TEXAS HOLD'EM OMAHA HIGH OMAHA HI/LO 8 OR BETTER SEVEN CARD STUD SEVEN CARD STUD HI/LO 8 OR BETTER HAND RANKS PLAYER FORUM

 

TEXAS HOLD'EM

Hold'em poker (also known as Texas Hold'em) is the most popular poker game in the world. There are three types of Hold'em games:

• Limit Texas Hold'em (there is a specific betting limit applied to each game and on each round of betting)

• Pot Limit Texas Hold'em (A player can bet what is in the pot)

• No Limit Texas Hold'em (A player can bet all of his/her chips at any time)

Sequence of Play

1. Betting Limits are established for the game. The highest bet is twice the size of the minimum bet.

2. Player to the left of the dealer posts (puts up) the "small blind" bet, which is approximate one-half the minimum bet.

3. Player to left of small blind posts the "big blind", which is equal to the minimum bet.

4. Two cards are dealt to each player face down.

5. A betting round begins with the first player to the left of the big blind. Players may call, raise, or fold. Bets must be the game minimum.

6. The Flop: three cards are dealt face up in the middle of the table. These are community cards used by all players.

7. A second betting round takes place starting with the first active player to left of the dealer.

8. The Turn: a fourth community card is dealt face up.

9. A third betting round takes place.

10. The River: a fifth and final community card is dealt face up.

11. The final betting round takes place.

12. Remaining players compare hands to determine the winner. See hand ranks.

Betting Structure for No-Limit Texas Hold'em

Minimum Raise: The raise amount must be at least as much as the previous bet or raise in the same round. As an example, if the first player to act bets $100 then the second player must raise a minimum of $100 (total bet of $200).

Maximum Eligible Raise: The size of your stack (your chips on the table)

The Betting Rules for Pot-Limit Texas Hold'em

Minimum Eligible Raise: The raise amount must be at least as much as the previous bet or raise in the same round. As an example, if the first player to act bets $100 then the second player must raise a minimum of $100 (total bet of $200).

Maximum eligible raise: The size of the pot: The size of the pot is defined as the total of the active Pot (which can be either the main pot or the side pot depending on whether anyone has gone "all-in") plus all bets on the table plus the amount the active player must first call before raising.
As an example, if the active pot is $200, and the first player to act in the round bets $150, and the next player calls $150, the third player has a maximum eligible total bet of $800. The $800 total is made up of the $150 call and $650 raise. The $650 max raise portion is equal to the pot of $200 + first player's $150 + second player's $150 + his own call of $150.

 

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OMAHA HIGH       ^BACK TO TOP^

 

Omaha is similar to hold'em in using a three-card flop on the board, a fourth boardcard, and then a fifth boardcard. Each player is dealt four holecards (instead of two) at the start. In order to make a hand, a player must use precisely two holecards with three boardcards. The betting is the same as in hold'em. At the showdown, the entire four-card hand should be shown to receive the pot.

The best possible five card poker hand, using exactly two hole cards and three community cards, wins the pot.

Betting Rounds

1. The dealer deals each player their own four cards face-down (pocket cards)

2. 1st betting round

3. The dealer burns a card then turns over three community cards face-up (the flop)

4. 2nd betting round

5. The dealer burns another card then turns over 1 more community card (the turn,4th street)

6. 3rd betting round

7. The dealer burns another card then turns over 1 final community card (the river,5th street )

8. Last betting round

9. Showdown (Every remaining player shows hand with bettor showing first)

All remaining players must use their two pocket cards and the three boardcards.

RULES OF OMAHA

1. All the rules of hold'em apply to Omaha except the rule on playing the board, which is not possible in Omaha (because you must use two cards from your hand and three cards from the board).

OMAHA HIGH-LOW

Omaha is often played high-low split, 8-or-better. The player may use any combination of two holecards and three boardcards for the high hand, and another (or the same) combination of two holecards and three boardcards for the low hand.

 

OMAHA HIGH-LOW

1. All the rules of Omaha apply to Omaha high-low split except as below.

2. A qualifier of 8-or-better for low applies to all high-low split games, unless a specific posting to the contrary is displayed. If there is no qualifying hand for low, the best high hand wins the whole pot.

