Poker Rules

We list poker rules for several different variations of poker. Click on the links below to go to the respective poker rules section. Click an arrow to return to the poker rules links.

Basic Poker Rules (5 card Draw Poker)
Texas Hold'em Poker Rules
Omaha Poker Rules
Omaha Hi/Lo Poker Rules
7-Card Stud Poker Rules
5-Card Stud Poker Rules

Basic Poker Rules (5 card Draw Poker)

The Basic Rules of Poker. Most poker games use 52 cards. The card ranking is as follows Ace, King, Queen, Jack, 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2 being the lowest, Ace (The Ace may also be the lowest card depending on the variations you are using, but it is usually the highest).
There are four suits; spades, hearts, diamonds and clubs. No suit is higher than another. All poker hands contain five cards, the highest hand wins.
The use of Wild Cards depends on the variations, wild cards take on whatever rank or suit you want it to take. A wild card can either be a separate card added like a joker or you may specify a certain card in the standard deck to be wild like deuces, or whatever else.
The number of cards dealt is dependant on what type of game you are playing: 5 card stud, you are dealt five cards and 7 card stud, you are dealt seven. I know this is obvious, but I don't want anyone to get confused. Five card draw is the standard poker game where 5 cards are dealt to each player face down.
Ranking of the hands -it wouldn't be a bad idea to print a copy of this for use during your first poker game, but I would recommend memorizing it to prevent uncontrolled laughter from your opponents.
Betting - In most poker games you start the betting with an ante just to get the cards dealt. The ante is dependent upon who you are playing with, a friendly game would usually have an ante of a penny, nickel, or dime, I personally like a nickel ante when playing with friends. The money is put in the center of the table and is called the pot. At the end of a hand the highest hand, of the players that remain (some may have folded), wins the pot.
You have three choices when the betting gets to you (betting is handled in a clockwise order) and here they are:
Call-betting enough to match what has been bet since the last time you bet. An example would be if you bet 25 cents and somebody than bid 35 cents when to you you would owe 10 cents . If you Call than you would put the amount that you owed into the pot and you would stay in the hand.
Raise-when you raise you first put enough in the pot to match what has already been bet and then you would raise the pot by putting an additional amount in (a friendly game would usually have a limit to how much money you could raise). So lets say the initial bet was 25 cents, you would have to put in 25 cents and than say I'll raise you another 25 cents. Now the other players will either Call, Raise, or fold.
Fold-dropping out of the current hand and losing the possibility of winning the pot. You don't have to put money in and you would only lose the ante, if its on the first turn, or whatever you put in the pot later. As the Kenny Rodgers song says, "you gotta know when to fold them." Sometimes it is just better to get out then waste good money on bad cards.
Betting is always dependent on the people you are playing with and the rules that they prescribe. Games between friends should always have low limits set on the ante, the amount you could raise, and the top amount the pot could grow to. These rules are best because winning a big pot is never worth losing a friend over. So set the ante at a nickel, the raises at a quarter, and don't let the pot go over a few dollars. This is the best way to handle a friendly game.
A quick example of a game of Five Card Draw: Everyone puts in the ante and five cards are dealt face down to each player. Then a round of betting occurs. Then the player can discard up to three cards (4 if your last card is an ace or a wild card, this rule is set by the players) and get (from the deck) as many new cards as they discarded. Then there is another round of betting, and then hands are revealed and the highest hand wins the pot.
There are the basics, use them wisely, learn the strategy of poker, and have fun.

