair or two big pair, especially if he is a tight player, in which case you have to play poker accordingly.
It is less likely that he has trips than the other two hands. However, if your opponent is a tight player and continues to play very aggressively, he usually does have three of a kind or the two big pair.
If he has a pair and three low cards, he might bet his hand on fourth street to see what happens. But if he catches a bust card on fifth street, he will likely check and fold.
If he catches another low card on fifth street and bets, you are against trips, two big pair, or four low cards with a pair.
In any case, his hand is fairly strong. If you have only a high pair or four low cards, he is the favorite over you and easily can be scooped.
As you can see, when your opponent pairs his door card, it is not as dangerous in this game as it is in high-only seven card stud.
But it is still not a card that you want him to catch, as you are now at a disadvantage and it will require some thought as to how you want to play.
However, if the player on your immediate right in a multiway poker pot pot pairs his door card, it puts you at a significant disadvantage during the hand.
This is especially true if he is an aggressive player, or if he is a weak player who is liable to keep betting without the best hand just because he is high.
You may have a lot of problems in the hand, since you might find yourself jammed in on a later round.
Thus to play on, you must have helped your hand considerably on both street and fifth street playing the high hands.
In addition, the player who paired his door card may have made trips, which usually will make him a big favorite to win high.
Even if you have a low hand, you will lose a lot of your equity. This is because if you also make a straight or a flush, it is not as likely that you’ll win both ways.
Finally, when you pairing your door card on fourth street, you do not have the option of making either a single or a double-sized bet.
You can make only the single bet, or you can check. Notice that this reduces your advantage, since you don’t have the option to make the big bet that might drive some players out.
Introduction / Position / Playing the High Hands / Bluffing / Slow-Playing / Knowing Your Opponents / Raising Aggressively / The Toughest Decision of All / Staying to the End / Pairing the Door Card / Keeping Track of the Cards / Scare Cards / An Expert Play / Another Good Play / Quick Notes / Afterthought