Key to Remember:

To determine your hand(s) in Omaha 8 or Better, you MUST play two of your four "down" cards with three of the "up" cards (community cards).

The suit order of the cards is not taken into account while deciding on the winning cards. BelleGrande.com follows the standard rules of poker. Should poker hands be absolutely identical in ranking, the rule of poker pot distribution will be split evenly between the two or more winning players. This applies to both play money and real money tables.

For all four rounds of betting, the house collects a commission based on a set of rules. This is known as the rake in poker terminology. The rules set at BelleGrande.com are:

The game play remains the same for both Limit and Pot-Limit Omaha 8, or Better game with a few exceptions to the rules:

In Limit Omaha 8 or Better, a maximum of four bets is allowed per player during any betting round. This includes a (1) bet, (2) raise, (3) re-raise, and (4) cap, but in Pot-Limit there is no limit to the number of raises that a player can make. The only criteria being that you cannot raise yourself, (i.e. if a player bets during a betting round, then that player would have to be raised by another player in order for him/her to be able to re-raise). If all the other players in the hand only call or fold, the player would not get an option to raise, because the last raise was done by him/her.

The Betting Rules for Pot-Limit Omaha 8 or Better

Minimum Eligible Raise: The raise amount must be at least as much as the previous bet or raise in the same round. As an example, if the first player to act bets $100 then the second player must raise a minimum of $100 (total bet of $200).

Maximum Eligible Raise: The size of the pot: The size of the pot is defined as the total of the active Pot (which can either be the main pot or the side pot depending on whether anyone has gone "all-in") plus all bets on the table, plus the amount the active player must first call before raising.

As an example, if the active pot is $200 and the first player to act in the round bets $150 and the next player calls $150, the third player has a maximum eligible total bet of $800. The $800 total is made up of the $150 call and $650 raise.

The $650 max raise portion is equal to the pot of $200 + first player's $150 + second player's $150 + his own call of $150.

A player "scoops" the pot when they win the whole pot (which is the goal.)

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OMAHA HI/LO 8 OR BETTER       ^BACK TO TOP^

 

• Limit Omaha High (there is a specific bet limit applied in each game and on each round of betting)

• Pot Limit Omaha High (A player can bet what is in the pot.)

The Game:

Omaha High Poker uses what is called a dealer-button to indicate the theoretical dealer for each hand. After each hand is completed, as with standard poker rules, the button moves clockwise to the next active player. This player will be considered "the dealer"for that hand. Before the start of each hand, the BelleGrande.com system generates a fresh deck of cards internally. On BelleGrande.com, we use a single deck of cards to play a hand of poker, where a deck refers to 52 cards excluding the jokers. Online poker rooms use what is called the Random Number Generator (RNG) to shuffle a deck of cards for the hand.

How does it work?

The system generates a random set of numbers, which are used to place each card of the deck in a particular, but random, position. Once the complete deck is created, the deck is used for that particular hand only. We shuffle the deck of cards every time we start a hand; the random numbers previously generated are discarded and new ones generated before the shuffle.

The First round:

The first person sitting at a table becomes the dealer, and receives the dealer "button". A new game on an active table starts with the button moving clockwise to the next player. The player next to the button / dealer is required to place the small blind. The small blind is equal to half the lower stake. This is a guideline for determining the blinds and not a strict rule. At BelleGrande.com the small blind is rounded down to the nearest dollar. For example : at $5/$10 Omaha 8 or Better per the formula the small blind should be $2.5. Instead, it is rounded of to the lower dollar, so the small blind would post $2. However, as it is just a guideline, the amount of small blind could be set differently at the time of setting up the table.

The player to the left of the small blind is required to post the big blind, equal to the lower stake limit. In a certain scenario it is possible for more than one player to post a big blind in a hand. This is if a new player joins a table at which a game is already going on. The player would get an option of placing a Big Blind at the start of the next hand or wait for his/her turn (as decided by the movement of the button) when it is normally his/her time to place the Big Blind. All the blinds in Hold'em poker are considered live bets and the players who posted them will have the option of checking, calling, raising or folding when the betting returns to their position.

