Let’s face it; nobody takes up poker because they love the idea of sitting idly at a table while folding for hours on end. But, in a full ring game with eight or nine other players holding cards, it’s proper to spend most of your time folding because there’s too great a chance that one of your opponents holds a powerful hand.

But, in short-handed play when only three or four people have cards, you’re forced to open up. With the blinds coming around so frequently, you need to be playing and winning a number of pots just to stay even. And, with only a couple of opponents, you can be less concerned about running into a big starting hand. On most deals, everyone’s holding trash.

Here’s some advice for altering your strategy for short-handed no-limit cash games. Keep in mind that all the advice here is geared toward short-handed play while players have deep stacks. The advice given here won’t work especially well in a tournament, or against players who come in with less than 100 times the big blind.

My love of short-handed play is one of the reasons I play online so much. It’s rare to find a three- or four-handed table in a casino, but online, I can find short-handed games any time I want.

Pre-Flop Strategy: Three- or four-handed games are usually very aggressive, and I will never limp in. I open-raise or I fold. In a typical short-handed game, I’m raising one in every three or four hands when I’m not in the blinds. I recommend raising with every hand you’d raise with in a full ring game (big pair, AK, AQ). In addition, I raise with any pocket pair, including twos and threes. I’ll also raise with suited-connectors, such as 4s-5s.

What might be something of a surprise is that I’m extremely wary of hands that seem to hold some promise. Hands like A-J, A-T and K-J, are hands that most know to treat cautiously in a full ring game, but I will often fold these in a short-handed game as well. Why? Well, these are hands that are likely to get me in a lot of trouble. For example, if I were to raise with K-J, and the flop came K-T-3, I’m either going to win a small pot, after betting my top pair and seeing my opponents fold, or I’m going to lose a much larger pot as my decent hand goes down in flames against two-pair, a set, or an out-kicked top-pair.

It’s also important to note that A-J, A-T are just about useless against re-raises and must be mucked against most opponents. With a hand like 4s-5s, however, I can call a re-raise with hopes of catching a big flop (two-pair, trips) or a big draw, and then taking my opponents entire stack when I hit. If I miss a flop with a suited connector or manage to hit only bottom pair, I can easily fold to a flop bet. But if I call a re-raise with A-T and then catch top pair on a Ten-high flop, I may get in real trouble against a bigger pair. Or if I flop an Ace, I could be out-kicked.

Post-Flop Strategy: If a pre-flop raise from the cutoff or button has been called by one of the blinds, it’s important to make the most of your positional advantage. Keep in mind that in a short-handed game, your opponent isn’t likely to hold much of a hand and that even if he held something decent, chances are he missed the flop. (In hold ‘em, unpaired hole cards will fail to make a pair on the flop about two-thirds of the time.)

So, if I missed the flop completely while holding something like 6-high, I’ll almost always bet the flop. If I get called or check-raised, I’ll happily shut down. But, I pick the pot up often enough to make the bet in this situation worthwhile.

If, however, I’m holding a decent Ace and miss the flop, I’ll usually check. In a short-handed game, Ace-high can win at showdown, and taking a free card gives me a chance to hit my hand on the turn.

I’ll also bet most of my draws on the flop. Often, I’ll win the pot with a bet. Even if I’m called, I’ve got the added benefit of building a large pot. If I happened to hit my draw on the turn or the river, there’s a good chance I’m going to take my opponent’s stack.

Psychological Strategy: Short-handed play takes some getting used to. The pace is furious, forcing a lot of tough decisions in very short periods of time. The swings are far more dramatic than in a full ring game but, I think that after adjusting to the pace of the action, most players will come to love the excitement that accompanies short-handed play.

Back to strategy main page

In last week’s tip, I shared some strategies for playing short-handed no-limit cash games. This week, I’m following up with some more short-handed advice, this time concentrating on Limit Hold ‘em.

If you read last week’s tip, you’ll know that hand values change in short-handed play and that it’s proper to play a greater percentage of hands than would be wise at a full ring game. In these games, I play a lot of hands. So many, in fact, I’ve gotten the reputation of being something of a maniac. But there is a method to my madness. By the end of this article, I think you’ll agree.

Button Play: In a three- or four-handed Limit Hold ‘em cash game, I will raise about two of every three times I have the button. The quality of my hand is essentially irrelevant. The position raise puts me in control of the hand and, even if I’m holding total trash, the pressure puts the blinds in a spot where they need to catch a piece of the flop.

