Jan 31, 2009 One type of mixed game that seems to have enjoyed more popularity than others is mixed hold'em. In the standard mixed hold'em tournament, the game alternates every level between fixed-limit and no. How to Play HORSE Poker: The Professor’s Guide to Mixed Game Poker HORSE is called a “Mixed” poker game because it is a combination of five of the most popular poker variations that are played in a rotation. It is considered the ultimate game of skill as to be good players must demonstrate skill in multiple different poker variants.
Mixed poker games have been around for a long time, although
it’s only relatively recent that they have become popular
online. Before Internet poker was around, when the game was
mostly played in casinos and poker rooms as well as private
homes, a format known as dealer’s choice was very common.
In this format, whichever player was the dealer could decide
what game would be played. This choice would then be played for
either one hand or one orbit of the table. Once completed, the
next player to be dealer would then choose the game. There would
usually be agreement about exactly which games could be played,
but a wide variety would typically be included.
Mixed poker games helped keep things more interesting and
helped to even things out against those players who were highly
skilled at one particular game. For whatever reason, however,
Texas Hold’em became the game of choice and started to dominate
the poker scene. Mixed games have made a comeback,
and they have started to regain popularity.
On this page we provide details of the mixed game format most
commonly played online, which is H.O.R.S.E. We also look at a
few other well-known formats and list the best poker sites for
playing mixed games.
H.O.R.S.E.
H.O.R.S.E. is probably the best-known mixed game poker
format. It has been featured at the WSOP (World Series of Poker)
since 2002 and can be played at a number of leading poker sites.
The name H.O.R.S.E. is an acronym made up of the first letter of
the five different games played in this format: Hold’em, Omaha
Hi/Lo, Razz, Seven Card Stud, and Eight-Or-Better.
The way it works is really quite simple. The first hand of
the game is played using Texas Hold’em and the game switches in
each subsequent hand. Texas is followed by Omaha Hi/Lo, which is
then followed by Razz and the Seven Card Stud. A hand of
Eight-Or-Better is played before another hand of Texas starts
the cycle again.
H.O.R.S.E is typically played using a fixed limit betting
structure, and can be played in cash game and tournament
formats.
Other Mixed Games
There are loads of other mixed game formats: some of the most
popular are:
- H.O.S.E.
- H.O.E.
- H.O.
- H.A.
- Hold’em Mixed
- Omaha High/Low Mixed
- 10 Game Mix
- 8 Game Mix
For many of these games, the format is fairly easy to work
out by looking at the letters contained in the acronym. H.O.S.E.
is just like H.O.R.S.E. but without Razz, while H.O.E excludes
Razz and Seven Card Stud. H.O. is just Texas and Omaha Hi/Lo.
H.A. is pot limit Texas Hold’em and pot limit Omaha.
Hold’em mixed is fixed limit Texas and no limit Texas; Omaha
High/Low mixed is fixed limit Omaha and pot limit Omaha Hi/Lo. A
relatively new format, 10 Game Mix features limit Texas,
limit Stud Hi/Lo, pot limit Omaha, limit 2-7 Triple Draw, Limit
Razz, no limit Hold’em, limit Omaha Hi/Lo, Limit Stud Hi, no
limit 2-7 single draw, and limit Badugi.
The final format listed above, 8 game mix, features 2-7
Triple Draw, Texas, Omaha Hi-Lo, Razz, Seven Card Stud, and
Seven Card Stud Hi/Lo all using fixed limit, plus no limit Texas
and pot limit Omaha. As you can imagine, playing formats where
both the games and the betting structure change can be somewhat
difficult, but there a lot of players who really enjoy them.
Mixed game formats can be great fun to play. They are good
for developing skills in a variety of games, and can help
prevent boredom from playing a single game all the time. You
obviously need to be familiar with the rules of each component
game and to be able to cope with switching from one game to the
next. However, if you can play the format well, there’s plenty of
money to be made.
Best Mixed Game Poker Sites
Many of the leading online poker sites offer
H.O.R.S.E., and a lot offer a number of other formats as well. If
you prefer giving these a try, we suggest looking at the
following: currently the best poker sites for playing mixed
poker games.
Mixed hold’em is a specific variation of traditional hold’em poker. Though Texas hold’em is by far the most popular poker game in the world, other poker games do exist, and they offer a challenge to players who have grown a little weary of the same old hold’em style of play.
Best Mixed Holdem Poker Site for 2020!
- Top USA Holdem Site
- Excellent Payment Processing
- Play Real Money Texas Holdem
- Fast Cashouts
Compatible with:- Texas Holdem for Real Money
- Best Texas Holdem Poker Site
- Variety of Poker Bonuses
- Very Fast Cashouts
Compatible with:- Top USA Holdem Site
- Excellent Payment Processing
- Play Real Money Texas Holdem
- Fast Cashouts
Compatible with:- Top Real Money Poker Sites
- Loose Holdem Poker Games
- Fast and Secure Payouts
- Large Weekly Guaranteed Tournaments
Compatible with:- Play Poker For Real Money
- 100% up to $2,500 Bonus
- Loose Games
- Fast Cashouts
Compatible with:- $88 Free Bonus
- Large Real Money Poker Site
- Excellent Reputation
- High Quality Real Money Games
Compatible with:BONUS 100% up to €140
What is Mixed Hold’em?