After the blinds have been placed, the down cards / hole cards are dealt to each active player. In Omaha 8 or Better, 4 cards are dealt to each of the players, after which the first betting round begins. The player to the left of the player who placed the big blind starts the betting for this round. Each player will now have the option to place his or her bets in the first round, which is set at the lower limit of the stakes structure. For example in a $10/$20 Omaha 8 or Better game, the value of each bet is $10 in the first round. When we say that bets are limited to $10, it refers to a single bet of the value of $10, so when a user places a "BET" then it is $10, a "RAISE" would be $20, including one additional bet and a call on the previous bet placed by a player. Bets can be placed by playing any of the following options ? Bet, Call and Raise. Each player will also have the option to Fold. These options are available to each player depending on the action taken by the previous player. The first player (left of the Big Blind) to act in the first round) would get the Bet, Call and Raise options. Subsequent players would also get the options of Call and Raise. To Call is to bet the same as what the previous player has bet. Raise actions call for raising the bet/call amount of the previous player, and can be calculated based on the value of the previous bet amount.

In order to participate in the hand every player must at least match the amount of money put in the pot by previous players (includes bets, calls, and raises). There might be a limit on the amount and the number of bets a player can place during a betting round, which also would be considered during the hand. The numbers of bets for a particular round of betting has been mentioned below, please refer to the section on "Standard Rules" (below) for the limits on the number of bets.

After the first round of betting is over, the Flop (the first three cards of the community) is dealt. The community cards are common of all the players participating in the hand.

The Second Round:

After the flop and in each subsequent betting round, the first active player left of the button is first to act. The second betting round also limits the value of bets and raises to the lower limit of the stake structure. So in a $10/$20 value of each bet is $10 for the second round. When we say the bets are limited to $10, it refers to a single bet of the value of $10; so when a user places a "BET" then it is $10, a "RAISE" would be $20 (including one additional bet, and a call on the previous bet placed by a player). Bets can be placed by playing any of the following options : Bet, Call ,and Raise. These options are available to each player depending on the action taken by the previous player. The first player placing a bet would get the Bet option (the player left to the Button). Other players will get the Call and Raise options only.

After this round of bets the fourth community card is dealt out, this is known as the Turn.

The Third Round:

The third betting round starts with the player left of the button, and bets and raises are limited to the upper limit of the stake structure ($10/$20 game, $20 would be the upper stake). When we say the bets are limited to $20, it refers to: a single bet of the value of $20, so when a user places a "BET" then it is $20, a "RAISE" would be $40 (including one additional bet and a call on the previous bet placed by a player). Bets can be placed by playing any of the following options : Bet, Call, and Raise. Combinations of these options are available to the player depending on the action taken by the previous player. The first player placing the bet (the player left to the Button) would get the Bet option.

After this the fifth community card is dealt out, this is known as the River.

The Fourth Round:

The fourth (and final) betting round starts again with the player left of the button, and bets and raises are limited to the upper limit of the stake structure ($10/$20 game, $20 would be the upper stake). When we say the bets are limited to $20, it refers to a single bet of the value of $20, so when a user places "BET" then it is $20, a "RAISE" would be $40 (includes one additional bet and a call on the previous bet placed by a player). Bets can be placed by playing any of the following options: Bet, Call, and Raise. Combinations of these options are available to the player depending on the action taken by the previous player. The first player placing a bet (the player left to the Button) would get the Bet option.

Some standard rules

A maximum of four bets, which includes one bet and three raises, are allowed for each betting round per player. The term cap is used to describe the final raise in a round since betting is then capped and no one can make another raise. Once capped, players will have the option of calling or folding only. Folding can be done at any stage of the game. The action of folding basically pushes the player cards to the dealer. The player would not be considered as part of the game from then on. He/she would not have any rights to any pots created on the table.

Apart from the fold option, a player could also get the option of "Check", in which the player can pass by his/her turn without placing a bet. This option would not always be available to the player, and depends on the actions taken by the previous player in the hand. The player HAS TO equal the amount of the bet placed by any other players for each round in the hand in order to maintain a stake in the pot.

Poker is typically played "table stakes", meaning only the chips in play at the beginning of each hand may be used throughout the hand. This means that a player cannot get additional funds from the cashier while he is in the midst of a game. The table stakes rule has an application called the "All-In" rule, which states that a player cannot be forced to forfeit a hand because the player does not have enough chips to call a bet.

