There are several variations of poker. Some of these include Draw poker online, Community card poker, and Texas hold’em. There are also games that have fewer cards, like Three-Card Monte and Spit-in-the-Ocean. These will be discussed in later chapters. You can play one or two games simultaneously at the same table.
Draw poker
Draw poker is a variation on poker in which players exchange their cards to form better hands. It is a challenging game, but very fun. Draw poker is played with a standard 52-card deck and the ideal number of players is seven. However, eight players can make for an unbalanced game.
Community card poker
The rules of community card poker are fairly simple. Players are dealt four cards, two of them their own and two of them the community’s. The player who has the highest hand wins the pot. After looking at his or her hole cards, players bet on their hands, taking turns turning up the community cards. After each turn up, the player chooses which face down card to expose.
Texas hold’em
Texas hold’em poker is one of the most popular forms of poker. Due to exposure on television, the internet and popular literature, the game has grown tremendously over the past few decades. In the United States, Texas hold’em has replaced seven-card stud as the most popular poker game, and its no-limit betting version is featured in the main event of many poker tournaments.
Pot-limit contests
Pot-limit contests are played with betting limits that are fixed by the game rules. The minimum amount that a player may raise is usually $5 or $9. The player must bet this amount before the next player can bet. If a player feels they are at risk of exceeding the limit, they can raise more than the minimum amount. Limits are less strict than no-limit contests and many players will call the flop, double-bet on the turn, and go all in before the round ends.
Tie hands
Tie hands in poker occur when two players have the same five-card combination. Common examples include two pairs of twos and sevens. The player with the higher pair wins the tie. This type of situation can occur in any game, but some boards are more likely to produce ties than others. Knowing how to handle these situations is an important part of poker strategy.
Blinds
The structure of blinds in poker can be modified to fit the table and the game. As an example, the amount of a small blind can be larger than the blind of a large blind. In addition, a small blind is more in line with how much each player has in their stack. This allows players to demonstrate their best strategies without having to bet a large amount of money.
Side pots
A side pot is a separate pot that develops when one player goes all-in. This side pot is contested by other players who have not yet committed to the main pot. Ultimately, the player who goes all-in wins the main pot. However, if several all-in players occur at the same time, multiple side pots may develop.