Texas Hold'em Poker Rules

HOLD'EM (or Texas HOLD'EM is a poker game where each player receives two cards as his initial hand. There is a round of betting after these cards have been dealt. Three board cards are turned simultaneously (which is called "the flop") and are community cards available to all players. Another round of betting takes place. The next two board cards are turned one at a time with a round of betting after each one. After the final round of betting has been completed, a player my use any combination of five cards (one in his hand, four from the board, etc.) to determine his best hand. A player my use all of the board cards--this is termed, "playing the board".
HOLD'EM uses a flat disk called a Dealer Button to indicate the player, who in theory, deals the cards for that pot. The Button (player with the Dealer Button)is last to receive cards on the initial deal and has the right of last action on all betting rounds, except the first. One or more blind bets are used to stimulate action and initiate play. Blinds are posted before a player looks at his cards. Blinds count as part of the player's bet, unless the structure of a specific game or situation requires part or all of a particular blind to be "dead". Dead chips are not part of a player's bet and are taken into the center of the pot.
Blinds are posted by players who sit in consecutive clockwise order from the Button.
A player who has less than half a blind, but at least the smallest chip used in that limit game, may still receive a hand. In this case, the next player will take the blind. The player who is short on his blind will not be eligible for the dealer position (the Button).
Half a blind or more constitutes a full blind. However, a player must meet the total amount of the blind obligation every round.
RULES FOR TEXAS HOLD'EM POKER
Buy-in for all HOLD'EM games is usually 10 times the minimum bet.
Check and raise is permitted.
A bet and three raises are allowed.
There is no limit on raises with only two players having bet during a betting round.
String bets or raises are not allowed. A player must put in the full amount of the bet at one time or announce his intention to raise.
A player who puts a single chip into the pot that is larger than the bet to him is assumed to have called the bet, unless he announces "raise".
No pot may be awarded until all losing hands have been killed.The winning hand should remain face up until the pot is awarded.
A card placed face up in the deck (boxed card) shall be treated as a "scrap of paper". A Joker that appears in a game that does not use a Joker, is also a "scrap of paper". A card being treated as a scrap of paper is replaced by the next card below it in the deck. If a player is dealt the Joker facedown, it is replaced by the top card of the deck after completion of the round. If a player does not call attention to the joker among his down cards before action on his hand, then he has a fouled hand and forfeits all rights to the pot and all monies involved.
If a player's hole card is exposed due to a dealer error, he may not keep the exposed card. After completing the deal, the dealer will exchange the exposed card with the top card on the deck andplace the exposed card face up on top of the deck. The exposed card will be used as the first burn card after all action before the flop is completed. If two or more cards are exposed on the deal, then it is a misdeal.
If a player is dealt more or less cards than the game he is playing in calls for, and it is discovered before two players act on their hands, then it is a misdeal. If it is discovered after two players have acted, then all monies, antes and blinds are forfeited by that player.
If the flop has too many cards, it will be taken back and reshuffled except the burn card will remain burned. No new burn card will be used.
If cards are flopped by the dealer before all the betting is completed, the entire flop is taken back and reshuffled. The burn card will remain and no additional burn card will be used for this flop.
If the dealer turns up the fourth card on the board before the round of betting is completed, the card is not in play. After the completion of the betting, the next card is burned and the fifth card is put in the fourth card's place. After betting is completed, the dealer will reshuffle the deck, including the card that was taken out of play but not the burn card or discards. The dealer will then, deal the fifth card.
If the fifth card is turned up before betting is complete, it shall be reshuffled in the same manner as the previous rule.
PLAYING THE BOARD: A player may play the board by throwing his hand away only if: (1) the hand has been checked around or (2) there has been a bet and a call, and the best hand is on the board. A verbal declaration is not necessary.
The winning hand must show both cards face up on the table; one card up and the other face down is not a valid hand.
A new player may not sit down in the middle of the blinds. He must wait until the Button passes.
A new player entering any HOLD'EM game has several options. He may: (1) wait for his big blind, (2) wait until the Button passes and then post his big blind, or (3) post the big blindwhen he sits down. If he chooses the second or third option, the blind acts as his opening bet and he may either call by rapping the table or make the prescribed raise in turn.
If a player leaves the table for any reason and the blinds pass his position, he may resume play by posting the total amount of the blinds for the game or wait for the big blind. If he chooses to post the total amount of blinds, the small blind goes to the center of the pot while the big blind is live.
The Dealer Button always moves forward and the blinds are adjusted accordingly.
Only a full bet constitutes a bet. Anything less than a full bet is considered to be action only. Example: In a $5 and $10 game, on the last card, the first player bets $10. The next player goes all-in for $18. The next player may call the initial bet of $10 and $8 action (a total of $18) or may raise the initial bet of $10 to $20.

POT-LIMIT In a Pot-Limit game, there are designated blinds and a designated minimum opening bet. After these bets, any player may bet or raise the amount of money in the pot. In raising the pot, a player must consider the total amount of called bets, including his own call, as part of the pot. Example: The pot has $100. Player A bets $100. Player B calls $100. Player C wishes to make the maximum raise; part of his total bet will be a $100 call. Therefore, in considering his raise, he includes the initial $1000 pot plus a $100 bet and two $100 calls. Since the total pot is now $400, he my raise $400, making the total bet to Player D $500. If the action in pot-limit is two handed, by mutual agreement, either player may bet as much as he likes. The other player has the option of calling the entire bet or merely the size of the pot.

NO-LIMIT In a No Limit game, there are designated blinds and/or antes plus a designated opening bet. Beyond this structure, any player may bet any amount of money he has on the table. In most No-Limit Poker games players may only bet or call the money they have on the table, ("table stakes"), going "all-in". No player can lose a pot because he does not have enough money to call a bet.