Exceptions to the value of betting in each round:

A player who does not have enough chips to call a bet, but still wishes to be involved in the hand, is declared All-In. The player is eligible for the portion of the pot to the point of his final wager. All further action involving other players takes place in a "side pot", which is unavailable to the player who has gone All-In. When a player goes All-in, the pot currently at the center of the table, which has contributions from him/her as well, is treated as the main pot, over which the All-in player has rights. After the player goes all-in, all the new bets are placed in a side pot, over which only the contributing players have rights. The All-in player does not have any rights over the side pot. The side pot is then given to the next winning combination.

As this is a multi player game, the players are expected to play within a set time frame, the actions during their turn. On BelleGrande.com we provide players with approximately 30 seconds to play with. Initially the player is given 10 seconds, after which there is a timer countdown, which is displayed on the table for 20 seconds. The user goes all-in if he has contributed some money to the pot; otherwise his hand is folded in case he/she does not respond in time. The system is intelligent in detecting if the player has been disconnected. This means if a players gets disconnected and reconnects back and and it is still his/her turn, then he is given an additional 20 seconds to play his turn. If the player is not able to connect back to the table before the time elapses, then the player goes All-in. All-in basically means that the player is in the game, but would not be an active player (placing any bets). Whatever pot is collected till this time is referred as the main pot, and the all-in player has rights (if he wins) to this pot only. After this the money that is bet on the table is added to a side pot, over which the all-in player does not have any rights (if he wins).

After the final round of betting, it's time for : the Showdown. This refers to the action of deciding who the winner of the pot is and the final displaying of the cards by all players (though this is optional for the player; he/she need not show the cards). Five cards out of the hole and community cards (two hole cards and 3 community cards) are to be used for deciding the winning hand.

On the final round of betting, the player who bets first (or checks first if no one else bets) is required to show their cards first at the showdown. If they have the best hand, the remaining players may/may not show their cards as they wish. The aggressor's hand is only turned over first if he was the last to initiate action on the river.

There is a set rank of cards, which is used for deciding the winning combination. To view the various hands that are possible, click here

If two or more hands are the same ranking, the winner is the one having the higher cards. For example, a Flush with an Ace high beats a Flush with a King high. If the poker hands remain tied, then the highest card not being held in common (the kicker) determines the winner.

The suit order of the cards is not taken into account while deciding on the winning cards. BelleGrande.com follows the standard rules of poker. Should poker hands be absolutely identical in ranking, the rule of poker pot distribution will be split evenly between the two or more winning players. If there is an odd chip, the winning player to the left of the button/dealer will receive it. This applies to both play money and poker for real money.

For all four rounds of betting, the house collects a commission based on a set of rules. This is known as the rake in poker terminology. The rules set at BelleGrande.com are: The game play remains same for both No-Limit and Pot-Limit Omaha High game with a few exceptions to the rules mentioned above:

In Limit Omaha High a maximum of four bets is allowed per player during any betting round. This includes a (1) bet, (2) raise, (3) re-raise, and (4) cap, but in No-Limit and Pot-Limit there is no limit to the number of raises that a player can make. The only criteria being that you cannot raise yourself, (i.e. if a player bets during a betting round, then that player would have to be raised by another player in order for him/her to be able to re-raise). If all the other players in the hand only call or fold, the player would not get an option to raise, because the last raise was done by him/her.

Betting Structure for No-Limit Omaha High

Minimum Raise: The raise amount must be at least as much as the previous bet or raise in the same round. As an example, if the first player to act bets $100 then the second player must raise a minimum of $100 (total bet of $200).
Maximum Eligible Raise: The size of your stack (your chips on the table)

The Betting Rules for Pot-Limit Omaha High

• Minimum Eligible Raise: The raise amount must be at least as much as the previous bet or raise in the same round. As an example, if the first player to act bets $100 then the second player must raise a minimum of $100 (total bet of $200).

• Maximum Eligible Raise: The size of the pot: The size of the pot is defined as the total of the active Pot (which can be either the main pot or the side pot depending on whether anyone has gone "all-in") plus all bets on the table plus the amount the active player must first call before raising.
  As an example, if the active pot is $200 and the first player to act in the round bets $150 and the next player calls $150, the third player has a maximum eligible total bet of $800. The $800 total is made up of the $150 call and $650 raise.

