Gutshot Straight Draw: Outs, Odds and How to Play It
A gutshot straight draw (or inside straight draw) needs one rank in the middle of the straight: with J♠T♦ on Q♥ 8♣ 2♠, only a nine completes it. It has 4 outs: 8.5% on the turn, 8.7% on the river and 16.5% from the flop to the river. On its own it is a weak draw that rarely pays a bet; with a pair, overcards or a flush draw, it becomes a hand to play.
Count the outs of a draw
Gutshot, double gutshot, open-ended
| Draw | Example | Outs | 1 card | 2 cards |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| gutshot | J♠T♦ on Q♥ 8♣ 2♠ | 4 | 8.5% | 16.5% |
| double gutshot | 9♠7♦ on J♣ 8♥ 5♠ | 8 | 17% | 31.5% |
| open-ended | 9♠8♦ on 7♣ 6♥ 2♠ | 8 | 17% | 31.5% |
| gutshot + flush draw | J♥T♥ on Q♥ 8♥ 2♣ | 12 | 25.5% | 45% |
Each count was checked card by card: 47 cards are unseen on the flop, and a card that completes two draws counts once (the 9♥ is both a heart and a nine). The double gutshot is worth an open-ended draw, but it is easier to miss at the table: 9‑7 with J‑8‑5 looks like nothing until you list the straights. For the quick version, the rule of 2 and 4 multiplies the outs by 2 or 4.
Is a gutshot enough to call?
Compare the chance to hit with the price of the call, the pot odds:
| Bet | Equity needed | Gutshot, one card |
|---|---|---|
| quarter pot | 16.7% | 8.5% |
| half pot | 25% | 8.5% |
The gutshot falls short against both prices: if the opponent bets again on the turn, you only see one card for this price. With one card to come, the odds are 43 to 4 against you, or 10.75 to 1. With 10 in the pot and a bet of 5, you call 5 to win 15: to break even, you need 38.75 more from later bets on average each time you hit. Those are the implied odds the gutshot asks for: almost four times the starting pot. Against a single bet with both cards to come, the bare gutshot has 16.5%, about the price of a quarter-pot bet; what lets a gutshot call small bets is a little extra: on J♠ 7♠ 4♦, 9♥8♥ (a gutshot to the ten plus runner-runner straights) has 20.3% against A♣J♣ (see c‑bet on wet boards).
What makes a gutshot playable is extra equity:
- a pair: top pair with a gutshot is well ahead and can still improve to a straight;
- overcards: A♠K♦ on Q♥ T♣ 4♠ has a gutshot to the nut straight and two overcards;
- a flush draw: 12 outs, nearly half the time by the river (table above);
- fold equity: as a semi-bluff, the gutshot wins when the opponent folds and still has 4 outs when called.
One trap: a gutshot to the bottom of the straight. With 6♠5♠ on 9♦ 8♣ 2♥, the seven makes your straight, but J‑T makes a bigger one on the same card.
Top pair and a gutshot on the turn
The small blind limps and you check in the big blind with 8♠7♠. The flop 6♣ 4♦ 2♥ checks through, the turn 8♥ gives you top pair, and the small blind checks again. Check, bet 33%, 55% or overbet 125%?
See the answer
The gutshot. The four fives complete 4‑5‑6‑7‑8: 4 outs, 8.7% on the river.
What it changes. The bet is for value with top pair; the gutshot makes it cheaper to be wrong. If a better eight such as K♥8♣ calls, the four fives and the three sevens left still give 8♠7♠ 15.9%.
The decision. The author's answer is the 55% bet: top pair is ahead of the weak pairs, draws and overcards that check twice, and the bet gets value from them while denying equity to the overcards.
Keep going
- Counting every draw: poker outs.
- The draw with two ends: open-ended draw vs overpair.
- The same spot from the limp: limped pots.
- All the odds on one page: poker odds chart.
- Draws that need the turn and the river: backdoor draws.
- The lowest straight, ace to five: the wheel straight.
- Five cards in a row, and which straight wins: the straight in poker.
Sources
- Outs and odds computed on this page by counting the unseen cards; equity against K♥8♣ enumerated over every river card.
- Definition: PokerNews, "Gutshot" (poker terms).