For example, say I raise on the button and the big blind calls with a modest but playable hand, maybe Qc-Td. Now, if the flop comes with any Ace or King, the blind is going to have a very difficult time continuing with the hand if he checks and I bet the flop. In fact, the blind is going to have a very difficult time continuing on any board that doesn’t contain a Queen or Ten.

If I follow up my raise and bet the flop with, say, 7-high, and get called or check-raised, it’s very easy to lay down the hand. I know this is going to happen at times, but I pick up the pot often enough to make the constant button aggression profitable.

Small Blind Play: When playing against opponents who raise frequently in position, I’m sure to respond with aggression in the small blind. If I’m holding a hand that’s likely best at a three-handed table – something as modest as A-9 might qualify – and I’m facing a button raise, I take control of the hand and three-bet. That puts additional pressure on the big blind. If I only call the button raise, the big blind will be getting great odds (5:1) to call the additional bet. And I’d far prefer to play the hand heads-up.

After three-betting from the small blind, I follow up with a bet on the flop almost 100 percent of the time. Since I represented a big hand pre-flop, I want to put my opponent to a decision immediately. Once I see how my opponent reacts, I can decide how I should proceed with the hand. I’ll have to give it up sometimes, but the pressure will force a lot of folds.

Big Blind Play: The big blind is the only place where I’m content to call bets pre-flop. In fact, a call is my usual reaction to a button raise. If I start with a moderate hand, I can see the flop and decide how to proceed. If I start with a strong hand, like pocket Aces or Kings, I’ll still call and look to check-raise the flop. I don’t like to three-bet from the big blind because it tends to announce my hand. My opponents know that I’m starting with a very big hand.

Overall Goal: As you can probably tell by now, I believe that aggression is key to success in short-handed Limit Hold ‘em. I think the constant bets and raises create two dynamics that can be exploited for profit. First, by being the aggressor, I have the opportunity to pick up a number of pots where both my opponent and I miss the flop.

Second, the aggression has the tendency to lead opponents to make some very bad decisions. After some time, opponents may call bets on every street with nothing more than Ace- or King-high. When they start doing that, I can tighten up and only bet hands that are likely to be winners at showdown.

At times my style may look maniacal. But in short-handed limit play, it works.

Back to strategy main page

Losing is part of poker and all serious players, including the world’s best, can recount losing streaks that lasted for months. Often, the downswing starts with a particularly unlucky run of cards. A series of bad beats or impossibly tough hands eat away at the bankroll. As the bad run continues, and money continues to disappear, players are forced to confront one of the toughest questions in poker: Am I a victim of lousy luck or am I playing poorly?

John D’Agostino knows how difficult it is to find the correct answer. “Any time I lose a few sessions in a row, I start questioning myself,” D’Agostino says. “But I know that some days, even if I play perfectly, I’m going to lose.”

Erik Seidel notes that in tournament poker, months-long dry spells are to be expected. In the midst of such a run it’s hard to know if you’re a victim of expected fluctuations or if there’s something wrong with your game. “It’s really hard to determine,” says Seidel, “but I think most of us tend to fool ourselves and tend to think we’re playing better than we are.”

Then there’s the inevitable interplay between bad cards and poor play. The pros report that in the midst of a bad run, bad luck can lead to bad decisions. Jennifer Harman notes that when things are going poorly, she has a tendency to push hands. “Let’s say I have Ace-King and I don’t flop a pair,” says Harman. “I’ll be in there raising. But there’s no point. My table image is bad and nobody thinks I can flop a hand, so I can’t bluff. I might as well wait till I flop a pair. At that point, my opponents are going to call me down and pay me off anyway.”

For D’Agostino, a bad run can lead to more timid play. ‘I definitely made some bad days a lot worse than they needed to be. Sometimes, I started playing more passively. In the middle of a hand I’d be asking myself, ‘How is this going to go wrong?’ But if I played the hand the way I usually would, I’d have won the pot earlier on.” D’Agostino says that when he has that sort of mindset, he’s likely to miss bluffing opportunities.

Such a streak can destroy a promising player. Harman says, “There are a lot of players who have gone on losing streaks and can’t recover. They start playing bad and thinking that they’re doomed forever. And all of a sudden, they’re on the rail.”

How do the pros get a handle on their play and determine what’s causing the downswing? Harman recommends sharing hands. “I’d ask people to watch me play or I’d jot down hands and ask friends ‘Did I play this right?’ If they said I was playing it wrong, I’d have to reevaluate my play because I was letting the losing streak affect my play.”