The $650 max raise portion is equal to the pot of $200 + first player's $150 + second player's $150 + his own call of $150.

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SEVEN CARD STUD      ^BACK TO TOP^

 

Seven-card stud is played with two downcards and one upcard dealt before the first betting round, followed by three more upcards (with a betting round after each card). After the last downcard is dealt, there is a final round of betting. The best five-card poker hand wins the pot. In all fixed-limit games, the smaller bet is wagered on the first two betting rounds, and the larger bet is wagered after the betting rounds on the fifth, sixth, and seventh cards. If there is an open pair on the fourth card, any player has the option of making the smaller or larger bet. Deliberately changing the order of your upcards in a stud game is improper, because it unfairly misleads the other players.

OBJECT: The best five card poker hand, out of seven cards, wins the pot.

1. Players must place an ante into the pot.

2. Each player is dealt two cards face-down (hole cards), and one card face-up (door card)

3. 1st betting round

4. Each player is dealt one card face-up (4th street)

5. 2nd betting round

6. Each player is dealt another card face-up (5th street)

7. 3rd betting round

8. Each player is dealt another card face-up (6th street)

9. 4th betting round

10.Each player is dealt a last card face-down (river)

11.Last betting round

12.Showdown (Every remaining player shows hand with bettor showing first)

Players may use any 5 of their 7 cards to make their best hand.

RULES OF SEVEN-CARD STUD

1. The first round of betting starts with a forced bet by the lowest upcard by suit. On subsequent betting rounds, the high hand on board initiates the action (a tie is broken by position, with the player who received cards first acting first).

2. The player with the forced bet has the option of opening for a full bet.

3. Increasing the amount wagered by the opening forced bet up to a full bet does not count as a raise, but merely as a completion of the bet. For example: In $15-$30 stud, the lowcard opens for $5. If the next player increases the bet to $15 (completes the bet), up to three raises are then allowed when using a three-raise limit.

4. In all fixed-limit games, when an open pair is showing on fourth street (second upcard), any player has the option of betting either the lower or the upper limit. For example: In a $5-$10 game, if you have a pair showing and are the high hand, you may bet either $5 or $10. If you bet $5, any player then has the option to call $5, raise $5, or raise $10. If a $10 raise is made, then all other raises must be in increments of $10. If the player high with the open pair on fourth street checks, then subsequent players have the same options that were given to the player who was high.

5. If your first or second holecard is accidentally turned up by the dealer, then your third card will be dealt down. If both holecards are dealt up, you have a dead hand and receive your ante back. If the first card dealt faceup would have been the lowcard, action starts with the first hand to that player's left. That player may fold, open for the forced bet, or open for a full bet. (In tournament play, if a downcard is dealt faceup, a misdeal is called.)

6. If you are not present at the table when it is your turn to act on your hand, you forfeit your ante and your forced bet, if any. If you have not returned to the table in time to act, the hand will be killed when the betting reaches your seat.

7. If a hand is folded when there is no wager, that seat will continue to receive cards until the hand is killed as a result of a bet.

8. If you are all in for the ante and have the lowcard, the player to your left acts first. That player may fold, open for the forced bet, or open for a full bet.

9. If the wrong person is designated as low and that person bets, the action will be corrected to the true lowcard if the next player has not yet acted. The incorrect lowcard takes back the wager and the true lowcard must bet. If the next hand has acted after the incorrect lowcard wager, the wager stands, action continues from there, and the true lowcard has no obligations.

10. If you pick up your upcards without calling when facing a wager, this is a fold and your hand is dead. This act has no significance at the showdown, because betting is over; the hand is live until discarded.

11. A card dealt off the table must play, and it is treated as an exposed card.

12. In all games, the dealer announces the lowcard, the high hand, all raises, and all pairs. Dealers do not announce possible straights or flushes (except for specified low-stakes games).

13. If the dealer burns two cards for one round or fails to burn a card, the cards will be corrected, if at all possible, to their proper positions. If this should happen on a final downcard, and either a card intermingles with a player's other holecards or a player looks at the card, the player must accept that card.

