Robert's Rules Of Poker; is authored by Robert Ciaffone,
better known in the poker world as Bob Ciaffone, a leading authority on cardroom
rules. He is the person who has selected which rules to use, formatted, organized,
and worded the text. Nearly all these rules are substantively in common use
for poker, but many improved ideas for wording and organization are employed
throughout this work. A lot of the rules are similar to those used in the rulebook
of cardrooms where he has acted as a rules consultant and rules drafter. Ciaffone
authored the rulebook for the Poker Players Association (founded in 1984, now
defunct), the first comprehensive set of poker rules for the general public.
He has done extensive work on rules for the Las Vegas Hilton, The Mirage, and
Hollywood Park Casino, and assisted many other cardrooms. Ciaffone is a regular
columnist for Card Player magazine, and can be reached through that publication.
This rulebook will be periodically revised, so suggestions are welcome.
Management will attempt to maintain a pleasant environment for all our customers
and employees, but is not responsible for the conduct of any player. We have
established a code of conduct, and may deny the use of our cardroom to anyone
who violates it. The following is not permitted:
Collusion with another player or any other form of cheating.
Verbally or physically threatening any patron or employee.
Using profanity or obscene language.
Creating a disturbance by arguing, shouting, or making excessive noise.
Throwing, tearing, bending, or crumpling cards.
Destroying or defacing property.
Using an illegal substance.
Carrying a weapon.
1.2 Poker Etiquette
The following actions are improper, and grounds for warning, suspending, or
barring a violator:
Deliberately acting out of turn.
Deliberately splashing chips into the pot.
Agreeing to check a hand out when a third player is all-in.
Reading a hand for another player at the showdown before it has been placed
faceup on the table.
Telling anyone to turn a hand faceup at the showdown.
Revealing the contents of a live hand in a multihanded pot before the betting
is complete.
Needlessly stalling the action of a game.
Deliberately discarding hands away from the muck. Cards should be released
in a low line of flight, at a moderate rate of speed (not at the dealer's
hands or chip-rack).
Stacking chips in a manner that interferes with dealing or viewing cards.
Making statements or taking action that could unfairly influence the course
of play, whether or not the offender is involved in the pot.
1.3 Tobacco Use
(These rules are for an establishment that does not completely bar smoking.)
The seat on each side of the dealer is a nonsmoking seat.
Cigar or pipe smoking is not allowed in the cardroom.
Smoking by a guest or spectator is not allowed.
2.0 HOUSE POLICIES
2.1 Decision Making
Management reserves the right to make decisions in the spirit of fairness,
even if a strict interpretation of the rules may indicate a different ruling.
Decisions of the shift supervisor are final.
The proper time to draw attention to an error or irregularity is when it
occurs or is first noticed. Any delay may affect the ruling.
If an incorrect rule interpretation or decision by an employee is made
in good faith, the establishment has no liability.
A ruling may be made regarding a pot if it has been requested before the
next deal starts (or before the game either ends or changes to another table).
Otherwise, the result of a deal must stand. The first riffle of the shuffle
marks the start for a deal.
If a pot has been incorrectly awarded and mingled with chips that were
not in the pot, but the time limit for a ruling request given in the previous
rule has been complied with, management may determine how much was in the
pot by reconstructing the betting, and then transfer that amount to the proper
player.
To keep the action moving, it is possible that a game may be asked to continue
even though a decision is delayed for a short period. The delay could be needed
to check the overhead camera tape, get the shift supervisor to give the ruling,
or some other good reason. In such circumstances, a pot or portion thereof
may be impounded by the house while the decision is pending.
The same action may have a different meaning, depending on who does it,
so the possible intent of an offender will be taken into consideration. Some
factors here are the person’s amount of poker experience and past record.
2.2 Procedures
Management will decide when to start or close any game.
Collections (seat rental fees) are paid in advance. In all time-collection
games, the dealer is required to pick up the collection from each player before
dealing the first hand. A player not wishing to pay collection may play one
courtesy hand in stud, and may play until the blind in button games, provided
no one is waiting for the game. If there is more than one person on the list
for that game when the collection becomes due, everyone must pay collection.