Omaha Poker Rules

Similar to both Omaha Hi/Lo Poker and Texas Hold'em, Omaha Poker requires its 2 to 10 Players to create the best five-card combination from a total of nine cards - the strongest combination winning the pot. As the nine cards are made up of four pocket cards and five community cards, the resulting combinations are stronger than those in other Poker games.
1. The Players to the left of the Dealer begin the game by posting blind bets. The Player on the Dealer's left posts a small blind bet, and the Player on the Small Blind's left posts a big blind bet.
Note: The Dealer's position at the table changes after every game. The dealer button (D) shows the Dealer's position at the table.
2. Four pocket cards are dealt to each Player.
3. In the first round, the Player to the Big Blind's left plays first and can either:
Fold
Bet
Raise
Note: In the first round betting is capped at one bet and three raises per Player.
4. In the second round, three community cards are dealt. This is called the Flop. A round of betting follows and Players can either:
Check
Fold
Call
Raise
5. In the third round, a fourth community card is dealt. This is called the Turn. Another round of betting follows.
6. In the fourth round a fifth and final community card is dealt. This is called the River Card. The final round of betting follows. The remaining Players then use two of their pocket cards and three of the community cards to create the best five-card high hand possible. Winning hands must consist of two pocket cards and three community cards.

Omaha Hi/Lo Poker Rules

A variation of Texas Hold'em, Omaha Hi/Lo Poker splits the pot equally between the best high card hand winner and the best low card hand winner. With 2 to 10 Players per hand, Omaha Hi/Lo is unique in that it allows those Players that tie on either a high or low hand to share the winnings, thus quartering the pot.
1. The Players to the left of the Dealer begin the game by posting blind bets. The Player on the Dealer's left posts a small blind bet, and the Player on the Small Blind's left posts a big blind bet.
Note: The Dealer's position at the table changes after every game. The dealer button (D) shows the Dealer's position at the table.
2. Four pocket cards are dealt to each Player.
3. In the first round, the Player to the Big Blind's left plays first and can either:
Fold
Bet
Raise
Also Note: In the first round, betting is capped at one bet and three raises per Player.
4. In the second round, three community cards are dealt. This is called the Flop. A round of betting follows and Players can either:
Check
Fold
Call
Raise
5. In the third round, a fourth community card is dealt. This is called the Turn. Another round of betting follows.
6. In the fourth round a fifth and final community card is dealt. This is called the River Card. The final round of betting follows. The remaining Players then use two of their pocket cards and three of the community cards to create the best five-card low and five-card high hand possible. The two Players with the best high and low hands split the pot.
Important:Winning hands must consist of two pocket cards and three community cards. Low hands can only win if all the cards in the hand have a value of 8 or less.
Note:
It is not always possible to create both a low hand and a high hand. Sometimes you can only play for either the high hand or the low hand.
It is possible to win the entire pot by having both the highest and lowest hands.
If you and another Player tie on a hand, you both win a quarter of the pot. This is known as the pot being quartered.
Example:
Player A wins the high hand and Players B and C tie for the low hand. The pot is $100. Player A receives $50 and Players B and C receive $25 each.

7-Card Stud Poker Rules

Generally, players will post their "antes" prior to being dealt two (2) down cards and one (1) up card each, which is followed by the initial round of betting which is started with a "force bet".
The initial betting round is followed by three (3) additional up cards being dealt one (1) at a time, with a betting round following each one. A final down card is then dealt followed by the last betting round. After the initial betting round, action is started by the player whose up cards form the highest ranking hand. If there is a tie in determining the highest ranking hand, the player with the tied hand sitting closest to the left of the Dealer, must start the action for that betting round.
On the first betting round of a "structured limit" game, any player, including the player required to make the force bet, may bet either the force amount or the lower structured amount for that betting round. Once the structured bet has been made, all calls and/or raises must be made by the structured bet amount.
In a structured game, if there is an open pair on the fourth card, any active player has the option of making a bet or raise at the higher limit.
On the first betting round of a "spread limit" game, any player, including the player required to make the force bet, may bet any amount within the limits at any time. However all raises must be equal to or greater than the previous bet or raise, without exceeding the maximum dollar limit for that game.

7-Card Stud High-lowpoker rules:
A variation of 7-Card Stud where both the "High" (best) hand splits the pot with the "Low" (worst) hand. A player can win both the high and low hands, thereby winning the entire pot. Players do not "declare" whether they are playing for high, low or both. The winners are determined by reading the value of hands in accordance with basic 7-Card Stud for high and in accordance with "Razz" for low. Players may use a different combination of cards to make their best high hand and best low hand.
Because pairs have no value for a low hand, the bet on the fourth card is always the lower amount in a structured game.

