Poker 101

Rules

Poker is played with a deck of 52 cards. The deck will consist of four (4) each of the following cards: 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, Jack, Queen, King & Ace. (In some poker games, and Ace can be used as either a high or low card). The cards are separated into four suits (spades, hearts, diamonds and clubs). Poker games will dealt with either 5 or 7 cards, but either way, with the best 5 card hand determining the winner.

Ranking the Hands
The goal of any game of poker is to get the best possible hand. Often times there is confusion as to “what hand beats what.” To avoid confusion in the future, hands are ranked as follows (from high to low):

Royal Flush
A straight flush consisting of a 10, Jack, Queen, King and Ace of the same suit is the best possible hand in poker.

Straight Flush
A straight flush is the next best hand. A straight flush is similar to a royal flush, in that all of the cards must be of the same suit, except that a straight flush will consist of any five consecutive cards, not starting with a 10. (i.e. 3, 4, 5, 6 and 7 of hearts; 8, 9, 10, Jack, Queen of Diamonds, etc.)

Four of a Kind
Four of a kind is exactly what it says; four cards of the same denomination. If two or more players have four of a kind, then the player with the highest ranking card will win the game. If two players have the same four of a kind (this is only possible in either community games (i.e where cards are shared by all players at the table or games with wild cards), then the player with the next best card wins, since it would go to a five card hand. If the players are still tied, then the pot gets chopped (i.e. split between the players with the winning hand).

Full House
A player has a full house (also known as a “boat”) when their five card hand consists of three of a kind together with another pair. If two or more players have a full house, the player with the highest three of a kind wins.

Flush
When a player has a five card hand where all of the cards are of the same suit, he or she is holding a flush.

Straight
Just like the word says, a straight is a hand where all 5 cards are in sequential order. For this hand, unlike in a straight flush, there is no need for the cards to be of the same suit. If two or more players have a straight, the player with the highest ranking cards is the winner.

Three of a Kind
A player with three of a kind has three cards of the same denomination.

Two Pair
When a player has two sets of the same two cards, they have two pairs. If two or more players has two pairs, the player with the highest pair is the winner.

Pair
Two of the same numbered cards gives us a pair. If two or more players have pairs, the player with the higher pair is the winner.

High Card
When all else fails and no player at the table has mustered so much as a pair, the winning hand will go to the player with the highest card. In a five card hand, if more than one player has the same high card, we then look to the remaining cards to see who has the best hand.

Low Hand 
Some friendly card games will split the pot between the high and low hand. If you play in such a game, the best possible low hand consists of an Ace, 2, 3, 4 and 6. If going for the low hand, your objective should always be to get as close to this hand as you can.

Betting
Betting is where a good poker player will really excel. This is especially true in a no-limit game, where a player has the ability to push other players at the table around by making large bets. Generally, a poker game will begin with an “ante,” where some or all of the players will contribute money to get the pot going. In Texas Hold’em, the betting will begin with a “small blind” and a “big blind,” who are the two players seated immediately to the left of the “button” or the dealer.
After the cards are dealt, there will be an initial round of betting. Who has the right to start the betting depends on the game being played. In Texas Hold’em, the betting starts with the player immediately to the left of the “big blind.” In other games, it will either start with the person to the left of the dealer or the player with the highest card. Either way, once the betting begins, it will continue clockwise around the table. When the bet gets to a player, he or she will be faced with three choices; call, raise or fold. To call a bet means that the player will match the amount bet by the previous player. A raise is just as it sounds; a player increases the amount of the original bet. Folding means that the player is dropping out of the hand. Depending upon the game, betting will continue until all of the cards have been dealt, at which time the players will reveal their hands. Absent a bluff that forces a player with a better hand to fold, best hand wins.

How To Play

Texas Hold’em

Texas Hold’em is the most popular poker game in the world today, fueled by the airing of poker tournaments on television and the creation of numerous online poker sites, which allow people to play poker in the comfort of their own home.

A game of Texas Hold’em will begin with each player being dealt two cards face down, with the player in the “small blind” (immediately to the dealer’s left) receiving the first card and the player in the “button” seat (the dealer) receiving the last card dealt. These cards are known as the hole or pocket cards. A player will not receive any additional cards. The remaining cards dealt will be “community cards.”

The hand begins with an initial round of betting, beginning with the player to the left of the “big blind” and continuing clockwise. A round of betting continues until every player has called the last bet or folded.

After this initial round of betting, as long as two players or more remain, there will be a “flop,” consisting of three face-up “community cards.” After the flop, a second round of betting ensues. Unlike the first round, this round as well as all subsequent betting rounds, will begin with the player to the dealer’s left and continue clockwise.

After the flop betting round ends, a single community card, known as the “turn” card (sometimes called Fourth Street) is dealt. This is followed by yet another round of betting. Finally, the last of the five community cards known as the “river” (sometimes called Fifth Street) is then dealt, followed by a fourth and final round of betting.

If a player bets and all other players fold, then the remaining player is awarded the pot and is not required to show his hole cards. If two or more players remain after the final betting round, there will be a “showdown,” where each player will declare the best hand he or she can make from the seven cards on the table (his or her two hole cards and the five community cards). A player can elect to use any combination of the seven cards to form his or her final five-card hand. If the best hand is shared by more than one player, then the pot is “chopped” or split equally among them. If the best hand involves fewer than five cards, such as a pair or three of a kind, then “kickers” (next highest card in the hand or on the board) are used to settle ties.

Poker Terms

All In: Betting all of one’s chips in the current hand

Blind: A type of forced bet posted by players to the left of the dealer in flop style poker games.

Bully: A player who raises frequently to force out more cautious players, especially one with a large stack for the size of the game.

Button: The dealer position at the table.

Chop: To split a pot because of a tie, split-pot game, or player agreement.

Community Cards: “shared cards” or “window cards”), which are cards dealt face up in the center of the table and shared by all players.

Declare: Announcing whether you’re trying for the high hand, low hand, or both.

Flop: the dealing of the first three face-up cards to the board.

Heads Up: Playing against a single opponent

High/Low: The highest hand and the lowest hand split the pot.

Kicker: A card in a poker hand that does not itself take part in determining the rank of the hand, but that may be used to break ties between hands of the same rank.

Muck: To fold; To discard one’s hand without revealing the cards.

Natural: Without wild cards.

No-Limit: Rules designating players are allowed to wager any or all of their chips in a single bet.

Poker Face: A blank expression that does not reveal anything about the cards being held.

Pot-Committed: A situation where a player can no longer fold because the size of the pot is so large compared to the size of his or her stack.

Perfect low: A perfect low hand is A-2-3-4-6. However, it can also be A-2-3-4-5 if you play that straights don’t count when you go low, or it can be 2-3-4-5-7 if you play that Aces are always high, or 2-3-4-5-6 if you play both of the above.

Pre-Flop: On flop games refers to the time when players already have their pocket cards but no flop has been dealt yet. It’s also the first round of bets.

Raise: to increase the size of the bet required to stay in the pot.

River: the final card dealt in a poker hand, to be followed by a final round of betting.

Roll: Flip a down card up.

Rolling Showdown: A showdown in which cards are stacked and revealed one at a time with a round of betting after each card is revealed.

Rounder: An expert player who travels around to seek out high-stakes games.

Showdown: The process of revealing hands and determining the winner.

Tell: A tell in poker is a detectable change in a player’s behavior or demeanor that gives clues to that player’s assessment of his hand.

Turn: the fourth of five cards dealt to the board, constituting one face-up community card that each of the players in the game can use to make up their final hand.