Online Poker Rules
7 Card stud
7 Card Stud poker is the game for professional poker players. Stud demands skill and it takes a lot of play to develop the winner's edge. Top players are few but they have one thing in common with the rookies: every player of the game is still learning, even the poker masters.
Stud games are defined by their betting limits. The low stakes online poker games are usually $2-$4 while the higher games are typically $10-$20. The game's betting limits tell the 7 Card Stud player pretty much everything they need to know about the nature of the game, the expectations of the players, and the size of the bankroll you should have before you sit in.
The minimum Stud Buy-In is typically 10 times the low limit, or $20 for a $2-$4 game. But playing with the minimum is not recommended (see strategy). Anything below the $10-$20 level is generally considered a beginner's game. The skill and strategy levels required in the higher limit poker games are substantial and such games generally do not provide a friendly environment for a beginner.
The Ante
Ante in 7 Card Stud poker is mandatory and changes depending on the betting limits. The low limit games usually require a 10% Ante, so a $2-$4 game will have a $0.20 Ante. The high limit games get up to 25% on the Ante: e.g. $25 on a $100-$200 game. The percentages may vary and 10% is a minimum.
The dealer deals clockwise starting on their immediate left. They deal one card at a time around the table until each player has two pocket cards (face down) and a single up (the door card).
At this point the dealer indicates which player will open the betting, determined by the lowest door card. If there's a tie for low door, suit resolves it: spades over hearts, followed by diamonds, and finally clubs is the lowest.
Betting
Once the initial cards have been dealt, the poker game begins. At this point we've got three cards on the table per player and that's called Third Street.
The player holding the lowest door card must bring it in by opening with a bet equal to twice the ante ($2 in our example game). If the low door player doesn't make this bet, they're forced to Fold and the opener passes to the player on their left.
The next player clockwise from the opener can Call by matching the opener,Raise by betting the low betting limit ($10) or Fold. Throughout third street all Bets and Raises are fixed at the low betting limit ($10).
Fourth Street
The dealer gives each poker player another open (up) card. Unlike third street, the opener in the fourth and remaining streets is the high hand as determined by the open cards. They may Check (Pass) or Bet. It they Bet it's at the low limit ($10) and that fixes all raises in this round to the same.
If the high hand is an open pair, the opener can Bet at the upper limit ($20) and this fixes all Raises in the round to the same.
Fifth, Sixth and Seventh Street
Again, the card is dealt up and high hand opens. All Bets and Raises are at the upper limit ($20). The last card, called the river, is another pocket card (face down). All bets and raises are at the high limit ($20).
Showdown
After the Bets and Raises have been resolved, the remaining poker players enter the Showdown. The opener reveals his pocket cards. If a player wishes to compete with this hand they too reveal their pocket cards, or they can yield and muck out (Fold).
At the casino it's the dealer's responsibility to call the winner, as determined by the best 5 card poker hand under normal Poker rules. In online poker games, the software will designate the winner and the pot will be passed to them. It is any player's right to request to see any final hand that has been mucked, though this is primarily intended for casino play.
Texas Holdem
Texas Hold Em is the favorite of professional Poker players. It's an aggressive, flashy, exciting and unpredictable game that gets the dollars on the table and changing hands like no other form of Poker. Some of the old hard-nut players prefer 7 Card Stud poker but everyone else is in love with Hold Em. It is this poker game that players at the World Series of Poker play to determine who takes home millions and a champion's custom 14-karat gold bracelet.
In Texas Hold Em players form a five-card poker hand from seven available cards. Only two cards are actually held by the player as pocket cards. The other five are open, dealt to the middle of the table and shared by all players. This means there are less cards in play, which is why Hold Em typically seats nine or more players at the table.
The Seats
The dealer is marked by a disk called the button. For each hand the button rotates to the left. Poker players are identified by their seat position. The dealer is seat one, the player to the dealer's left is seat two and so on, clockwise around the table to the poker player on the dealer's right.
Casino Texas HoldEm has a fixed dealer and the button rotates around the table simply to mark the rotation of theoretical dealer. Betting position significantly affects a player's opportunities so the button's position in not simply symbolic.
Beginner Texas Hold Em games typically starts with $1-$2 or $2-$4, but the highest can be as much as $500-$1000 or even more. Instead of a small ante in 7-Stud, Hold'Em poker uses two forced bets, the blinds, to get Bets on the table right from the beginning of the game.