A new player is not required to pay if there is either no list or only one
person waiting.
Cash is not permitted on the table. All cash should be changed into chips
in order to play. If a player appears unaware of this rule and attempts to
play unnoticed cash that was on the table during a pot, the dealer may let
the cash play if no one in the pot objects, then have all the cash changed
into chips after the hand. Any chips from another establishment are not permitted
on the table, do not play in the game, and if discovered will be treated similarly
to unnoticed cash. See Section 16 – “Explanations,”
discussion #5, for more information on this rule.
The establishment is not responsible for any shortage or removal of chips
left on the table during a player’s absence, even though we will try
to protect everyone as best we can.
All games are table stakes (except “playing behind” as given
in the next rule). All chips and money must be kept in plain view. Chips may
be removed for security purposes when leaving the table, but must be fully
restored upon return. If you return to the same game within one hour of cashing
out, your buy-in must be equal to the amount removed when leaving that game.
"Playing behind" is allowed only for the amount of purchased chips
while awaiting their arrival. The amount in play must be announced to the
table, or only the amount of the minimum buy-in plays.
Playing out of a rack is not allowed.
Only one person may play a hand.
No one is allowed to play another player’s chips.
Permission is required before taking a seat in a game.
Playing over without permission from the floorperson is not allowed. A playover
box is required. Permission from the absent player is not necessary.
Pushing bets (“saving” or “potting out”) is not
allowed.
Pushing an ante or posting for another person is not allowed.
Splitting pots will not be allowed in any game. Chopping the big and small
blind by taking them back when all other players have folded is allowed in
button games.
Insurance propositions are not allowed. Dealing twice (or three times) when
all-in is permitted at big-bet poker.
The game's betting limit will not be changed if two or more players object.
Raising the limit is subject to management approval.
Players must keep their cards in full view. This means above table-level
and not past the edge of the table. The cards should not be covered by the
hands in a manner to completely conceal them.
Any player is entitled to a clear view of an opponent’s chips. Higher
denomination chips should be easily visible.
Your chips may be picked up if you are away from the table for more than
30 minutes. Your absence may be extended if you notify a floorperson in advance.
Frequent or continuous absences may cause your chips to be picked up from
the table.
A lock-up in a new game will be picked up after five minutes if someone
is waiting to play. No seat may be locked up for more than ten minutes if
someone is waiting to play.
A new deck must be used for at least a full round (once around the table)
before it may be changed, and a new setup must be used for at least an hour,
unless a deck is defective or damaged, or cards become sticky.
Looking through the discards or deck stub is not allowed.
After a deal ends, dealers are asked to not show what card would have been
dealt.
A player is expected to pay attention to the game and not hold up play.
Activity that interferes with this such as reading at the table is discouraged,
and the player will be asked to cease if a problem is caused.
A non-player may not sit at the table.
In non-tournament games, you may have a guest sit behind you if no one in
the game objects. It is improper for a guest to look at any hand other then
your own.
Speaking a foreign language during a deal is not allowed.
2.3 Seating
You must be present to add your name to a waiting list.
It is the player’s responsibility to be in the playing area and hear
the list being called. A player who intends to leave the playing area should
notify the list-person, and can leave money for a lockup. The lockup amount
is $20.
When there is more than one game of the same stakes and poker form, and
a must-move is not being used, the house will control the seating of new players
to best preserve the viability of existing games. A new player will be sent
to the game most in need of an additional player. A transfer to a similar
game is not allowed if it makes the game being left shorter-handed than the
game being entered.
A player may not hold a seat in more than one game.
The house reserves the right to require that any two players not play in
the same game (husband and wife, relatives, business partners, and so forth).
When a button game starts, active players will draw a card for the button
position. The button will be awarded to the highest card by suit for all high
and high-low games, and to the lowest card by suit for all low games.
In a new game, the player who arrives at the table the earliest gets first
choice of remaining seats. If two players want the same seat and arrive at
the same time, the higher player on the list has preference. A player playing
a pot in another game may have a designated seat locked up until that hand
is finished. Management may reserve a certain seat for a player, as to assist
in ease of reading the board for a person with a vision problem, or some other
good reason.
