Emerging on the scene is a fresh card game called Open Chinese Poker.
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Open-Face Chinese Poker (OFC), a new variant of poker, is gaining popularity among professional players, offering a fresh and intellectually engaging alternative to traditional games like Texas Hold'em. This strategy-focused game, which resembles chess in terms of strategic depth and foresight, is attracting big names such as Phil Hellmuth and Brandon Cantu.
The game's unique mechanics set it apart from Texas Hold'em. Each player receives 13 cards and arranges them into three poker hands (a 3-card top, and two 5-card hands in the middle and bottom). Unlike Texas Hold'em, there are no community cards nor betting rounds like flop, turn, and river. Instead, scoring is based on winning individual hands against all opponents.
OFC offers a distinct competitive environment with less fierce competition and a smaller, yet proficient player pool, making it potentially more profitable at high stakes compared to more saturated games like Texas Hold'em.
Key differences between OFC and Texas Hold'em include:
- Number of cards per player: 13 cards, arranged into three hands (3-5-5 cards) vs. 2 hole cards, plus 5 community cards
- Objective: Create three poker hands to beat opponents in each hand vs. Make the best 5-card hand using hole + community cards
- Gameplay structure: No betting rounds; focus on card arrangement strategy vs. Multiple betting rounds (pre-flop, flop, turn, river)
- Competition style: Points awarded per hand won vs. all players vs. Betting chips won or lost
- Skill focus: Strategic foresight, hand construction, opponent analysis vs. Reading opponents, betting strategy, hand strength
One of the most notable OFC players is Dib, who won over $2.8 million in a single day and loaned a stranger $1 million to keep him in the game. Phil Hellmuth, a well-known poker player, first encountered OFC in 2012 and said, "Open-Face Chinese killed Texas Hold'em for me."
The game, which is played at Aria in Las Vegas, requires dealers to be taught specifically how to deal the cards. A mobile app for OFC has also been developed by former Google programmer Nikolai Yakovenko.
Brandon Cantu, who discovered OFC a couple of years ago, has been promoting the game, aiming to get action while he had the advantage before everyone else caught on to what he already knew about the game.
In addition to the standard version, there are variations like Pineapple and Fantasyland, which adds a bonus for players who make a pair of queens or a better hand on the top row.
Despite the highly profitable days of Open-Face Chinese Poker not yet being over, according to Dib, the game still presents an exciting challenge for professional poker players seeking a fresh and strategic alternative to more traditional games.
[1] Open-Face Chinese Poker: A New Poker Variant Gaining Popularity Among Pros
[2] The Rise of Open-Face Chinese Poker
[3] Open-Face Chinese Poker: A New Game for Pros to Exploit
[4] Open-Face Chinese Poker: A Strategic and Intellectually Engaging Variant
[5] Open-Face Chinese Poker: A Fresh Challenge for Pros
I'm playing poker at a casino, immersed in a game of Open-Face Chinese Poker, a strategy-focused casino-game that's gaining popularity among professionals. This unique poker variation, with its focus on card arrangement strategy, offers a fresh and intellectually engaging alternative to traditional casino-and-gambling games like Texas Hold'em.
