button in SafariHow to Play Sviten Special Poker: Rules & Gameplay
If Pot-Limit Omaha doesn't create enough action for you, adding Five-Card Draw into the mix might just do the trick.
Sviten Special combines Five-Card Omaha and Five-Card Draw into a split-pot game where players are battling for two halves of the pot at once.
The variant has gradually spread across Europe and has found a particularly strong following in the Baltics. OlyBet Poker festivals regularly feature Sviten Special alongside a wide range of other mixed games.
What is Sviten Special Poker?
Sviten Special is a five-card split-pot poker game combining Five-Card Draw and Five-Card Omaha.
Every player receives five hole cards, while five community cards are eventually dealt across the flop, turn and river.
At showdown, the pot is divided into two halves:
- 50% goes to the best Five-Card Draw hand, using all five cards in the player's hand.
- 50% goes to the best Omaha hand, using exactly two hole cards and exactly three community cards.
A player who has the best hand in both disciplines scoops the entire pot.
Sviten Special is generally played pot-limit, meaning players can bet or raise up to the size of the pot. However, it can also be played fixed-limit, which offers a more bankroll-friendly way to learn the game.
How to Play Sviten Special Poker
If you already understand Omaha and Five-Card Draw, learning Sviten Special shouldn't take much time. The major difference comes after the flop, when players are given a draw.
Here's how a typical hand works.
1. Five Cards Are Dealt
Once the blinds have been posted, every player receives five hole cards.
The first betting round then takes place. Unlike Five-Card Omaha, however, those five cards are not necessarily the hand you'll take to the river.
2. The Flop is Dealt
Three community cards are dealt to form the flop, followed by another round of betting.
3. The Draw Takes Place
After the flop betting is complete, each player still in the hand gets one opportunity to draw.
Players can discard cards from their five-card hand and receive replacements. If a player exchanges two or more cards, their replacements are normally dealt face down.
Players now have much more information to work with because they need to consider two separate pots.
How strong is your five-card hand for the Draw half of the pot? And how well do your cards connect with the board for the Omaha half?
What is the One-Card Open Rule in Sviten Special?
If you choose to exchange exactly one card, the replacement is initially dealt face up.
You then have a decision:
Keep it, and that card becomes part of your hand. Or reject it, in which case the exposed card is discarded and you receive another replacement card face down. You must keep the second card.
For example, suppose you discard one card and the dealer turns over the A♠.
If the ace improves your hand, you can accept it. If it doesn't give you what you need, you can reject it and take your chances on a second, unseen card.
4. The Turn and River
Once everyone has completed their draw, play returns to something much closer to Omaha. The turn is dealt, followed by a betting round, and then the river and final betting round. If two or more players remain after the final action, the hand goes to showdown.
How Does the Showdown Work in Sviten Special?
This is the part that can trip up first-time players as you effectively have two completely separate poker hands at showdown.
For the Five-Card Draw half, your five hole cards make up your entire hand, with standard poker hand rankings applying.
For the Omaha half, normal Omaha rules apply as well. You must use exactly two of your five hole cards and exactly three community cards.
The player with the best Draw hand wins half of the pot, while the player with the best Omaha hand wins the other half. And ff one player has the best hand on both sides, they collect everything.
Sviten Special Pot Example
Imagine there is €600 in the pot at showdown.
Player A has the best Five-Card Draw hand, while Player B makes the best Omaha hand.
Each player receives €300.
But if Player A has both the best Draw hand and the best Omaha hand, Player A collects the full €600.
Where Can You Play Sviten Special?
Sviten Special was created in Sweden and became particularly popular across the country, Finland and the wider Scandinavian poker community before spreading further across Europe.
The game traces its roots to Anders "Bengan" Bengtsson, where he devised the game in 2004 after suggesting a combination of Omaha and Five-Card Draw during a short-handed mixed game. It proved popular enough that the group played it again, and the variant eventually spread beyond the club.
One place where Sviten has found a particularly strong home is the Baltic poker scene.
Play Sviten Special at OlyBet Poker Festivals
Players wanting to try Sviten Special in a live tournament setting should keep an eye on OlyBet Poker's live festivals.
Mixed games have become an important part of OlyBet's festival schedules, particularly at Olympic Park Casino in Tallinn, where Sviten Special has been a regular fixture for years.
The game even made WSOP history in Tallinn in 2025 when the €555 Sviten Special became the first standalone Sviten tournament to award a WSOP Circuit gold ring.
The 2026 OlyBet Showdown Tallinn included a six-handed Pot-Limit Sviten tournament, while the OlyBet Showdown Vilnius schedule also featured a €200 Pot-Limit Sviten event.
OlyBet's partnership with The Festival Weekend has given the game another regular platform. The 2026 editions in Vilnius and Tallinn both featured dedicated Sviten Special tournaments alongside variants such as TORSE, Crazy Pineapple, Big O and other mixed games.
So, if you've read the rules and fancy seeing what all the fuss is about, an OlyBet festival in the Baltics is one of the best places to find Sviten Special being played.