To avoid a seating dispute, a supervisor may decide to start the game with
one extra player over the normal number participating. If so, a seat will
be removed as soon as someone quits the game.
In order to protect an existing game, a forced move may be invoked when
an additional game of the same type and limit is started. The must-move list
is maintained in the same order as the original waiting list. If a player
refuses to move into the main game, that player will be forced to quit, and
may not play in the must-move game or get on that list for one hour.
You must play in a new game or must-move game to retain your place on the
list, if by your playing there would be three or fewer empty seats.
In all button games, a player going from a must-move game to the main game
may play until due for the big blind. The player must then enter the game
as a new player, and may either post an amount equal to the big blind or wait
for the big blind. In all stud games, a player may play only one more hand
before moving.
A player who is already in the game has precedence over a new player for
any seat when it becomes available. However, no change will occur after a
new player has been seated, or after that player’s buy-in or marker
has been placed on the table, unless that particular seat had been previously
requested. For players already in the game, the one who asks the earliest
has preference for a seat change.
In all button games, a player voluntarily locking up a seat in another game
must move immediately if there is a waiting list of two or more names for
the seat being vacated, except that the player is entitled to play the button
if a blind has already been taken. Otherwise, a player may play up to the
blind before moving. In a stud game, a player changing tables may play only
the present hand if someone is waiting for the seat being vacated, or one
more hand when no one is waiting.
When a game breaks, each player may draw a card to determine the seating
order for a similar game. The floorperson draws a card for an absent player.
If the card entitles the absent player to an immediate seat, the player has
until due for the big blind in a button game to take the seat (two hands in
a stud game), and will be put first up on the list if not back in time.
3.0 GENERAL POKER RULES
3.1 The Buy In
When you enter a game, you must make a full buy-in for that particular
game. A full buy-in at limit poker is at least ten times the maximum bet for
the game being played, unless designated otherwise.
You are allowed to make only one short buy-in for a game. Adding to your
stack is not considered a buy-in, and may be done in any quantity between
hands.
A player who is forced to transfer from a broken game or must-move game
to a game of the same limit may continue to play the same amount of money,
even if it is less than the minimum buy-in. A player switching games voluntarily
must have the proper buy-in size for the new game.
3.2 Misdeals
The following circumstances cause a misdeal, provided attention is called
to the error before two players have acted on their hands. (If two players
have acted in turn, the deal must be played to conclusion, as explained in
rule #2)
(a) The first or second card of the hand has been dealt faceup or exposed
through dealer error.
(b) Two or more cards have been exposed by the dealer.
(c) Two or more boxed cards (improperly faced cards) are found.
(d) Two or more extra cards have been dealt in the starting hands of a
game.
(e) An incorrect number of cards has been dealt to a player, except the
top card may be dealt if it goes to the player in proper sequence.
(f) Any card has been dealt out of the proper sequence (except an exposed
card may be replaced by the burncard).
(g) The button was out of position.
(h) The first card was dealt to the wrong position.
(i) Cards have been dealt to an empty seat or a player not entitled to
a hand.
(j) A player has been dealt out who is entitled to a hand. This player
must be present at the table or have posted a blind or ante.
Action is considered to occur in stud games when two players after the forced
bet have acted on their hands. In button games, action is considered to occur
when two players after the blinds have acted on their hands. Once action occurs,
a misdeal can no longer be declared. The hand will be played to conclusion
and no money will be returned to any player whose hand is fouled.
3.3 Dead Hands
Your hand is declared dead if:
(a) You fold or announce that you are folding when facing a bet or a
raise.
(b) You throw your hand away in a forward motion causing another player
to act behind you (even if not facing a bet).
(c) In stud, when facing a bet, you pick your upcards off the table, turn
your upcards facedown, or mix your upcards and downcards together.
(d) The hand does not contain the proper number of cards for that particular
game (except at stud a hand missing the final card may be ruled live,
and at lowball and draw high a hand with too few cards before the draw
is live). See Section 16 - “Explanations,” discussion
#4, for more information on the stud portion of this rule.