“Just book a win,” says D’Agostino. He notes that confidence is critical at the poker table. So, in the midst of losing streak, leaving a session with a win – even if it’s a small one – can help a player regain that mental edge. “Once you can feel confident about yourself, things will start to roll,” he says.

Finally, a winning player needs to develop an honest, self-critical nature. Seidel notes that he rarely talks poker, but when he and John Junada chat about a play, the conversation usually begins, “Listen to how badly I played this hand.…”

When playing online, there’s every opportunity to assess your play. Save your hand histories. When a session is over and your head is clear, review your actions and see if you can spot problems in your play.

Back to strategy main page

Perhaps British author and poker player Anthony Holden said it best. In Big Deal: A Year As A Professional Poker Player he writes: “Whether he likes it or not, a man’s character is stripped bare at the poker table; if the other players read him better than he does, he has only himself to blame. Unless he is both able and prepared to see himself as others do, flaws and all, he will be a loser in cards, as in life.”

How true. Unless you are prepared to examine both your poker skills and the quality of your character — and your opponents are surely doing this every time you play against them — there is little else you’ll be able to do that ensures winning. That’s your challenge. For today, tomorrow and forever: For as long as you aspire to winning poker, you must be willing to strip your own character bare, examine and analyze it, repair it, and do it over and over again — as long as it takes to become a winner — in cards and in life. If you can stand up to this rigorous challenge, you too can become a winning poker player.

In the next few issues we’ll explore what’s really important in playing winning poker. That’s not to say that other facets of the game can be ignored — far from it. It’s just that these articles will deal with poker’s critical elements. Many of you write to me with your questions, and I answer each letter I receive. From your letters I’ve learned that many readers, striving to become better players, eagerly seek practical knowledge and advice that they can use when they play.

Back to strategy main page

Crazy Pineapple 8/b plays like regular Crazy Pineapple until the end of the hand, when the pot may be split between the high hand and the low hand, if any.

WHAT DOES ’8/b’ MEAN?
8/B refers to the low hand, and means that, if a low hand exists, it must consist of cards valued at 8 or lower. If a low hand doesn’t exist, the high hand wins the entire pot. There is ALWAYS a qualifying high hand.

Qualifying low hands consist of five cards with different numerical values from Ace to 8. If multiple players meet this standard, the player with the lowest high card will win the low hand and split the pot with the high hand (e.g. Ah, 2d, 5c, 6c 7d BEATS Ac, 2c, 6d, 7h, 8d). The best low hand is A, 2, 3, 4, 5 – straights and flushes do not count against a low hand, but a pair will disqualify it. An easy way to think of a low hand score is to look at the two highest cards in that hand. For example, an A, 2, 3, 4, 6 scores a 64, and would therefore beat an A, 2, 3, 5, 6 because it’s score would be 65.

The high and low hands consist of five cards from the total of seven available at the showdown (your two pocket cards plus the five community cards), but you don’t have to use the same 7 cards for both high & low hands. If your pocket cards are Ad, 7d, and the board is 2d, 3c, 4c, 5d, 6d – you have a low hand of A-5, and a high hand of Ace high flush.

One final point – players do not need to decide if they are playing for a high hand or a low hand, as all hands in the showdown will be evaluated for both and ranked automatically by our software.
BUT I WANT IT ALL!!!

The value of potentially sharing the pot between a high hand and a low hand is that there is more action in the game. Some will play for the high, and some for the low. But sometimes you can play for both! As mentioned above, straights and flushes do not count against a low hand. So if you have Ac, 2c, 3c, 4c, 5c, you will share in the low hand pot (it may split between you and other A-5 straights), and your straight flush would certainly put you in good position for the high hand also.

All poker rules

Pan, or Panguingue, is especially popular in California and South Florida, and now, through the magic of the internet, around the world.

The object is to be the first to meld all 10 cards in your hand, in addition to the final card drawn.

Pan uses 8 decks with one set of spades removed and all the 8′s, 9′s and 10′s removed, for a total of 310 cards. In descending order, the cards rank K, Q, J, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, A. The J and 7 are sequential.

Play goes counterclockwise.

The Game: After all players post collection, the hand will be dealt. Each player that posted will receive 10 cards. At this point they have the option of keeping their hand and playing, or sluffing their hand and sitting out the current hand.

