APT Championship 2025: A Deep Dive into the 17 Unique Poker Variants Reshaping the Festival

While the Asian Poker Tour (APT) is renowned for its massive Main Events and record-breaking prize pools (such as the ones currently being smashed at the APT Championship in Taipei ), the tour has also quietly built a reputation as a laboratory for poker innovation.

Poker Variants at the APT – Insane or Exciting?

Beyond the standard No-Limit Hold’em and PLO tournaments , the APT schedule was peppered with “Mix Games” and “Poker Variants” that you are unlikely to find anywhere else in the live circuit. From multi-board madness to stud mixes that require a spreadsheet to track, the festival offers a haven for players looking to test their versatility.

Anyone looking to break the boredom of well-known poker variants should visit this event next year; we can promise they’ll never have a dull moment. Here is a breakdown of the 17 unique variants featured at the APT, categorized by their gameplay style.

The “River” Twists

These games take standard formats and introduce chaos on the final street or with the board itself. Did your hand do well until the final card? Here you go, throw it out of the window.

Cry Me a River

A true test of nerves for those who like to run it twice. In this variant – available in NLH, PLO, Limit O8, and PLO8 – three separate boards are dealt. However, the river card brings a brutal twist: the lowest of the three river cards “kills” its entire board. That board is removed, and the pot is split between the winners of the remaining two boards. This is no joke, this poker variant might result in some crying at the river.

Lazy Rivers & Rivers

These two variants play with the concept of private information.

• Rivers: Plays like No-Limit Hold’em until the river. Instead of a community card, every player receives their own face-down river card.
• Lazy Rivers: A PLO variant where every player receives their own river card, but this time it is dealt face-up for the table to see.

3/2/1

A decision-heavy variant of Hold’em where the board structure is fluid. Dealers place three flops, two turns, and one river. Players must choose which flop and turn path they wish to use to construct their hand, adding a layer of strategy absent in traditional games.

High-Action Flop Games

For players who love big hands and complex ranges, these poker variants add cards and discard phases to the mix.

Atomic Pineapple

A game for the solvers to weep over. Players are dealt five hole cards. The strategy lies in the discards: you must discard one card after the pre-flop round, another after the flop, and a third after the turn, leaving you with a standard hold ’em hand at showdown.

Crazy Irish

Often described as a fusion of Irish Hold’em and Crazy Pineapple, this game starts players with four hole cards. Action proceeds like Hold’em, but players must discard two of their hole cards after the flop betting round is complete.

Stairway to Seven

One of the wildest games on the schedule. It begins as PLO, but players receive an additional hole card on the flop, turn, and river. By the end of the hand, anyone left standing holds seven cards, increasing the likelihood of nut hands.

Super Hold’em

Simple yet effective: Hold’em played with three hole cards. Players can use one, two, three, or none of their hole cards to make a hand.

Courchevel

Essentially, 5 Card PLO with a critical information twist: the first card of the flop is dealt face-up before the pre-flop betting round begins. It is heavily positional and creates unique dynamic shifts based on that single visible card.

Natural Eights

A promotional twist specific to the sponsor, Natural8 . It plays as No-Limit Hold’em, but with an instant-win condition: if you are dealt pocket eights and flip them over immediately, you win the blinds, antes, the button, and a cash bonus (TWD 8,888), regardless of the action.

Mixed Game Rotations & Lowball

For purists and mixed-game grinders, these formats combine multiple disciplines into a single tournament structure.

Drawmaha 2-7

A split-pot game that is gaining popularity globally. Played with five cards, half the pot goes to the best 5-card Omaha hand, and the other half goes to the best 2-7 Lowball draw hand. It requires players to think in two directions simultaneously. It sounds easy, doesn’t it?

Triple Draw Mix & Single Draw Mix

• Triple Draw Mix: Features a rotation of A-5, 2-7, and Badugi (all limit). A 7-game version also exists, adding Badacey, Badeucey, and Archie.
• Single Draw Mix: Similar rotations but played as No-Limit Single Draw, bringing the “gamble” of No-Limit to traditional lowball formats.

ROEDS

A distinct five-game mix designed to break the monotony of HORSE. The rotation includes Razz, Omaha Hi-Lo, Eight-or-Better (Stud8), Double Board (or Razzdugi in some listings), and Stud.

Stud & Razz Specialists

The APT offered deep cuts for 7-Card Stud enthusiasts.

Quadruple Super Stud

A rotation of four stud variants: High, Hi/Lo, Razz, and Razzdugi. The “Super” moniker implies that players receive four down-cards and one up-card to start, and discard two down-cards after the first betting round. Good luck finding the optimal playing strategy for that!

Octo Razz

A lowball player’s dream (or nightmare). This mix includes eight Razz variations, including Razzdugi, Razzdeucey, and “Super” versions of the games. The third round of this game might be the last time you’d ever want to play any kind of stud game in your entire life.

10-Game 7-Card Stud Mix

Out of all poker variants, this is the ultimate test of stud proficiency. This dealer’s choice mix features 10 fixed-limit stud variants, ranging from standard Razz and Stud8 to less common variants such as “Super Stud Hi/Lo No Qualifier”.