May 20, 2007
The game of casino blackjack or 21 is by far the most popular table
game offered in gambling establishments. If you are unfamiliar with the
rules of casino blackjack or simply need some clarification on the finer
points, you’ve come to the right place! This page will tell you everything
you need to know to play the game, and describe the various rules that
can differ from one casino to another.
If you are just learning the game, you can read this document straight
through. If you are looking for a specific answer to a question, just use
the table of contents below to jump straight to the section of interest.
Note to international visitors: The currency amounts and
chip colors mentioned on this page are written from the viewpoint of a
visitor to a casino in the United States, but all other information here
should be applicable around the world.
Blackjack Rules: Table of Contents
May 18, 2007
Texas Hold’em: Set-Up and Play (short version)
Introduction
Texas Hold’em Poker is a community card game with four betting rounds.
Game Play
- One player acts as dealer. This position is called the button and it rotates clockwise after every hand.
- The two players to the left of the dealer are the small blind and the big blind, respectively. They are the only players who have money in the pot before the cards are dealt.
- Every player receives two cards face down. These are hole cards.
- The first betting round begins with the player sitting immediately to the left of the big blind, and continues clockwise.
- When the first betting round is completed, three community cards are flipped face up on the table. This is called the flop.
- The second round of betting begins with the first remaining player seated to the left of the button. The betting resumes, clockwise.
- When the second round of betting is finished, a fourth community card is flipped face up on the table. This is called the turn.
- The third round of betting commences with the first remaining player sitting to the left of the button. The betting moves clockwise, with the bets doubling on the turn.
- When the third round of betting is over, a fifth community card is flipped face up on the table. This is called the river.
- The fourth round of betting starts with the first remaining player seated to the left of the button. The betting continues to move clockwise.
How to make a hand
Read the rest of this entry »
May 15, 2007
Basic Strategy
The most important decisions in Seven-Card Stud are made on Third Street. You must be able to decide whether or not to play a hand and how to play it. Some hands play better in multi-way pots and some in shorthanded pots. The hands that play well in multi-way pots are drawing hands, like three-flushes, three-straights and combinations of the two. The hands that play well in shorthanded pots are big pairs.
One of the most valuable skills in Seven-Card Stud is the ability to be very selective about the hands you begin with. The problem with playing too many starting hands is that these mistakes are usually compounded in later betting Read the rest of this entry »
May 11, 2007
Top 5 Live Tells
Many people believe that playing live poker is the only way to play because there are many good tells you can use to gain an edge over the opposition. However, players shouldn’t make decisions solely based on tells. Instead, they should think of each hand as a puzzle, with tells being a small piece. You want to add up different pieces of information to complete the puzzle.
The problem with tells is that most people rely almost exclusively on them and end up making the wrong decisions because they fail to incorporate other vital information into their game. Equally important factors are how an opponent is betting, what type of player they are, what their current mood is, and how they’ve played in the past.
Let’s talk about the following tells and how you can use them to exploit the players at your table.
- Chip Loading
- Betting Patterns
- Looking Away
- Staring At You
- Tentative vs. Laid Back Posture
Chip Loading
Of all the tells, chip loading is probably my favorite. Chip Read the rest of this entry »
May 09, 2007
Razz, also called 7 card stud low, gained incredible popularity during the 2004 World Series of Poker. The
Poker Stars
Razz Poker Rules
Razz is an ante game. Everyone is required to put in their ante before the cards are dealt. After the cards are dealt, Razz plays very much like 7 Card Studwith a few important Read the rest of this entry »
May 06, 2007
Omaha Hold’em, or commonly referred to as Omaha, is not quite as popular as it’s cousin, Omaha hi/lo split, but it does have many fans, especially online and in west coast card rooms. Omaha Poker has become one of the professional players’ favorite games. In fact at Full Tilt Poker you are more likely to see pro players at the Omaha and Omaha hi/lo tables, than you will at the No Limit Holdem tables. Why? With so many cards dealt to each player, you will almost always have some sort of hand that in other games would be worth playing. In Omaha however, many seemingly good hands are worthless. At the Omaha tables, the fish become even fishier because they catch more hands, many of them weak, and as we all know, weak players can’t throw away weak hands! Read the rest of this entry »
May 02, 2007
Omaha Hold’em, 8 or better high-low split was in definite need of shortening, so poker players commonly refer to it as Omaha/8 or Omaha hi/lo. As with any other game of poker, the rules are mostly simple, but mastering the game requires a talented, relentless student. Omaha is also thought to be the game of the future, with its popularity growing very quickly, and already outgrowing many 7 card stud populations.Qualifying Low hands
In Omaha hi/lo, the pot can be a split pot if there is a qualifying low hand. To qualify as a low hand, the player must Read the rest of this entry »
April 24, 2007
Seven Card Stud Rules
The road to becoming a great 7 Card Stud player begins with learning the rules. While the following will get you started, you will most certainly want to check out our 7 Card Stud Strategy section to begin learning what it takes to be a winning seven card stud player.