The Play: Each player in turn takes the top card of either the discard pile or the stock. A player may take from the discard pile only if the card was drawn from the stock by the preceding player, and can be immediately melded with the cards in the taker’s hand. When a player draws from the stock, he must meld the card or discard it.

After drawing and before Setdiscarding, a player may meld as many sets as he holds or add to his existing melds. A player must drag a drawn card to his meld zone before any cards from his hand can be added to the meld zone.

If a player uses a drawn card to build one or more melds, he must end his turn by discarding a single card from his hand. This is done by dragging the desired card from his hand to the discard pile. If he has no remaining cards in his hand to discard and has all 11 cards in valid melds, the hand is finished.

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 Holdem (there is a specific betting limit applied to each game and on each round of betting)
• Pot Limit Texas Holdem (A player can bet what is in the pot)
• No Limit Texas Holdem (A player can bet all of his/her chips at any time)

The Game: Hold’em Poker uses what is called a dealer-button to indicate the theoretical dealer of 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 the game, the Poker Software system will internally generate a fresh deck of cards for the hand. On Online Poker Rooms 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 a card in a particular position in the deck. Once the completed 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 are 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 Online Poker Rooms the small blind is rounded down to the nearest dollar. For example – at $5/$10 Hold’em 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 Hold’em, 2 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 a chance to place his or her bets in the first round, by putting forth an amount of chips equal to the lower limit of the stakes structure. For example in a $10/$20 Hold’em game, the value of each bet in the first round is $10. Bets being limited to $10 refers to: a singe bet of $10 value; i.e. when a user places a “BET” it is $10, a “RAISE” would be $20 (this 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. 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. A Raise action calls for raising the bet/call amount laid by 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 to all of the players participating in the hand.

The Second Round: After the flop and in each subsequent betting round, the first active player to the 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 MidasTouchPoker.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 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 are to be used for deciding the winning hand. A combination of the following may be used -

• Both hole cards and three community cards
• One hole card & four community cards
• All five community cards (playing the board)

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 aggressors’ 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 with 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. Online Poker Rooms follows the standard rules of poker. Should poker hands be absolutely identical in ranking, the poker pot will be split evenly between the two or more winning players. If there is an odd chip remaining from the split, 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 the four rounds of betting, the house based on set rules collects a commission, which is known as the rake in poker terminology.

The game play remains same for both No-Limit and Pot-Limit Texas Hold’em game with a few exceptions to the rules mentioned above: In Limit Texas Hold’em 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 are 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 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.

All poker rules

Omaha 8 or Better (also known as Omaha Hi/lo) is a very popular poker game that is played throughout the world. Usually there are two types of Omaha 8 or Better games played:

• Limit Omaha 8 or Better (there is a specific bet limit for each game and on each round of betting) and
• Pot Limit Omaha 8 or Better (A player can bet what is in the pot)

The Game: Omaha 8 or Better 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 MidasTouchPoker.com system generates a fresh deck of cards internally. On midastouchpoker.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 a 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

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 all Online Poker Rooms 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 Omaha 8 or Better 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, tbe 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 to 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.
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.

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.

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 aggressors’ hand is only turned over first if he was the last to initiate action on the river.

As this is a multi player game, the players are expected to play within a set time frame, the actions during their turn. On bannerpoker.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 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 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 aggressors’ hand is only turned over first if he was the last to initiate action on the river.

There is no qualifying on the “High” side – the best high hand automatically wins half the pot and could win the whole pot. To win the “Low” side of the pot, however, you must qualify (which is why the game is named Omaha “8 or Better”).

To qualify for a “Low”: It takes a five-card hand with different numerical values from Ace through eight (with the Ace being the lowest) to qualify for the “Low” half of the pot. The best “Low” hand is A, 2, 3, 4, 5 (also known as the “wheel” or “bicycle”). The winning “Low” hand goes to the player with the lowest high card. For example, a player with a 2,4,5,6,7 would have a better “Low” hand than someone with an A,2,4,6,8. If two or more players have the same high card, the player with the second lowest card (or third, fourth, or fifth if necessary) in their hand wins the low side of the pot.

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

Ties: In case two or more players “tie” for one side of the pot, they will split that half into equally divided portions. If there is an odd chip(s), it will go to the person(s) closest to the left of the “button”. (One player winning the “High” side and two players who ties for the “Low” side is not uncommon in Omaha 8 or Better.)

