What happens if both players have the same life total and a card says the player with the lowest life total wins?

When a card instructs that "the player with the lowest life total wins," it must identify exactly one player to apply the effect. If two or more players share the same lowest life total, there is no single player who qualifies, and the effect cannot be applied as written. The game uses CR 609.3, which states that if an effect cannot be performed, it is simply ignored to the extent it cannot be done.

This is similar to how spells or abilities that say "target player with the least life" would be unable to resolve their targeting if multiple players are tied — no legal single target exists among those sharing that minimum value. Without a tiebreaker clause written on the card, the effect simply does nothing in the case of a tie.

Some cards address this explicitly by including tiebreaker language (e.g., "if two or more players are tied, choose one among them" or similar). In that case, you follow the card's specific instructions. Always read the card carefully for any such clause before concluding nothing happens.

Concrete Example: Suppose a card reads "The player with the lowest life total wins the game" and both you and your opponent are at 5 life. Since no single player has a strictly lower life total, the condition is not uniquely satisfied, the effect is ignored per CR 609.3, and the game continues normally.

In summary: a tie means no single player holds the "lowest" total, so the effect fails to identify a winner and is ignored — unless the card's own text provides a tiebreaker rule to resolve the situation.