Poker, in the vast majority of it's forms, is played with a standard deck of 52 cards. Occasionally the game may call for more of less cards -- the most common variation being the addition of wild cards, such as jokers. A deck is composed of 4 suits -- clubs, diamonds, hearts, and spades. Each suit contains 13 cards, ranked from highest to lowest as: Ace, King, Queen, Jack, 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2. In some games, the ace may be the lowest ranked card instead of the highest. In others, it may be both the lowest and highest ranked card. Every different poker game has diefferent rules. Basic poker games are - Holdem, Omaha, 7 Card Stud. Omaha and 7 Card Stud have two basic variation type of games - Omaha Hi or Hi-Lo. And 7 Card Stud has the same. Good help for poker beginners is - Texas holdem is the same game like holdem. Learn poker rules is your way to good players.
ANTE
An ante requires every player to place a specified amount in the pot prior to the beginning of each hand. The ante does not count toward any future bets.
BLINDS
Games with blinds normally have two blinds -- the big blind, and the small blind. These are often in replacement of ante, although sometimes accompany it. The small blind is equal to 1/2 of the low limit bet size, and the big blind is equal to the low limit bet size. Before the hand begins, the player to the immediate left of the dealer button is forced to post the small blind, and the player to the left of that person is forced to post the big blind. These bets count towards that player's first round bet, and are considered live, meaning the player may choose to raise even if nobody else has.
POKER RULES – BETTING ROUNDS
The number of betting rounds differ depending on the game being played. The bet sizes, whether they are fixed limit (you're only allowed to be specific amounts - no higher, and no lower), spread limit (you may bet any amount between a specified low amount and a specified high amount), or no limit (you may be any amount between a specified low amount all the way up to everything you have in front of you), also differ depending on the game being played. In almost all poker games, the play proceeds in a clockwise motion, starting with the player on the dealer's left.
On each betting round, when it is your turn, you have up to five options:
- Fold - You may lay down your hand and give up any chance of winning the pot.
- Check - If nobody has bet, you may choose to check, which means to neither bet nor fold. It then becomes up to the player on your left to bet, check, or fold.
- Bet - If nobody has bet, you may choose to do so by placing money in the pot.
- Call - If there is already a bet in the pot, you may choose to call by matching that bet.
- Raise - If there is already a bet in the pot, you may choose to increase the bet by raising.
Showdown - Anyone who has not folded after the last round of betting will now have the option of showing their hand and possibly winning the pot. The person who bet last is the first to show their hand, and then it proceeds clockwise from there, with each remaining player either choosing to show their hand, or muck it. Often times a player will muck their hand if they aren't going to win the pot, and don't want their opponents to see what they played.
The following hand rankings are used in virtually all games of poker. From highest to lowest:
- Royal Flush - A, K, Q, J, 10 of the same suit
- Straight Flush - Any five sequential cards of the same suit
- 4 of a Kind - 4 cards of identical rank
- Full House - 3 cards of one rank, paired with 2 of another rank
- Flush - Any five cards of the same suit
- Straight - Any five cards in sequence
- 3 of a Kind - 3 cards of identical rank
- Two Pair - 2 cards of identical rank, paired with 2 of another rank
- Pair - 2 cards of identical rank
- High Card