7-Card High-Low, 8 or Better poker rules:
This game is played in the identical manner as 7-Card Stud High-Low, however, there is a "Low" hand "qualifier" of "8 or Better" in place. In order to have a valid low hand, and thus qualify for the low portion of the pot, the best five (5) card low hand must contain five (5) unpaired cards less than nine (9). If there is no qualifying low hand, the high hand will then win the entire pot.

Razz poker rules (7-Card Stud Low):
A variation of 7-Card Stud where the "Low" (worst) hand wins the pot. Aces play as low only, thus kings are the highest ranking card. Straights and flushes do not count against the value of the hand. Therefore, the best possible hand is 5-4-3-2-A (referred to as a "bicycle" or a "wheel").
In determining the initial force action, the player with the highest ranking card (by suit if necessary) must start the action. On all subsequent betting rounds, action starts with the player whose up cards form the lowest ranking hand.
The bet on the fourth card is always the lower amount of the structured betting limits.

5 Card Poker Rules

In 5 Card Stud each player antes, and then a single card is dealt, face-down. This is the hole card. Then a second card is dealt, face Up. Now a round of betting begins. Another card is dealt, followed by a round of betting. This continues until each player has a five card hand. The showdown occurs and the best hand wins.

5 Card Stud Poker Variations:

Mexican Rollover:
In this game the first two cards are dealt face down. Each player has the option of exposing the card of their choice. A round of betting takes place. A new card is dealt to each player. The player then chooses to expose the new card, or a card already in their hand. Once everyone has made their decision a round of betting takes place.
Play continues like this until the showdown.

Chicago:
In a Chicago style showdown, the player with the highest spade in the hole wins half the pot. Thus an Ace of Spades in the hole is a sure winner.

No Peek:
A game in which it is impossible to bluff. Each player gets five cards, face down. Players are not permitted to look at their cards. The first player exposes a card, and then bets or checks. The next player then turns up cards from his hand until he shows a hand that beats the previous players. Another round of betting takes place.
If a player turns up all the cards in their hand without becoming the highest hand at the table, they are automatically out. The hand ends with the best exposed hand taking the pot.

Last Card Down:
In this version of the game there are two hole cards. Depending upon the wishes of the players the second hole card may be dealt last, or the first two cards may be dealt face down, followed by the first round of betting.

Lowball Stud:
The 5 Card Stud game where the lowest hand wins. Betting proceeds with the player having the worst exposed cards betting first.

Substitution:
This game is played with a split pot, half going to the high hand, and half to the low hand. Also, once the final round of betting takes place, players may make up to 3 "substitutions".
Players pay for the privelege of substituting a new card for an old one in their hand. Usually the charge is one bet unit on the first card, two bet units and the second, and three ties the table minimum bet unit on the third. Hole cards are replaced with a face down card. Exposed cards are replaced with face up cards.

Pig Stud
Each player is dealt three hole cards and two up cards. Once the fourth round of betting is finished, play turns into a draw poker game. Each player takes up their cards, and recieves a chance to draw new cards. The final round of betting takes place, followed by the showdown.
English Stud
This game also combines elements of Stud and Draw poker. Players recieve two holes cards, and three cards face up. After the third round of betting, players may draw new cards.
Down cards are replaced with down cards. Exposed cards are replaced with exposed cards.

Murder:
This is actually a 2 Card Poker game. Each player is dealt one card face down, followed by a round of betting. A second card is dealt face up, followed by a round of betting. Next, players can draw as many as three cards, with fees similar to those in the Sustitution game.
The game is usually played hi/low. Straights and flushes do not count. Aces are always high. A pair of sevens automatically wins both the high and low pot.

Three Card Stud:
Players ante, and are dealt one card face down. A round of betting takes place, followed by the next card being dealt face up. Another round of betting, and a final card is dealt, face up. Then the showdown.
Hands are ranked for this game as follows:
- Straight Flush
- Three of a Kind
- Flush
- Straight
- Pairs
- High Card

Push:
Often played hi/low, this game starts with every player being dealt a hole card, and a second card face up. Starting to the left of the dealer, the player may either keep his up card, or pass it to the player on his left. He then gets a new up card from the dealer and must keep it.
The right to "pass" then proceeds around the table, until everyone has had their turn. Play proceeds like this until everyone has five cards. Players are then allowed to discard and draw one card, for the usual fee of three times the minimum bet.

Big Squeeze:
Actually, this is a game of Six card stud. The last card is dealt face down. After the sixth card is dealt and the betting round that follows ends, players may discard and draw one more card. Now the final betting round takes place, followed by the showdown.