Six-Spot Red Dog

This game is related to Red Dog.

a) One standard pack of 52 cards;
b) Betting chips or cash.

From two to fifteen.

The cards rank in normal order, with Ace high. The suits are not ranked.

Players bet on holding a higher ranking card of the same suit than the pool card.

This is by deal: first Ace to appear.

Standard.

Before each deal, each player, including the dealer, puts an equal amount into the centre of the table to form a pool. This amount is known as the ante.

The dealer deals three cards face down to each player, including himself, beginning with the player to his left, and going clockwise. The dealer then deals one card face up to the centre of the table.

If it is a 6 or lower (6, 5, 4, 3 or 2) it becomes the pool card. If it is a 7 or higher, it is discarded and the next card from the top of the pack is dealt face up onto the table. This procedure is repeated until a 6 or lower card is dealt to become the pool card. If there is no such card left in the pack, the hand is redealt.

All players, including the dealer, bet immediately without looking at their cards. The minimum bet is one chip (or a previously agreed amount of money). The maximum bet is the amount then in the pool. More than one player may bet the maximum.

Players then turn their hands face up. If a player has a card of the same suit, but ranking higher than the pool card, he has won. If not, he has lost.

Settlement is supervised by the dealer. He first adds to the pool the bets of all the players who have lost. Then he pays out to those players who have won, beginning with the player to his left and going clockwise.Winning bets are returned together with an equal amount from the pool.

If the pool is emptied before all winning players have been paid, the remaining players receive back only their bets.

If anything remains in the pool after all bets have been settled, this amount is carried over to the next round. The deal then passes one player to the left, and all players ante again to begin the next round.

Variant

Banking version

Six-Spot Red Dog can also be played as a banking game. The dealer acts as banker. He does not deal himself a hand, or bet. Before the hand, the dealer places in front of him the money or chips he wishes to put at risk. This can be any amount he wishes. The players do not ante.

The banker deals to the players as usual, but excludes himself. He then deals one card at a time to the table in the usual way, until a 6 or lower card is dealt. This is now referred to as the banker's card.

Betting begins with the player to the banker's left. He may bet (cover) any amount up to the total of the bank. Subsequent players may only bet against any amount of the bank that has not yet been covered. The total of bets against the bank cannot therefore exceed the amount in the bank.

If all the bank has been covered before all players have bet, the remaining players are not allowed to bet on that hand.

Any part of the bank that is not covered, when all players have bet, is not at risk in that hand.

Play and settlement of bets takes place in the usual way. When all bets have been settled, any amount left in the bank is returned to the banker. The bank and deal then pass one player to the left.

From 'The Official World Encyclopedia of Sports and Games'
© Diagram Visual Information Ltd 1979