The Open
The first poker player to the dealer's left - seat two - is the small blind and must kick in half the lower limit, $5 in a $10-$20 game. Seat three is the big blind and must kick in the full value of the lower limit or $10 in a $10-$20 game.
The deal rotates clockwise around the table beginning with the poker player to the big blind's left. Each player is dealt their first card in turn, then their second, and so on.
Since the blinds opened with their forced bets, seat four, the poker player to the big blind's right, bets first. They Call by matching the big blind ($10, the lower limit) and may also Raise by kicking in the big limit, $20 in the $10-$20 example game. In this round Checking is not permitted. The blinds in Texas Hold Em are live in that they can Call, Raise or Fold.
The Flop
Once the first betting round has completed, the dealer lays out the first three community cards in the center of the poker table. This is called the flop. This betting round begins with the blinds, or the first remaining seat on the dealer's left. Checking is permitted now and for the rest of the hand. Bets are placed at the lower limit ($10).
A fourth community card it dealt onto the poker table. Betting begins with the blinds, as before. Now, and for the rest of this game, Bets and Raises are at the high limit ($20). The turn becomes the first expensive street.
The fifth and final community card is dealt. This is also an expensive street: Bets and Raises are all at the high limit ($20).
The Showdown
As in 7 Card Stud poker, the best 5 card hand wins. Players may form their final hands from any combination of the table cards and their own pocket cards, even ignoring the pocket cards and using only the table cards.
Omaha Hi
Omaha Hi is a version of Texas Holdem where all the poker players are dealt four hole cards instead of two. Two and only two of the hole cards can be used in making the final hand. Omaha Hi is also known as Omaha Holdem or simply Omaha. It's an aggressive, flashy, exciting and unpredictable poker game that gets the dollars on the table and changing hands like no other form of Poker.
The four hole cards make Omaha a nine-card game and having more cards to choose from means players will typically finish with stronger hands. Poker players being the people that they often are, the possibility of higher hands typically means that players stay in longer and the pots will grow accordingly.
In practice, Holdem players will find that the focus in Omaha Hi tends more towards playing the cards than playing the other players. The rules of Omaha Holdem poker are similar to the Texas Holdem poker rules. However, the player is dealt four hole cards and makes their final hand from two of the four hole cards and three of the five community cards.
The Seats
The dealer is marked by a disk called the button. For each hand the button rotates to the left. Poker players are identified by their seat position. The dealer is seat one, the poker player to the dealer's left is seat two and so on, clockwise around the table to the poker player on the dealer's right.
Casino Omaha has a fixed dealer and the button rotates around the table simply to mark the rotation of theoretical dealer. Betting position significantly affects a player's opportunities so the button's position in not simply symbolic.
Beginner Omaha poker games typically starts with $1-$2 or $2-$4, but the highest can be as much as $500-$1000 or even more. Instead of a small ante in 7-Stud, Omaha holdem uses two forced bets, the blinds, to get Bets on the table right from the beginning of the game.
The Open
The first poker player to the dealer's left - seat two - is the small blind and must kick in half the lower limit, $5 in a $10-$20 game. Seat three is the big blind and must kick in the full value of the lower limit or $10 in a $10-$20 game.
The deal rotates clockwise around the table beginning with the poker player to the big blind's left. Each player is dealt their first card in turn, then their second, and so on.
Since the blinds opened with their forced bets, seat four, the poker player to the big blind's right, bets first. They Call by matching the big blind ($10, the lower limit) and may also Raise by kicking in the big limit, $20 in the $10-$20 example game. In this round Checking is not permitted. The blinds in Omaha holdem poker are live in that they can Call, Raise or Fold.
The Flop
Once the first betting round has completed, the dealer lays out the first three community cards in the center of the table. This is called the flop. This betting round begins with the blinds, or the first remaining seat on the dealer's left. Checking is permitted now and for the rest of the hand. Bets are placed at the lower limit ($10).
A fourth community card it dealt onto the table. Betting begins with the blinds, as before. Now, and for the rest of this game, Bets and Raises are at the high limit ($20). The turn becomes the first expensive street.
The fifth and final community card is dealt. This is also an expensive street: Bets and Raises are all at the high limit ($20).
The Showdown
As in 7 Card Stud, the best 5 card hand wins. Players must form their final hands from any three of the table cards and two of their four pocket cards.