You act on a hand with a joker as a holecard in a game not using a joker.
(A player who acts on a hand without looking at a card assumes the liability
of finding an improper card, as given in Irregularities, rule #8.)
You have the clock on you when facing a bet or raise and exceed the specified
time limit.Cards thrown into the muck may be ruled dead. However, a hand that
is clearly identifiable may be retrieved at management’s discretion
if doing so is in the best interest of the game. We will make an extra effort
to rule a hand retrievable if it was folded as a result of false information
given to the player. Cards thrown into another player’s hand are dead,
whether they are faceup or facedown.
3.4 Irregularities
In button games, if it is discovered that the button was placed incorrectly
on the previous hand, the button and blinds will be corrected for the new
hand in a manner that gives every player one chance for each position on the
round (if possible).
You must protect your own hand at all times. Your cards may be protected
with your hands, a chip, or other object placed on top of them. If you fail
to protect your hand, you will have no redress if it becomes fouled or the
dealer accidentally kills it.
If a card with a different color back appears during a hand, all action
is void and all chips in the pot are returned to the respective bettors. If
a card with a different color back is discovered in the stub, all action stands.
If two cards of the same rank and suit are found, all action is void, and
all chips in the pot are returned to the players who wagered them (subject
to next rule).
A player who knows the deck is defective has an obligation to point this
out. If such a player instead tries to win a pot by taking aggressive action
(trying for a freeroll), the player may lose the right to a refund, and the
chips may be required to stay in the pot for the next deal.
If there is extra money in the pot on a deal as a result of forfeited money
from the previous deal (as per rule #5), or some similar reason, only a player
dealt in on the previous deal is entitled to a hand.
A card discovered faceup in the deck (boxed card) will be treated as a meaningless
scrap of paper. A card being treated as a scrap of paper will be replaced
by the next card below it in the deck, except when the next card has already
been dealt facedown to another player and mixed in with other downcards. In
that case, the card that was faceup in the deck will be replaced after all
other cards are dealt for that round.
A joker that appears in a game where it is not used is treated as a scrap
of paper. Discovery of a joker does not cause a misdeal. If the joker is discovered
before a player acts on his or her hand, it is replaced as in the previous
rule. If the player does not call attention to the joker before acting, then
the player has a dead hand.
If you play a hand without looking at all of your cards, you assume the
liability of having an irregular card or an improper joker.
One or more cards missing from the deck does not invalidate the results
of a hand.
Before the first round of betting, if a dealer deals one additional card,
it is returned to the deck and used as the burncard.
Procedure for an exposed card varies with the poker form, and is given in
the section for each game. A card that is flashed by a dealer is treated as
an exposed card. A card that is flashed by a player will play. To obtain a
ruling on whether a card was exposed and should be replaced, a player should
announce that the card was flashed or exposed before looking at it. A downcard
dealt off the table is an exposed card.
If a card is exposed due to dealer error, a player does not have an option
to take or reject the card. The situation will be governed by the rules for
the particular game being played.
If you drop a card on the floor out of your hand, you must still play that
card.
If the dealer prematurely deals any cards before the betting is complete,
those cards will not play, even if a player who has not acted decides to fold.
3.5 Betting and Raising
Check-raise is permitted in all games, except in certain forms of lowball.
In no-limit and pot-limit games, unlimited raising is allowed.
In limit poker, for a pot involving three or more players who are not all-in,
these limits on raises apply:
(a) A game with three or more betting rounds allows a maximum of a bet
and three raises.
(b) A game with two betting rounds (such as lowball or draw) allows a
maximum of a bet and four raises. See “Section 16 - Explanations,”
discussion #6, for more information on this rule.
Unlimited raising is allowed in heads-up play. This applies any time the
action becomes heads-up before the raising has been capped. Once the raising
is capped on a betting round, it cannot be uncapped by a subsequent fold that
leaves two players heads-up.