14. If the dealer burns and deals one or more cards before a round of betting has been completed, the card(s) must be eliminated from play. After the betting for that round is completed, an additional card for each remaining player still active in the hand is also eliminated from play (to later deal the same cards to the players who would have received them without the error). After that round of betting has concluded, the dealer burns a card and play resumes. The removed cards are held off to the side in the event the dealer runs out of cards. If the prematurely dealt card is the final downcard and has been looked at or intermingled with the player's other holecards, the player must keep the card, and on sixth street betting may not bet or raise (because the player now has all seven cards).

15. If there are not enough cards left in the deck for all players, all the cards are dealt except the last card, which is mixed with the burncards (and any cards removed from the deck, as in the previous rule). The dealer then scrambles and cuts these cards, burns again, and delivers the remaining downcards, using the last card if necessary. If there are not as many cards as players remaining without a card, the dealer does not burn, so that each player can receive a fresh card. If the dealer determines that there will not be enough fresh cards for all of the remaining players, then the dealer announces to the table that a common card will be used. The dealer will burn a card and turn one card faceup in the center of the table as a common card that plays in everyone's hand. The player who is now high using the common card initiates the action for the last round.

16. An all-in player should receive holecards dealt facedown, but if the final holecard to such a player is dealt faceup, the card must be kept, and the other players receive their normal card.

17. If the dealer turns the last card faceup to any player, the hand now high on the board using all the upcards will start the action. The following rules apply to the dealing of cards:

(a) If there are more than two players, all remaining players receive their last card facedown. A player whose last card is faceup has the option of declaring all-in (before betting action starts).

(b) If there are only two players remaining and the first player's final downcard is dealt faceup, the second player's final downcard will also be dealt faceup, and the betting proceeds as normal. In the event the first player's final card is dealt facedown and the opponent's final card is dealt faceup, the player with the faceup final card has the option of declaring all-in (before betting action starts).

18. A hand with more than seven cards is dead.A hand with less than seven cards at the showdown is dead, except any player missing a seventh card may have the hand ruled live. [See Explanations, discussion #4, for more information on this rule.]

19. A player who calls a bet even though beaten by an opponent's upcards is not entitled to a refund. (The player is receiving information about an opponent's hand that is not available for free.)

7 Card Stud High-Low

RULES OF SEVEN-CARD STUD HIGH-LOW

Seven-card stud high-low split is a stud game, which is played both high and low. A qualifier of 8-or-better for low applies to all high-low split games, unless a specific posting to the contrary is displayed. The low card initiates the action on the first round, with an ace counting as a high card for this purpose. On subsequent rounds, the high hand initiates the action. If the high hand is tied, the first player clockwise from the dealer acts first. Fixed-limit games use the lower limit on third and fourth street, and the upper limit on subsequent betting rounds, and an open pair does not affect the limit. Aces may be used for high or low. Straights and flushes do not affect the low value of a hand. A player may use any five cards to make the best high hand, and the same or any other grouping of five cards to make the best low hand.

1. All rules for seven-card stud apply to seven-card stud high-low split, except as otherwise noted.

2. A qualifier of 8-or-better for low applies to all high-low split games, unless a specific posting to the contrary is displayed. If there is no qualifying hand for low, the best high hand wins the whole pot.

3. A player may use any five cards to make the best high hand and any five cards, whether the same as the high hand or not, to make the best low hand.

4. The low card by suit initiates the action on the first round, with an ace counting as a high card for this purpose.

5. An ace may be used for high or low.

6. Straights and flushes do not affect the value of a low hand.

7. Fixed-limit games use the lower limit on third and fourth streets and the upper limit on subsequent rounds. An open pair on fourth street does not affect the limit.

8. Splitting pots is only determined by the cards and not by agreement among players.

9. When there is an odd chip in a pot, the chip goes to the high hand. If two players split the pot by tying for both the high and the low, the pot shall be split as evenly as possible, and the player with the highest card by suit receives the odd chip. When making this determination, all cards are used, not just the five cards used for the final hand played.

10. When there is one odd chip in the high portion of the pot and two or more high hands split all or half the pot, the odd chip goes to the player with the high card by suit. When two or more low hands split half the pot, the odd chip goes to the player with the low card by suit.

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SEVEN CARD STUD HI/LO 8 OR BETTER      ^BACK TO TOP^

 

- Five cards from the seven dealt to you

- One board (community) card and four of the cards dealt to you.

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