Poker

     

In poker, players are dealt cards from a standard deck of 52 cards. A standard deck consists of 4 suits (hearts, diamonds, clubs, and spades) of 13 ranks each (Ace, 2-10, Jack, Queen, King). Each player makes the best hand possible from the cards they are given. At the showdown, the best hand wins the pot.

Pots are built with initial wagers of antes or blinds plus rounds of wagering. An ante is a compulsory wager all players must make before the hand is dealt. A blind is a compulsory wager made by normally one or two players. Blinds rotate around the table.

During wagering, each player at the table is given an opportunity to bet, call, raise, fold, and in most cases check. Checking is essentially passing on a wager, and can only be done when no one else has bet yet for that round.

A round of wagering is complete when everyone has been given a chance to stay in the hand by calling the last wager. 'Calling' is matching the amount of the previous wager(s) for that round, such that everyone staying in the game has contributed an equal share to the pot. If, for example, player 1 bets $20, player 2 calls the $20 and raises the $10, player three will have to call $30 or raise in order to stay in the hand. When it gets back to player 1, and if no one else has raised, the player will have to call $10 more to stay in the hand. Player 1 could also raise again and then the round of wagering would continue. Sometimes there are rules in place that limit the number of times you can raise in a round. If a player makes a wager and all the other players call the wager, the round of wagering is over. The player could not raise. However, if a player checks and then a bet is made, the player could then raise. This is known as a check-raise and it's a nice way to make friends.

Limits are typically placed on wager amounts. $1-$5 limit simply means that all wagers must fall into that window. A $5/$10 limit means a $5 limit in the first round of wagers, followed by a limit of $10 in subsequent rounds. The WSOP is famous for its no limit Texas hold'em tournament. Players in a no limit game can bet all their chips in one wager, known as going "all in".

Occasionally a player will go all in but does not match the amount of larger wagers. In this case the pot will be split proportional to the larger and smaller wager, and betting will continue. If the small bet wins, the player will only get the smaller portion of the pot and the best hand amongst the remaining players will win the rest of the pot.

When playing poker in casino poker rooms, players should be aware of the rake. The poker rooms are run by the casino for profit just like any other part of the casino. Therefore, the dealer rakes a small percentage from the pot after each hand.

Sometimes, a portion of the rake goes toward a "bad beat" jackpot. Typically with a bad beat jackpot, the loser of a four of a kind or better will win a large portion of the jackpot, the winner of the hand will take a small portion of the jackpot, and everyone else who started the hand will win an even smaller portion of the jackpot.