In limit play, an all-in wager of less than half a bet does not reopen
the betting for any player who has already acted and is in the pot for all
previous bets. A player facing less than half a bet may fold, call, or complete
the wager. An all-in wager of a half a bet or more is treated as a full bet,
and a player may fold, call, or make a full raise. (An example of a full raise
is on a $20 betting round, raising a $15 all-in bet to $35).
Any wager must be at least the size of the previous bet or raise in that
round, unless a player is going all-in.
The smallest chip that may be wagered in a game is the smallest chip used
in the antes, blinds, rake, or collection. (Certain games may use a special
rule that does not allow chips used only in house revenue to play.) Smaller
chips than this do not play even in quantity, so a player wanting action on
such chips must change them up between deals. If betting is in dollar units
or greater, a fraction of a dollar does not play. A player going all-in must
put all chips that play into the pot.
A verbal statement denotes your action and is binding. If in turn you verbally
declare a fold, check, bet, call, or raise, you are forced to take that action.
Rapping the table with your hand is a pass.
Deliberately acting out of turn will not be tolerated. A player who checks
out of turn may not bet or raise on the next turn to act. An action or verbal
declaration out of turn may be ruled binding if there is no bet, call, or
raise by an intervening player acting after the infraction has been committed.
To retain the right to act, a player must stop the action by calling “time”
(or an equivalent word). Failure to stop the action before three or more players
have acted behind you may cause you to lose the right to act. You cannot forfeit
your right to act if any player in front of you has not acted, only if you
fail to act when it legally becomes your turn. Therefore, if you wait for
someone whose turn comes before you, and three or more players act behind
you, this still does not hinder your right to act.
A player who bets or calls by releasing chips into the pot is bound by that
action. However, if you are unaware that the pot has been raised, you may
withdraw that money and reconsider your action, provided that no one else
has acted after you.
In limit poker, if you make a forward motion with chips and thus cause another
player to act, you may be forced to complete your action.
String raises are not allowed. To protect your right to raise, you should
either declare your intention verbally or place the proper amount of chips
into the pot. Putting a full bet plus a half-bet or more into the pot is considered
to be the same as announcing a raise, and the raise must be completed. (This
does not apply in the use of a single chip of greater value.)
If you put a single chip in the pot that is larger than the bet, but do
not announce a raise, you are assumed to have only called. Example: In a $3-$6
game, when a player bets $6 and the next player puts a $25 chip in the pot
without saying anything, that player has merely called the $6 bet.
All wagers and calls of an improperly low amount must be brought up to proper
size if the error is discovered before the betting round has been completed.
This includes actions such as betting a lower amount than the minimum bring-in
(other than going all-in) and betting the lower limit on an upper limit betting
round. If a wager is supposed to be made in a rounded off amount, is not,
and must be corrected, it shall be changed to the proper amount nearest in
size. No one who has acted may change a call to a raise because the wager
size has been changed.
3.6 The Showdown
A player must show all cards in the hand face-up on the table to win any
part of the pot.
Cards speak (cards read for themselves). The dealer assists in reading hands,
but players are responsible for holding onto their cards until the winner
is declared. Although verbal declarations as to the contents of a hand are
not binding, deliberately miscalling a hand with the intent of causing another
player to discard a winning hand is unethical and may result in forfeiture
of the pot. (For more information on miscalling a hand see “Section
11 - Lowball,” Rule 15 and Rule 16.)
Any player, dealer, or floorperson who sees an incorrect amount of chips
put into the pot, or an error about to be made in awarding a pot, has an ethical
obligation to point out the error. Please help us keep mistakes of this nature
to a minimum.
All losing hands will be killed by the dealer before a pot is awarded.
Any player who has been dealt in may request to see any hand that has been
called, even if the opponent's hand or the winning hand has been mucked. However,
this is a privilege that may be revoked if abused. If a player other than
the pot winner asks to see a hand that has been folded, that hand is dead.
If the winning player asks to see a losing player’s hand, both hands
are live, and the best hand wins.
If you show cards to another player during or after a deal, any player at
the table has the right to see those exposed cards. Cards shown during a deal
to a player not in the pot should only be shown to all players when the deal
is finished.