Mixed Hold’em games alternate between rounds of Limit and No Limit Hold’em. That’s really the only difference between Mixed and traditional poker games.
Every time the button moves all the way around the table, the game switches from Limit to No Limit (or the other way around), so that there is a rhythm to the transition from L to NL. Mixed games share one other important feature – blinds get bigger during Limit rounds to create a consistent pot size.
What’s the appeal of a mixed game of hold’em? Think of a mixed game as an advanced level of poker – players need to be able to transition between high-speed No Limit poker into the slow pace and steady rhythm of Fixed Limit poker.
Imagine that No Limit poker is a 40-yard dash while Fixed Limit games are a full marathon. Like in foot races, poker players tend to have skills that match one or the other, but not both. That’s the challenge of mixed hold’em – finding a balance between an endurance race and a mad dash to the finish.
Mixed Hold’em Poker Site Examples
Finding a good place to take part in mixed hold’em games and tournaments is a lot tougher than finding any old generic No Limit hold’em game. There are two reasons for that – for starters, not every Web-based poker room has the software to offer a mixed game. The second reason – most poker rooms don’t have the traffic (or the quality of players) needed to maintain a decent game of mixed hold’em.
An example of poker rooms that offer mixed games but simply don’t have the player base to make it worthwhile is any site on the iPoker network. Large mixed hold’em tournaments require a lot of better-than-average players interested in playing to make it work. We see this same problem on rooms that are part of the Merge network – the games exist, but they simply don’t have the players to drive tournament action.
Here, then, are three example of good places to try your hand at mixed hold’em poker.
- PokerStars
It is generally true that poker rooms with the largest number of players tend to have the most varieties of the game available. That includes mixed hold’em. Since PokerStars is the largest poker room online these days, it should be no surprise that they have probably the best mixed product in the industry. PokerStars has the most variants of any poker site, and even though most of their tourneys are restricted to either No Limit hold’em or Pot Limit Omaha, they do occasionally offer mixed tournaments. PokerStars even includes the game in its World Championship of Online Poker.
- 888poker
According to PokerScout.com, 888poker is currently the second-biggest poker room online. This is an established poker brand that’s known for offering a variety of different poker games; not as many as PokerStars, but still a good variety. Outside of the traditional No-Limit hold’em and Pot-Limit Omaha games, the site also offers Badugi and HORSE, which are further mixed variants not commonly found at online rooms. Though 888poker’s average traffic numbers are less than half those of PokerStars, the site still has enough traffic to host decent Mixed hold’em games from time to time.
- Bodog
Bodog currently comes in at fourth-place in terms of site traffic, and that’s probably about the limit for finding decent competition in Mixed rules games. I think of Bodog’s traffic and player base as being very similar to what you’ll find at 888poker; you won’t find all the best poker players in the world competing against you, but you will find enough to provide decent competition at the tournament and ring game level.
Mixed Hold’em Strategy
Good news for anyone interested in trying out Mixed Hold’em – it is possible to gain an advantage using a few basic techniques, as outlined below.
The over-arching strategy I recommend to most players is to constantly be on the alert, figuring out which of your opponents act aggressive during the L and NL rounds. I’ll give an example from a recent tournament I took part in – I was up against a player who I noticed playing more hands during the Limit rounds. That told me that he was no doubt playing a wider range of hands (in terms of quality) than he would normally play in a No-Limit round. I knew instantly that I could gain position, and I started raising him out of most hands both before and after the flop. That’s just one example – how about another?
I’ve noticed that so-called sheriffs are more prevalent in mixed tournaments, and their style of calling down a ton of bets in the Limit rounds is especially noticeable. Since their whole purpose is to “keep ‘em honest” at the River, just about all you can do is stick to straight ABC play. When the sheriff’s in town, only play quality hands and by all means please don’t try to bluff.
What should you do when your opponents tighten up during Limit rounds and loosens up during No Limit? This will happen a lot, especially in tournament play. The trick is to change your style as soon as you notice his style changing. For example – if a player is seeing more flops because of a relatively inexpensive blind, it makes sense to get aggressive with pre-flop raises, provided you have a solid hand.
Texas Holdem Poker Play Money
Mixed hold’em usually means top-quality competition, and that means you have to learn to make good reads and try to get into your competitor’s heads a little. This is one time when it makes a lot of sense to take notes and be willing to switch styles to take advantage of the situation. Not only will that give you a better chance of beating them, it’ll keep them guessing as to your own strategy, which is always a good thing.