Ante Up!
In 7 card stud, each player is required to put in an ante before being dealt cards. The ante is a fraction of a bet, and is completely up to the game organizer. Generally however, antes that are higher than 25% of the small bet at thatMore… particular limit are consider very high. Antes are generally 10-20% of the small bet. For example, in a $5/$10 game, antes would most likely range from .50 to $1.00, as the small bet is $5. Setting the antes to an appropriate level is much more important than one would think. If antes are set too low, then players can and should wait all day on great hands, lending itself to a very slow and boring game. On the other hand, if antes are set too high, it becomes correct to play almost any cards, and the game becomes a crap shoot rather than a game of strategy.
The Bring-In
After all antes are paid and pushed to the center of the table, everyone is dealt 2 cards face down and one card face up. The player with the lowest face up card must make a forced bet, called the “bring-in” to get the betting action started. If two players have low cards of the same rank, the “suit rank” actually comes into play. Suit rank goes in alphabetical order, clubs, diamonds, hearts and spades, with clubs being the lowest and spades being the highest. The bring-in bet is a predetermined amount, which is generally more than the ante, but much less than the small bet. To use the $5/$10 example again, a good bring-in amount to decide upon would be $2. For higher limit games, such as $10/$20, a good bring-in is $5. In most 7 Card Stud games, the player with the forced bring-in has the option of betting a full small bet as opposed to the predetermined bring-in amount.
The Betting Rounds
Each player to the left of the bring-in bet now has the option of calling, raising or folding. The player to the immediate left of the bring-in acts first and can either call the bring-in or raise it to a complete small bet. Once someone raises to a full small bet, each player in turn must either call the amount of the small bet or fold or re-raise. Once all betting, raising and calling has ended and bets are equal, this first round, also called “3rd street” comes to an end.
Fourth Street
Each player is dealt one more card face up and another round of betting begins. This time, the first person to act is decided by who has the highest hand showing face up on their “board.” The player with high hand on board has the option of checking or betting. Each player to his left acts in turn. If the player first to act checks, then the second player may check as well. However, once a bet has been made, each player must on his turn to act, call the bet, fold or raise. One variation many games make is that if the first player to act has a pair showing, he or she can make a double bet, ie. in the $5/$10 game, betting $10 instead of the normal $5 that would be bet on fourth street. When all bets are equal, we move to fifth street.
Fifth Street
On fifth street, each player is dealt another card face up. As the round before, the player with the highest hand showing on board acts first. It is important to note that betting doubles on fifth street. In the $5/$10 game, previously all bets were $5, but now they must be $10. The high hand on board can check, bet or if he is a total imbecile, fold. Each player acting after him has the same options until the first bet is made, and then players must call, fold or raise. Again, once the betting action has ended, we move to the next round.
Sixth Street
Each player is dealt yet another card face up and play moves exactly as it did on fifth street, using double bets and high hand on board acting first.
Seventh Street
Also commonly called the river, players are dealt their last card face down! The high hand on board acts first and double bets are used just as they were on 6th street.
Showdown
Once all betting action has stopped on 7th street, the aggressor, the last person to make a bet or raise on 7th street turns his down cards up for the table to see. If there was betting on the last round, then the high hand on board turns over his cards first.Each player to his left in turn can turn their cards face up if their hand is better, or “muck” their hand face down if they are beaten. If you are new to 7 Card Stud, it is often best to turn your cards up, even if you think you are the loser, as many a winning hand has hit the muck when players did not realize they held a straight or flush. The dealer reads the cards and will determine the winner. The player with the best five card hand using any of the seven cards in his hand wins the pot.
April 14, 2007
Roulette Rules
Single- betting on only one number. Payoff 35 to 1.
Split- betting on any two numbers by placing your bet on the line between them. Payoff 17 to 1.
Trio -betting on three numbers at their intersecting point (possible with either 0, 1, and 2 or 0, 2 and 3). Payoff 11 to 1.
Corner - betting on four numbers by placing your bet at their intersecting point. Payoff 8 to 1. Read the rest of this entry »
April 04, 2007
Roulette is a French word, as you might have guessed, meaning “small wheel”. Most people agree that the first Roulette Wheel was invented as a perpetual motion machine in 1655, by the French scientist Blaise Pascal, who was known for his work in the field of probability. First played in a monastery to ease the boredom, it soon found its way into a rudimentary casino in Paris, where it was regarded as a game for the glamorous and intelligent. In 1842, Francois and Luis Blanc established the first casinos in Monte Carlo where, Read the rest of this entry »