If everyone checks (or is all-in) on the final betting round, the player
who acted first is the first to show the hand. If there is wagering on the
final betting round, the last player to take aggressive action by a bet or
raise is the first to show the hand. In order to speed up the game, a player
holding a probable winner is encouraged to show the hand without delay. If
there is a side pot, players involved in the side pot should show their hands
before anyone who is all-in for only the main pot.
3.7 Ties
The ranking of suits from highest to lowest is spades, hearts, diamonds,
clubs. Suits never break a tie for winning a pot. Suits are used to break
a tie between cards of the same rank (no redeal or redraw).
Dealing a card to each player is used to determine things like who moves
to another table. If the cards are dealt, the order is clockwise starting
with the first player on the dealer’s left (the button position is irrelevant).
Drawing a card is used to determine things like who gets the button in a new
game, or seating order coming from a broken game.
An odd chip will be broken down to the smallest unit used in the game.
No player may receive more than one odd chip.
If two or more hands tie, an odd chip will be awarded as follows:
(a) In a button game, the first hand clockwise from the button gets
the odd chip.
(b) In a stud game, the odd chip will be given to the highest card by
suit in all high games, and to the lowest card by suit in all low games.
(When making this determination, all cards are used, not just the five
cards that constitute the player's hand.)
(c) In high-low split games, the high hand receives the odd chip in a
split between the high and the low hands. The odd chip between tied high
hands is awarded as in a high game of that poker form, and the odd chip
between tied low hands is awarded as in a low game of that poker form.
(d) All side pots and the main pot will be split as separate pots, not
mixed together.
4.0 BUTTON AND BLIND USE
In button games, a non-playing dealer normally does the actual dealing. A round
disk called the button is used to indicate which player has the dealer position.
The player with the button is last to receive cards on the initial deal and
has the right of last action after the first betting round. The button moves
clockwise after a deal ends to rotate the advantage of last action. One or more
blind bets are usually used to stimulate action and initiate play. Blinds are
posted before the players look at their cards. Blinds are part of a player’s
bet, unless the structure of a game or the situation requires part or all of
a particular blind to be “dead.” Dead chips are not part of a player’s
bet. With two blinds, the small blind is posted by the player immediately clockwise
from the button, and the big blind is posted by the player two positions clockwise
from the button. With more than two blinds, the little blind is normally left
of the button (not on it). Action is initiated on the first betting round by
the first player to the left of the blinds. On all subsequent betting rounds,
the action begins with the first active player to the left of the button.
4.1 Rules for using Blinds
Each round every player must get an opportunity for the button, and meet
the total amount of the blind obligations. Either of the following methods
of button and blind placement may be designated to do this:
(a) Moving button – The button always moves forward to the next player
and the blinds adjust accordingly. There may be more than one big blind.
(b) Dead button – The big blind is posted by the player due for it,
and the small blind and button are positioned accordingly, even if this means
the small blind or the button is placed in front of an empty seat, giving
the same player the privilege of last action on consecutive hands. See
“Section 16 – Explanations,” discussion #1, for more information
on this rule.
A player who posts a blind has the option of raising the pot at the first
turn to act. (This does not apply when a dead blind; for the collection is
used in a game and has been posted).
In heads-up play with two blinds, the small blind is on the button.
A new player entering the game has the following options:
(a) Wait for the big blind.
(b) Post an amount equal to the big blind and immediately be dealt a hand.
(In lowball, a new player must either post an amount double the big blind
or wait for the big blind.)
A new player who elects to let the button go by once without posting is
not treated as a player in the game who has missed a blind, and needs to post
only the big blind when entering the game.
A person playing over is considered a new player, and must post the amount
of the big blind or wait for the big blind.
A new player cannot be dealt in between the big blind and the button. Blinds
may not be made up between the big blind and the button. You must wait until
the button passes. See “Section 16 – Explanations,”
discussion #3, for more information on this rule.
When you post the big blind, it serves as your opening bet. When it is your
next turn to act, you have the option to raise.
A player who misses any or all blinds can resume play by either posting
all the blinds missed or waiting for the big blind. If you choose to post
the total amount of the blinds, an amount up to the size of the minimum opening
bet is live. The remainder is taken by the dealer to the center of the pot
and is not part of your bet. When it is your next turn to act, you have the
option to raise.
