Now that
you know what it takes to win, we can clue you in on how the game
itself is played. Unlike bridge, poker is almost always played for
a lofty goal: cash. Before the game begins, the players should collectively
decide on a betting limit. A betting limit keeps the game friendly,
and prevents people from gambling mortgages, cars, or spouses away.
Now
on to the action! Here are the basic rules, step by step:
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First, each player places an ante or "token bet"
into the pot before the cards are even dealt. The ante can be
anything from a nickel (if you're a poor college student) to thousands
of dollars (if you're a Vegas high roller). You need an ante because
it guarantees that someone will always win something on each hand.
You also need an ante because without one, your uncle would be
lonely. We'll wait . . .
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Once everyone has coughed up his or her ante, the dealer deals
the cards face down around the table, starting at the player to
his left and continuing clockwise. The dealer (if he's playing)
always deals to himself last. The dealer deals everyone their
first card, then goes back around the circle to deal the second,
and so on. As soon as everyone has five cards, the remainder of
the deck is placed in the middle of the table, and play begins.
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Each player looks at his or her cards, and then the first player
places a bet. While there are several ways of deciding who bets
first, poker novices are best off letting the player directly
to the left of the dealer make the first bet. Then on the next
hand, the person to his left will bet first, and so on around
the table for each new hand.
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Players have several options as far as the first round of betting
goes. If no one has made a bet yet, you have two choices:
Open:
If no betting has begun when your turn comes, you may "open"
the pot (an attractive option for you Grateful Dead fans out
there). This simply means that you make the first bet (any amount
up to the betting limit).
Check: The opportunity to
"check" only occurs if no one has yet opened the betting
when it comes time for you to decide what to do. When a player
checks, it means that he or she doesn't want to open the betting,
but doesn't want to quit either. It basically means "I'm
not going to open the betting, but I'll stick around and see
what happens."
Now
let's say that someone opens the betting (at some point, it will
occur). You now have three choices:
See:
When you "see" another player, it means that you match
their bet. So if someone bets $1 and you want to stay in the
game, you have to "see" their $1 by putting $1 of
your own into the pot.
Raise: When you "raise," it requires
you to first "see" the previous bet, and then increase
the bet. For example, if the previous person bet a nickel and
you want to bet more than that, you would say "I see (match)
your nickel, and raise you (increase the bet) another nickel."
Fold: When someone else opens, you can always
jump ship and cut your losses. In other words, you "fold."
The act of folding is to "give up," place your cards
face down on the table, lose whatever you've bet so far, and
grab a beer. In other words, you give up early and lose your
dough. This option is used when you think your hand is too weak
to compete.
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At this point, all the players who haven't folded are allowed
to get rid of the cards they don't want and take some new cards.
A player is permitted to get rid of up to 3 unwanted cards and
receive up to 3 new ones from the deck (as long as the player
always has 5 cards total). No one sees what anyone else discarded
(threw away) or drew (got as a new card). It's all done
face down.
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After every player draws 0 to 3 new cards, the betting begins
again. You have the option of opening or checking,
and once someone opens, you can see, raise, or fold.
The game ends when there are no more raises (everyone saw everyone
else's bet), or everybody folds (except for the winner, of course).
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Now it's time for everyone to turn their cards over and see how
they fared. The player with the highest hand wins the pot. Some
people in this position have been known to laugh maniacally as
they scoop up everyone else's dough. If you do that, you're friends
will hate you. Thus, we highly recommend it. They'll get over
it.
The only
way to stay in the game is to not fold. If you have a bad hand and
want out quick, then you'd seriously consider folding. If you have
what you think could be a good hand (if you could take a few new cards
and get good ones), then you would seriously consider staying in.
If you have an outstanding hand, then you'll definitely want to stay
in. BUT you don't want everyone to know you have a great hand, or
else they'll all fold, letting you win the tiny ante pot. The trick
is to make everyone else bet a lot, and win even more money. It's
all about being a good liar and a good
actor.
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