Run it twice
All-in with cards to come, dealt out twice for half the pot each time. Identical EV, far less variance — by mutual agreement only.
Two players get all-in on the flop, one with a set and one with a flush draw. Somebody says “run it twice?” and the other agrees. The dealer puts out a turn and river for the first half of the pot, then a second turn and river from the remaining deck for the other half. The set might scoop both, lose both, or split — and that third outcome is the whole point.
The expected value does not change. Each run is an independent deal from the same remaining cards, so a hand with 70% equity wins 70% of each half on average, which is 70% of the whole pot, exactly as if the board had been dealt once. What changes is the spread: running it twice roughly halves the standard deviation of that single hand, turning one coin flip into two half-sized ones.
That makes it a bankroll tool rather than a strategic one. In big cash games it is standard courtesy and both players usually want it; some rooms allow three or four runs. It is almost never available in tournaments, because chips there have to stay in the tournament and splitting a pot two ways breaks the structure.
The mistake is thinking somebody has an edge in agreeing. They do not — refusing is a preference about variance, not a read, and a player who only offers it when they are behind is telling you something about their hand rather than gaining anything from the deal.
FAQ
What does run it twice mean in poker?
When players are all-in with cards still to come, the remaining board is dealt twice from the same deck and each run wins half the pot. Both players have to agree, and the practice is common in cash games and almost unheard of in tournaments.
Does running it twice change the odds?
No. Each run is dealt from the same remaining cards, so a hand with 70% equity still wins 70% of the money on average. What it changes is variance — one large gamble becomes two smaller ones, and the chance of losing the whole pot falls sharply.
Why is running it twice not allowed in tournaments?
Because tournament chips cannot leave the tournament and a hand has to end with one player holding them. Splitting a pot across two boards would break the chip structure, so the format is restricted to cash games.