For the rules of Open Face Chinese Poker, see GameHelpOpenFaceChinesePoker .

When Variation: 2-7 Lowball Middle is NOT USED

We assumes that Variation: 2-7 Lowball Middle is not used. Suggestions for games using Variation: 2-7 Lowball Middle are at the end.

If you are playing Original OFCP, instead of Pineapple OFCP, you need to be more cautious and make sure your hand is valid, because you don't have the choice of which card to play. But if the game uses the Pineapple option, you can take moderate risks and pursue better hands.Try to go for a 5-cards combinaison in the third line. That can be with an early pair (to transform into a full / three of a kind), some consecutives cards (to transform into straight / pair), or some cards of same color (to transform into a flush / pair). In the middle line, try to do either two pairs, or an high pair. You can put an early ace on it. In the top line, put your Q/K (to enter in fantasyland), and A if you already got a pair in the middle line.

You can put a medium pair of J/T/9/8 in top to get some juicy extra points.

Paying attention to your opponent can be really good sometimes. If you see he is going for very strong combinaisons, you have the option to just forget everything you was doing, and just try to survive. If he doesn't succed, you will gain +6 points from it. If you see he is going for a straight, then going for a flush has more value. If he has a pair of 7, going for a pair of 8 or more on that same line has more value.

When Variation: 2-7 Lowball Middle is USED

Always remember, in the middle hand: You should only put in 2 to 10, and never put in J, Q, K, A; and the 5 cards should not form a straight, flush (same suit), and no pair or better. Otherwise your hand is invalid and you will lose this hand completely.

So you need to leave a little margin of error to ensure that the hand in the middle hand is legal. How much margin of error you need to leave depends on whether the option Variation: Pineapple is used in this game.

If you are playing Original OFCP, Variation: 2-7 Lowball Middle game without the Pineapple option, you need to be very careful and have a lot of margin of error to ensure that the hand in the middle hand is legal. If you don't want to take risks, you can put all the cards from 2 to 10 in the middle hand first, and be careful not to form pairs or flushes. Because after the first 5 cards, you can only receive one certain card each round, and you have no choice. Many times, if you are not careful enough, you can only watch the illegal hand pattern and lose the game helplessly. Of course, you can also take risks, depending on your play style.

If you enable the option Variation: Pineapple, you can take appropriate risks. But still don't forget to make sure the hand in the middle hand is legal.