Poker Terms

       Poker Terms     

 In poker,players refer to a lot of things with different terms not always understood by people that are not familiar with the game. I'm going to go over some of these terms with you now to give you a better understanding of the game and the terms most of us take for granted.                                                        

• Ante - A small portion of a chips contributed by each player to build the pot at the beginning of the hand. The ante usually increases as the game progresses.

• All-In - To have all of your remaining chips into the active pot during the hand. If you lose an all in to a player with more chips than you currently have you will be removed from the game.

• Bad Beat - To have a hand that is a large underdog beat a heavily favored hand. It is generally used to imply that the winner of the pot had no business being in the pot at all, and it was the wildest of luck that he managed to catch the one card in the deck that would win the pot.

•  Blind - A forced bet (or partial bet) put in by one or more players before any cards are dealt. Typically, blinds are put in by players immediately to the left of the button.

• Big Blind - The larger of the two blinds typically used in a hold'em game. The big blind increases as the games progresses at a timed interval  usually 5 or 10 minutes, the big blind is also the minimum bet amount if you raise later in the hand.

• Small Blind - The smaller of two blind bets typically used in a hold'em game. Normally, the small blind is one-third to two-thirds of a first round bet.

•  Button - A white acrylic disk that indicates the (nominal) dealer. Also used to refer to the player on the button.

•  Call - To put into the pot an amount of money equal to the most recent bet or raise.

•  Cap - To put in the last raise permitted on a betting round. This is typically the third or fourth raise

• Check -  to continue with the hand without  raising , with the option to call or raise later in the betting round. 

• Check Raise - To check and then raise when a player behind you bets.

•  Community Cards - Cards that are presented face-up in the middle of the poker table and shared among players 

•  Connector- pocket cards that are in order from low to high, 7,8  10,J, Q,K 

• Draw - To play a hand that is not yet complete you still need at least one more card to makethe hand playable.

•  Flop - The first three community cards, put out face up, altogether.

•  Fold - To forfeit any chance of winning the current pot in poker. To lay down your hand or throw your hand in instead of calling or raising a bet.

•  Heads Up - A pot that is being contested by only two players.

•  Hole Cards - Cards dealt face-down to a player also known as pocket cards.

• Inside Straight Draw - Seeking one specific card value to make a straight. For instance, a player holding 9-5 with a board of 2-7-6 can make a straight with any eight. This is also known as a gutshot straight draw.

•  Kicker - An unpaired card used to determine the better of two near-equivalent hands. If the hand is tied by one whole card the highest kicker will determine the winner .
• Muck -Not showing your cards after everyone folds to your raise.

• No-Limit - A version of poker in which a player may bet any amount of chips that he has left in the current game.

• Nuts - The best possible 5 cards,made up of all cards in play.

• Offsuit - pocket cards with two different suits.

•  One-Gap - A hold'em starting hand with two cards two apart in rank. Examples: J9s, 64.

•  Out - A card that will make your hand win. Normally heard in the plural. Example: "Any spade will make my flush, so I have nine outs."

•  Overcard - A card higher than any card on the board. For instance, if you have AQ and the flop comes J-7-3, you don't have a pair, but you have two overcards.

•  Pocket - Your unique cards that only you can see. 

•  Pocket Pair - A hold'em starting hand with two of the same cards making a pair.

• Pot-Limit - A version of poker in which a player may bet up to the amount of money in the pot whenever it is his turn to act. Like no-limit, this is a very different game from limit poker.

•  Quads - Four of a kind.

•  Raise - To increase the amount of the current bet.

•  Rake - An amount of money taken out of every pot by the dealer. This is the cardroom's income.

•  River - The fifth and final community card, put out face up, by itself. Also known as "fifth street." 

•  Runner - Typically said "runner-runner" to describe a hand that was made only by catching the correct cards on both the turn and the river.

•  Set - Three of a kind when you have two of the rank in your hand, and there is one on the board.

•  Short Stack - A number of chips that is not very many compared to the other players at the table. 

•  Showdown - The point at which all players remaining in the hand turn their cards over and determine who has the best hand.

•  Side Pot - A pot created in which a player is not included because he has run out of chips.

•  Slow Play - To play a strong hand weakly so more players will stay in the pot.

•  Split Pot - A pot that is shared by two or more players because they have equivalent hands.

•  Suited - A hold'em starting hand in which the two cards are the same suit.

•  Tell - A clue or hint that a player unknowingly gives about the strength of his hand, his next action, etc. May originally be from "telegraph" or the obvious use that he "tells" you what he's going to do before he does it.

•  Tilt - To play wildly or recklessly. A player is said to be "on tilt" if he is not playing his best, playing too many hands, trying wild bluffs, raising with bad hands, etc.

•  Trips - Three of a kind.

•  Turn - The fourth community card. Put out face up, by itself. Also known as "fourth street."

•  Under the Gun - The position of the player who acts first on a betting round. For instance, if you are one to the left of the big blind, you are under the gun before the flop.

•  Underdog - A person or hand not mathematically favored to win a pot.

•  Value - As in "bet for value." This means that you would actually like your opponents to call your bet (as opposed to a bluff).