Poker basic rules

By Jose Miguel Carrión Llop 03/08/2016

Poker is a French card game in which several cards are dealt to each player (the number of cards depends on the game type) Keeping all them hidden or part of them, each player must make the best possible combination of cards and bet according to the hand. There is an initial bid that players are increasing as the game progresses. Finally, the cards are shown in the "showdown" and this one who has the best hand wins all money bet.

Poker types

There is a big variety of poker games, with very different rules and ways to play. Let's review the main types of game:

Texas Hold'em

In this game, also known just as Holdem, 2 hole cards are dealt to each player and 5 cards are discovered ("board") in the center of the table. Each player combines the best hand using the available cards on the table.

Omaha Hold'em

This game is very similar to Holdem but instead of 2 cards each player receives 4. Having more cards is easier to make better hands. However, it is obligatory that each player plays with at least 2 of the 4 cards he has received in the beginning.

5-draw

In this game 5 cards are distributed covertly per player and a round of betting is done. After these bets, you can discard a maximum of 4 of initial 5 cards and make changes. As always, it wins the best combination of cards. This is the classic type of all poker forms.

Newest poker types at online casinos

The gambling industry has evolved and had some significant changes. The LeafletCasino experts researched the leading casino websites and found out that it’s convenient and easy to play poker online, enjoying all standard types of this game. Moreover, the new poker types emerged and are available to learn, practice and hit wins.

The Pai Gow Poker, also called Double-Hand Poker, is a great example of how different trends may blend together. It’s a mixture of Chinese dominoes and ordinary poker. Some say it was invented in 1985 but was underestimated and found its second life with the rise of online casino websites. Now the Pai Gow Poker is available at Galaxyno.

Another great title is Joker Poker, accessible at Leo Vegas, Galaxyno and other top-tier online poker websites. The main idea is to be successful enough to pick the right cards and to be smart enough to exchange the cards which prevent you from having a winning hand.

Poker hands

We will list here the type of hands that you can choose according to the combination of cards. We follow an order from highest to lowest value options:

Now you only have to choose the room where you would like create your account to start playing. Here you have the list of poker rooms we have online in our website. In the other hand, remember that if you want only to start training, in the next schedule you will find and very cheap tournament to start playing with no high costs. Good luck!!

Summary of the poker hands:

Basic Poker Rules_hands

Find more information about Poker Rules in Gamerules.org.

Royal flush

An ace-high straight flush such as A♦ K♦ Q♦ J♦ 10♦ is known as a royal flush, and is the highest-ranking standard poker hand.

Straight flush

A straight flush is a hand that contains five cards in sequence, all of the same suit. Two such hands are compared by their card that is ranked highest.

Four of a kind

Also known as quads, is a poker hand that contains all four cards of one rank and any other (unmatched) card.

Full house

Also known as a full boat, is a hand that contains three matching cards of one rank and two matching cards of another rank. Between two full houses, the one with the higher-ranking three cards in their hand wins.

Flush

This is a poker hand where all five cards are of the same suit, but not in sequence. Two flushes are compared as if they were high card hands; the highest-ranking card of each is compared to determine the winner. If both hands have the same highest card, then the second highest-ranking card is compared, and so on until a difference is found. If the two flushes contain the same five ranks of cards, they are tied and split the pot, that is, suits are not used to rank them.

Straight

It's a poker hand that contains five cards of sequential rank in at least two different suits. Two straights are ranked by comparing the highest card of each. Two straights with the same high card are of equal value, suits are not used to separate them.

Three of a kind

Also called trips or a set, is a poker hand that contains three cards of the same rank, plus two cards which are not of this rank nor the same as each other.

Two pair

A poker hand that contains two cards of the same rank, plus two cards of another rank (that match each other but not the first pair), plus any card not of either rank, is called two pair. To rank two hands both containing two pair, the higher-ranking pair of each is first compared, and the higher pair wins

One pair

A poker hand that contains two cards of one rank, plus three cards which are not of this rank nor the same as each other. Higher-ranking pairs defeat lower-ranking pairs; if two hands have the same pair, the non-paired cards are compared in descending order to determine the winner.

High card

A high-card or no-pair hand is a poker hand made of any five cards not meeting any of the above requirements. Essentially, no hand is made, and the only thing of any potential meaning in the hand is the highest card. Nevertheless, they sometimes win a pot if the other players fold or even at a showdown. Two high-card hands are ranked by comparing the highest-ranking card. If those are equal, then the next highest-ranking card from each hand is compared, and so on until a difference is found.