Poker
BASICS ABOUT ONLINE POKER GAMES
Poker is usually played with a standard deck of 52 cards, although some
variant games use multiple decks or add Jokers or wild cards.
Poker is a five card game. Though there are many variations of the basic
game, only five cards make a poker hand. The hands are ranked from best
to worst. In case of a tie, one has to look at all five cards for the tie-breaker.
The rules of poker are otherwise simple to learn and assimilate.
The cards are ranked in descending order starting from the highest; Ace,
King, Queen, Jack, 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, Ace. An Ace can be high or
low. There are four suits; spades, hearts, diamonds and clubs, but no suit
is ranked higher than another. Each player has to make a five card “hand”.
The highest ranking hand wins the game. In some games there are Wild Cards
or Jokers, which can be ranked the way the player holding the card wishes
to.
For professional players, online poker means learning a new set of basic
skills. Finding a game, sitting down, buying chips and finally, seeing your
cards to bet, raise or fold is all new.
There are different things to do like when you lose your internet connection
in the middle of a hand and special rules of online etiquette.
How to play
- The first thing you see when you open the poker client is the "lobby".
It shows you what tables are active and has details about each table,
such as the stakes, the game being played and the number of players already
seated.
- If there isn't a seat available in the game you want, you can join the
wait list for that game. When your seat is ready, a dialog box will pop
up asking you if you still want to play there.
- Once you have found a table and opened it up in a window, see if there
is an open seat.
- When you sit down, the dealer will ask you how many chips you want to
put on the table.
- Posting, or waiting for the blind - In Hold’em, players take turns paying
the blinds.
- When you post the blind, if the action is un-raised when it reaches
you again, you will not need to bet any more chips to stay in the hand.
- Once you are dealt in, your own cards will be displayed in front of
your seat for only you to see, while the other players' cards will be
displayed face-down in front of their seats. This allows you to see who
is dealt in. On folding, a player’s cards disappear. One needs to remember
who was dealt out, and who dealt in and folded, just like in face-to-face
poker.
- In Hold’em, the dealer places the community cards, or board cards, face
up in the middle of the table.
- When it's your turn to bet, buttons appear marked “Fold”, “Check”, “Bet”,
“Call”, “Raise”, and so on.
- Online poker also permits you to make an “advance action” before it
is your turn to act.
- The dealer manages the showdown.
- When all the cards have been shown, the dealer awards the pot according
to the rules of the game.