If a player who owes a blind (as a result of a missed blind) is dealt in
without posting, the hand is dead if the player looks at it before putting
up the required chips, and has not yet acted. If the player acts on the hand
and plays it, putting chips into the pot before the error is discovered, the
hand is live, and the player is required to post on the next deal.
A player who goes all-in and loses is obligated to make up the blinds if
they are missed before a rebuy is made. (The person is not treated as a new
player when reentering.)
These rules about blinds apply to a newly started game:
(a) Any player who drew for the button is considered active in the game
and is required to make up any missed blinds.
(b) A new player will not be required to post a blind until the button
has made one complete revolution around the table, provided a blind has
not yet passed that seat.
(c) A player may change seats without penalty, provided a blind has not
yet passed the new seat.
In all multiple-blind games, a player who changes seats will be dealt in
on the first available hand in the same relative position. Example: If you
move two active positions away from the big blind, you must wait two hands
before being dealt in again. If you move closer to the big blind, you can
be dealt in without any penalty. If you do not wish to wait and have not yet
missed a blind, then you can post an amount equal to the big blind and receive
a hand. (Exception: At lowball you must kill the pot, wait for the same relative
position, or wait for the big blind; see “Section 11 – Lowball,”
rule #7.)
A player who "deals off" (by playing the button and then immediately
getting up to change seats) can allow the blinds to pass the new seat one
time and reenter the game behind the button without having to post a blind.
A live “straddle bet" is not allowed at limit poker except in
specified games.
5.0 HOLD'EM
In hold;em, players receive two downcards as their personal hand (holecards),
after which there is a round of betting. Three boardcards are turned simultaneously
(called the;flop”) and another round of betting occurs. The next
two boardcards are turned one at a time, with a round of betting after each
card. The boardcards are community cards, and a player may use any five-card
combination from among the board and personal cards. A player may even use all
of the boardcards and no personal cards to form a hand (play the board). A dealer
button is used. The usual structure is to use two blinds, but it is possible
to play the game with one blind, multiple blinds, an ante, or combination of
blinds plus an ante.
5.1 Rules
These rules deal only with irregularities. See the previous chapter, “Button
and Blind Use,” for rules on that subject.
If the first holecard dealt is exposed, a misdeal results. The dealer will
retrieve the card, reshuffle, and recut the cards. If any other holecard is
exposed due to a dealer error, the deal continues. The exposed card may not
be kept. After completing the hand, the dealer replaces the card with the
top card on the deck, and the exposed card is then used for the burncard.
If more than one holecard is exposed, this is a misdeal and there must be
a redeal.
If the flop contains too many cards, it must be redealt. (This applies even
if it were possible to know which card was the extra one.)
If the flop needs to be redealt because the cards were prematurely flopped
before the betting was complete, or the flop contained too many cards, the
boardcards are mixed with the remainder of the deck. The burncard remains
on the table. After shuffling, the dealer cuts the deck and deals a new flop
without burning a card. See “Section 16 – Explanations,”
discussion #2, for more information on this rule.
If the dealer turns the fourth card on the board before the betting round
is complete, the card is taken out of play for that round, even if subsequent
players elect to fold. The betting is then completed. The dealer burns and
turns what would have been the fifth card in the fourth card’s place.
After this round of betting, the dealer reshuffles the deck, including the
card that was taken out of play, but not including the burncards or discards.
The dealer then cuts the deck and turns the final card without burning a card.
If the fifth card is turned up prematurely, the deck is reshuffled and dealt
in the same manner. See “Section 16 – Explanations,”
discussion #2, for more information on this rule.
If the dealer mistakenly deals the first player an extra card (after all
players have received their starting hands), the card will be returned to
the deck and used for the burncard. If the dealer mistakenly deals more than
one extra card, it is a misdeal.
You must declare that you are playing the board before you throw your cards
away; otherwise you relinquish all claim to the pot.
