However much you love playing Holdem, there will be times when your just playing foldem, not holdem, and you get very little action.

At least with HORSE your into a different tournament every time the blinds go up.

It means that you have a fresh table of opponents for each variant of Poker, because they will all have different levels of ability for each type of Poker. The strong player in Holdem may be a "fish" at Razz, and visa versa.

HORSE is a new poker variation that is becoming more and more popular. HORSE events have been added to the World Series of Poker, including a $50,000 buy in tournament that promises to have some of the best poker players in the world sitting in.

It is a variation where you must be good at a large number of poker games to be successful. Consequently, the ego power of professional poker players love Horse.

It's the pentathlon of Poker - the winner of the $50,000 buy-in HORSE tournament at the World Series of Poker will regards themselves as the best Poker player in the world.

HORSE is an acronym for the combination of five different poker games that are played in a game of HORSE. HORSE simply stands for: Holdem, Omaha, Razz, Seven card stud, and Seven Card Stud Eight or Better (also known as Seven Card Stud Hi/Lo).

These five games will rotate in order, from Holdem to Omaha, and so on, while a game of HORSE takes place. I know this sounds stupid, but make sure you know which game you are playing at any time.

From a table point of view there is no difference between Razz, Seven Card Stud and Seven Card Stud (hi/lo). It is easily done - you are so involved in the action - you don't notice that the blinds have gone up - you are still playing Razz while everyone else is playing Seven Card Stud. Don't laugh - it could happen to you.

Successful HORSE players must be able to play all of the games, otherwise they will simply be prey for the stronger in this game. That is why the game attracts so many players who consider themselves to be highly skilled in any variation of poker.

They want to avoid the amateurish plays that are made in other games, especially Holdem, where luck determines a winner and not skill.

A game of HORSE begins with Texas Holdem before proceeding to the other games in a timely fashion. The time where the game switches over to a new poker variation is predetermined.

The switchover typically takes place after the dealer button makes a complete rotation around the table, every time the blinds go up, or simply after a set amount of time.

An excellent strategy for HORSE is to minimize your weak point while maximizing your strong points. If you are good at Razz, but not as good at Holdem, make sure to take advantage of the players who are weak at Razz, while walking soft during the Holdem phase.

The best strategy is, of course, to be skilled at all of the games, so you don’t have to worry about being humiliated in a game you are weak at. Generally, the best all around player is the player who will win at HORSE.

Most of the online Poker Rooms still don't offer HORSE as an option. That is changing slowly. Full Tilt Poker is the best place to play HORSE.

Our full review of Full Tilt mentions the fact that you can even play Horse with "play money" on their site, and they have a daily HORSE freeroll tournament, so you can get some cheap practice at Full Tilt.

Don't just jump into HORSE, play some Razz, play some Omaha, play some Seven Card Stud. Get a basic understanding of each of the games, and then go for it.