Short-deck hold'em has all of the same beats as Texas hold'em, but with a lot less cards and a few quirks. The game is popular throughout Asia, but hasn't picked up the same type of traction in North America, despite everyone's best efforts.
It's a high octane version of the hold'em we all know. Everything from deuce through five is thrown away, leaving just 36 cards, and flushes jump above a full house in the hand rankings. It's not a game for the faint of heart. Every flop is dangerous and the pots grow quickly.
Aussie roots
Short deck appears to be an evolution of Manila, a game with an even shorter deck. A 2010 post from a website called Play Poker Online is one of the earliest examples of the rules for Manila, with cards ranked seven and below removed from the game. The rules are otherwise simliar to hold'em, except community cards are revealed one at a time with a betting round after each. The unnamed author describes the game as popular throughout Australia, where it could be played at casinos. It even made an appearance on the Aussie Millions schedule in 2009.
Ivey is an original ambassador of the game. Reports in 2015 talk of Tom Dwan and Phil Ivey actively promoting a new game called six-plus hold'em, which would eventually become short deck. Triton televised its first tournament in 2018 and the game tried to jump to the US with a debut at the WSOP in 2019.
While popular throughout Asia, the game has yet to carve out a strong place in North America. The WSOP left it off the schedule in 2024 and 2025, and you would be hard pressed to find it in tournament form anywhere else. The $10K buy-in at WSOP may have been a deterrent to opening the game to casual players, who have been happy to grow other variants at more moderate price points.
Jason Koon tops all-time money list
Justin Bonomo has won over $8 million playing tournament short deck. The game still pops up on the Triton Poker Series, where it's fast-paced action fits the vibe of a high-stakes atmosphere. A lot of money has been won in the big buy-ins on the Triton tour, and Jason Koon is at the top of the list. Over $13 million of Koon's $68M in lifetime earnings come from short deck, putting him well clear of Paul Phua in the #2 spot. Ivey, Xuan Tan, and Justin Bonomo round out the top five, but 54 people have made at least $1 million playing tournament short deck.
Short deck hold'em all time money list top 10
- Jason Koon — $13,274,989
- Paul Phua — $11,688,761
- Phil Ivey — $9,973,854
- Xuan Tan — $8,564,007
- Justin Bonomo — $8,046,562
- Stephen Chidwick — $7,993,475
- Mikita Bodyakovsky — $7,756,173
- John Game Patgorski — $6,995,801
- Rui Cao — $6,410,088
- Richard Yong — $6,225,588
Data courtesy of The Hendon Mob.
