Poker Rules

In this game, players on board put money in the game, and the one with the best poker hand or the last remaining player wins. Any player who wants to play Poker should know the basic rules of Poker before starting the game. Poker games have different variations, but most of the variations come with some of the underlying rules that are common in all the different forms of the game. While learning the poker game rules, players need to know the standard poker hand ranking system. Players need to familiarize themselves with these hand-ranking systems mentioned in this poker guide to proceed further.

Poker Rules Types:

The different types of rules for the Poker game are discussed below in detail.

Contents:

Poker Hand Ranking Rules

Before moving forward toward the poker rules, let us look at the best possible hands that can be used in standard poker game rules in ascending order.

  1. High Card: The highest card in your hand is the ‘best hand’. The High Card is the weakest hand that a player can get. For example, J♣9♦8♥6♣3♦.
  2. Pair of Cards: In a deck of cards, there are 13 different cards for each suit. When we have a match of two, we have a pair of cards. For example, Q♦Q♣7♠4♠3♣2 is a pair of queens.
  3. Two Pair of Cards: When we have two pairs of cards, the fifth card is our kicker. For example, if we have Q♣K♥7♥K♠7♦, we have kings and sevens with a queen kicker.
  4. Three of a Kind: Whenever we have three of any of the same cards, we have three of a kind. For example, J♣6♥5♥5♠5♦.
  5. Straight: We have a straight when we get the five cards in sequential order but not in the same suite. For example, 9♥8♣7♦6♦5♠ is classified as straight.
  6. Flush: There are four suits in poker, namely, diamonds, spades, clubs, and hearts. When we have five cards of the same suit in any order, we have a flush. For example, K♥J♥7♥4♥3♥.
  7. Full House: We have a full house when we have a pair and three of a kind. The full house is also known as a ‘boat’. An example of a full house is Q♦Q♣Q♥8♥8♠.
  8. Four of a Kind: As the same suggests, four of a kind is when we have all four cards of different suits. For example, J♠6♠6♣6♥6♦.
  9. Straight Flush: When we have five cards in sequential order and of the same suit, we have a straight flush. An example of a straight flush is 6♠5♠4♠3♠2♠.
  10. Royal Flush: Royal Flush is one of the rarest hands in poker. When you have a straight flush containing an ace, king, queen, jack, and ten, you have a royal flush. Example: A♥K♥Q♥J♥10♥.

Tip: If two players have the same hand, the player with the kicker wins.

Poker Rules Chart for Hand Ranking

As a beginner, the poker rules chart for hand ranking will be handy for you to understand the strength of your hand.

Power Hand Ranking From Strongest to Weakest Examples
Royal Flush A♠K♠Q♠J♠10♠
Straight Flush 6♠5♠4♠3♠2♠
Four of a Kind J♠6♠6♣6♥6♦
Full House Q♦Q♣Q♥8♥8♠
Flush K♥J♥7♥4♥3♥
Straight 9♥8♣7♦6♦5♠
Three of a Kind J♣6♥5♥5♠5♦
Two Pairs of Cards Q♣K♥7♥K♠7♦
Pair of Cards Q♦Q♣7♠4♠3
High Card J♣9♦8♥6♣3♦

Blinds and Antes Rules

Players need to bet their ‘ante’ which is their “buy-in bet” to play the round. The big blind and the small blind act as forced bets that are an essential element of most of the poker games played across the globe. Players need to understand how these bets operate. In different variations of poker that use blinds, each hand starts with the big blind placed one position to the immediate left of the small blind. The players who are in this position need to put in a predetermined amount before the beginning of each hand.

Read More: Poker Blinds

Betting Rules

Call: A bet that is equal to the bet made by the preceding player to stay in the game is called a call. It is also referred to as ‘stay in’. Fold: A player folds when he decides not to play the round and gives up his chance of winning the pot. The players who fold are considered to be inactive, and their previous bets are forfeited. The fold is also known as ‘drop out’. Raise: A raise is a bet that is more than the earlier bet made by the preceding player, which becomes the new bet to be matched by other players. Check: It means passing the action to the successive player without betting any amount. The option of checking can be used only if there is no open bet or raise in front of the player.

Limit Poker Rules

In poker, two limits are specified, namely, the higher betting limit and the lower betting limit. The lower betting limit is the size of all the bets and raises in the first two rounds, while the higher betting limit is the size of all the bets and raises in the final two rounds. There cannot be more than one bet and three raises in any betting round.

No Limit Poker Rules

The amount raised by any player must be at least as much as the amount of the previous bet. For example, if a player bets $5, then the successive player must raise a minimum of $5. Since it is a no-limit poker game, a player can raise all the chips he has or be raised by all the chips that his opponent has.

Texas Hold’em Poker Basic Rules

The rules to play Texas Hold’em Poker consists of the following steps:

  • We will first need to bet our ‘ante’, which is our ‘buy-in bet’, to play the round. The ante is a small bet and is decided by the table. A big blind is double the small blind and is the starting point for the bets to be matched.
  • Once everyone has bet their ante, the dealer will deal two cards to each player on the board. Every player needs to keep these cards secret from every other player.
  • Every player will look at their respective cards and decide whether to bet or not. When there’s a betting round, we can choose to call, fold, check or raise. Fold means not playing the round, check means matching the bet with the round, while raise means adding more money to the betting pool.
  • The players that are unwilling to ‘check’ will have to ‘fold’, and if everyone but one player folds, that player wins the pool.
  • Once every player has matched the bet, the dealer will reveal three cards. These cards are known as the flop. When we see the flop, we need to start planning regarding what hand we want to make, keeping in mind that two more cards are yet to be revealed. For example, if we have two hearts, and the flop includes two more hearts, then we can aim for a flush.
  • After the flop, every player has the chance to bet again before the dealer reveals the next card, which is the ‘turn’. Once more, the betting will continue, and then the dealer will reveal the last card, which is known as the ‘river’.
  • At this point, we will see a total of seven cards. Two in our hands and five on the table. The players will bet one more time, and then everyone will reveal their hand. The player with the best hand or the last remaining player wins the game.

Also Read:

Omaha Poker Rules

Draw Poker Rules

Stud Poker Rules

Conclusion:

Mastering the game of poker takes an ample amount of time. It is mostly a game of skill where players need to be able to justify their hand strengths based on other players. You are now equipped with the basic information to play poker. Now start playing Online Poker at Gamezy App.

Also Check: How to play Poker games online and also know more about Poker Cards.

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