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Poker Basics
Poker is the name given to a number of card games where
players wager on the strength of the cards they hold. Poker involves a
communal "pot" consisting of the players' wagers that is awarded
to the player who either holds the highest ranked hand or makes a wager
that goes unmatched by his or her opponents.
PokerAvenueUSA, our Hold'em Seven Card Stud and Omaha games are played
in both "high-only" and "high-low split" form. In
these high-low games, the best five-card poker hand for high wins half
the pot, and the best qualifying five-card hand for low wins the other
half. For detailed breakdown of poker hand rankings, visit our
hand
ranks page.
All poker games begin with a forced wager over which players compete.
In Seven Card Stud, there are two forced wagers, an ante and a bring-in.
In Texas Hold'em and Omaha, the forced wagers are a small blind and a
big blind. In any poker game, players strategically wager using a number
of actions available to them. The actions are as follows:
1.
CHECK
- If there is no wager
on the current betting
round, a player may check.
The act of checking passes
the action to the next
player immediately clockwise
from him or her. A check
does not forfeit interest
in the pot, only the current
right to bet. If all players
check during a round of
betting, the round is
considered to be complete.
2. BET
- If there are not any
wagers on the current
betting round, a player
may bet. If a player bets,
the player immediately
clockwise from him or
her (and any subsequent
players) may fold, raise,
or call.
3. FOLD
- The act of folding forfeits
all interest in the pot.
A player who folds is
not required or allowed
to wager any further money
for the current deal.
4. CALL
- If there has been a
wager on the current betting
round, a player may call.
The act of calling requires
the player to match the
current bet made by his
or her opponent(s).
5. RAISE
- If there has been a
wager on the current betting
round, a player may raise.
The act of raising requires
the player to match the
current bet, and make
a greater one. All subsequent
players are required to
call the raise or raise
again ("re-raise")
to maintain interest in
the pot.
On each betting round, betting continues until the person immediately
counterclockwise from the last bettor or raiser acts. When this person
acts, the next round begins and the previous hand is complete.
When the last bet or raise is called for the final betting round, the
"showdown" occurs. This is when it is determined who wins the
pot, as players show their hands one-by-one. It may be the case that there
is no showdown. This occurs when a player bets or raises, and no active
players choose to call the player’s bet (in other words, all players fold).
In this case, the player doing the betting or raising wins the full amount
of the pot.
Table Stakes and All-In
Poker is typically played "table stakes", meaning only the chips
in play at the beginning of each hand may be used throughout the hand.
The table stakes rule has an application called the "All-In"
rule, which states that a player cannot be forced to forfeit a hand because
the player does not have enough chips to call a bet. A player who does
not have enough chips to call a bet is declared All-In. The player is
eligible for the portion of the pot to the point of his final wager. All
further action involving other players takes place in a "side pot",
which the All-In player is not eligible for.
Poker has hundreds of variants. PokerAvenueUSA features the most popular
casino and cardroom games in the world.
Texas Hold’em (or simply, "Hold’em") is the
most popular poker game in the casinos and cardrooms of North America
and Europe. Each player is dealt two cards ("hole cards") that
belong only to that player. Five community cards are dealt face-up on
the "board". All players may use these cards in conjunction
with their own hole cards to make the best five-card poker hand possible.
To view the rankings of poker hands, visit our
hand rankings page.
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