Some things to Remember

• Straights and Flushes do NOT count against you when qualifying for “Low”.
• You are permitted to use different cards in your hand for the “High” side and for the “Low” side or the same cards for both the “High” and “Low” sides. In a split pot, any leftover odd chip goes to the “High” side of the 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. All Online Poker Rooms follow 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 game play remains same for both Limit and Pot-Limit Omaha 8 or Better game with a few exceptions to the rules mentioned above: 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.

All poker rules

Omaha High poker (also known as Omaha High) is very popular poker game that is played throughout the world.

There are two types of Omaha High games:

• 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). Click here to learn more)

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 the hand, the online poker rooms systems generates a fresh deck of cards internally. On midastouchpoker.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 a card of the deck in a particular 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, and 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 Online Poker Rooms the small blind is rounded down to the nearest dollar. For example – at $5/$10 Omaha High 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 Omaha High 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 High, 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.

EIn 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 to 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. The player from then on would not be considered as part of the game. He/she would not have any rights over 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 midastouchpoker.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 aggressors’ 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 ranks 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.midastouchpoker.com follow 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 Online Poker Rooms 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:

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)
• 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.

All poker rules

Seven Card Stud is a popular, well-known form of poker. It is played with up to eight players at the table.

The Game: Before the start of the game, the midastouchpoker.com system generates a fresh deck of cards internally for the first hand. On online poker rooms, 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 before the hand.

How does it work? The system generates a random set of numbers, which are used to place each card in a particular, random, position in the deck. 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 are generated before the shuffle.

The First round: A fresh table starts off with all the players posting an “ante” (putting a predetermined amount in the pot before the cards are dealt). The ante is usually based on the size of the game. For e.g. the ante amount for a 1/2 table might be 25 cents while for a 3/6 table, it would be 50 cents. In Seven-card stud poker, players receive seven cards, three “down” cards and four “up” cards.

After the antes have been placed each player is dealt three cards (two “down” cards and one “up” card). The “up” card is also known as the “door card” or “Third Street”. The person with the lowest “up” card must initiate the action with a “Bring-In” bet. (If two or more players have the same lowest card, the person who brings it in is determined by suit order progressing from clubs, diamonds, hearts, and spades.)
Each player is allowed one bet and three raises in each betting round. To continue to play, players must take an action from what is displayed to them on each “street” or betting round (unless they are all-in).

The Second Round: After the first round of betting another card is dealt face-up to each player that still remains in the pot (those who didn’t fold on “third street”). This is “Fourth Street” (the second round of betting). From “Fourth Street” on, the highest hand showing begins the action by checking or betting. If a pair is showing on “Fourth Street”, the player has the option to make a single or double bet. If a player makes a single/double bet, the other players may call, raise the single bet, raise the double bet or fold. In case of a double bet, only an equal amount can be raised (to the extent of the double bet).

The Third Round: Upon completion of the betting on “fourth street”, another card is dealt face-up to those who remain in the pot. This is called “Fifth Street” (in this, the third round of betting, the maximum bet is double what was available in the first two rounds and it continues at this amount for the remaining betting rounds). The highest hand showing again starts the action by checking or betting.

The Fourth Round: Upon the completion of betting on “fifth street”, another card is dealt face-up. This is “Sixth Street” (fourth betting round).

The Fifth Round: The final card is dealt down. The last card is also known as the “River Card” or “Seventh Street” (final round of betting).

Some standard rules: A maximum of four bets, which includes one bet and three raises, are allowed for each betting round per player. To continue to be in on the stakes of a game, players must take an action from a number of choices displayed to them on each “street” or betting round (unless they are all-in). 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 removes the player from the action, giving him/her no rights over any pots left on the table.

Poker is typically played “table stakes”, meaning that only the chips in play at the beginning of each hand may be used throughout the hand. This means that the 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 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 already 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 side pot is then given to the next winning combination.

As this is a multi player game, the players are expected to play each hand within a set time frame. On midastouchpoker.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 whether or not a player has been disconnected. This means that if a player gets disconnected and then reconnects back with some time remaining in his turn, then he is given an additional 20 seconds to play his turn. But 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).

Upon completion of the final round of betting, the best hand wins the pot. (The pot may also be won by someone who bets without being called at any time during the hand.). Your “hand” is determined by using the best five of seven cards. A combination of the following may be used:

• Five cards from the seven dealt to you.
• One board (community) card and four of the cards dealt to you.

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 aggressors’ hand is only turned over first if he was the last to initiate action on the river.

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. All Online Poker Rooms follow 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.

All poker rules