6.0 OMAHA
Omaha is similar to hold’em in using a three-card flop on the board,
a fourth boardcard, and then a fifth boardcard. Each player is dealt four holecards
(instead of two) at the start. In order to make a hand, a player must use precisely
two holecards with three boardcards. The betting is the same as in hold'em.
At the showdown, the entire four-card hand should be shown to receive the pot.
6.1 Rules
All the rules of hold’em apply to Omaha except the rule on playing the
board, which is not possible in Omaha (because you must use two cards from your
hand and three cards from the board).
7.0 OMAHA HIGH LOW
Omaha is often played high-low split, 8-or-better. The player may use any combination
of two holecards and three boardcards for the high hand and another (or the
same) combination of two holecards and three boardcards for the low hand.The
rules governing kill pots are listed in “Section 13 – Kill Pots.”
7.1 Rules
All the rules of Omaha apply to Omaha high-low split except as below.
A qualifier of 8-or-better for low applies to all high-low split games,
unless a specific posting to the contrary is displayed. If there is no qualifying
hand for low, the best high hand wins the whole pot.
8.0 SEVEN CARD STUD
Seven-card stud is played with two downcards and one upcard dealt before the
first betting round, followed by three more upcards (with a betting round after
each card). After the last downcard is dealt, there is a final round of betting.
The best five-card poker hand wins the pot. In all fixed-limit games, the smaller
bet is wagered on the first two betting rounds, and the larger bet is wagered
after the betting rounds on the fifth, sixth, and seventh cards. If there is
an open pair on the fourth card, any player has the option of making the smaller
or larger bet. Deliberately changing the order of your upcards in a stud game
is improper because it unfairly misleads the other players.
8.1 Rules
The first round of betting starts with a forced bet by the lowest upcard
by suit. On subsequent betting rounds, the high hand on board initiates the
action (a tie is broken by position, with the player who received cards first
acting first).
The player with the forced bet has the option of opening for a full bet.
Increasing the amount wagered by the opening forced bet up to a full bet
does not count as a raise, but merely as a completion of the bet. For example:
In $15-$30 stud, the lowcard opens for $5. If the next player increases the
bet to $15 (completes the bet), up to three raises are then allowed when using
a three-raise limit.
In all fixed-limit games, when an open pair is showing on fourth street
(second upcard), any player has the option of betting either the lower or
the upper limit. For example: In a $5-$10 game, if you have a pair showing
and are the high hand, you may bet either $5 or $10. If you bet $5, any player
then has the option to call $5, raise $5, or raise $10. If a $10 raise is
made, then all other raises must be in increments of $10. If the player high
with the open pair on fourth street checks, then subsequent players have the
same options that were given to the player who was high.
If your first or second holecard is accidentally turned up by the dealer,
then your third card will be dealt down. If both holecards are dealt up, you
have a dead hand and receive your ante back. If the first card dealt faceup
would have been the lowcard, action starts with the first hand to that player’s
left. That player may fold, open for the forced bet, or open for a full bet.
(In tournament play, if a downcard is dealt faceup, a misdeal is called.)
If you are not present at the table when it is your turn to act on your
hand, you forfeit your ante and your forced bet, if any. If you have not returned
to the table in time to act, the hand will be killed when the betting reaches
your seat.
If a hand is folded when there is no wager, that seat will continue to receive
cards until the hand is killed as a result of a bet.
If you are all in for the ante and have the lowcard, the player to your
left acts first. That player may fold, open for the forced bet, or open for
a full bet.
If the wrong person is designated as low and that person bets, the action
will be corrected to the true lowcard if the next player has not yet acted.
The incorrect lowcard takes back the wager and the true lowcard must bet.
If the next hand has acted after the incorrect lowcard wager, the wager stands,
action continues from there, and the true lowcard has no obligations.
If you pick up your upcards without calling when facing a wager, this is
a fold and your hand is dead. This act has no significance at the showdown
because betting is over; the hand is live until discarded.
A card dealt off the table must play and it is treated as an exposed card.
In all games, the dealer announces the lowcard, the high hand, all raises,
and all pairs. Dealers do not announce possible straights or flushes (except
for specified low-stakes games).
If the dealer burns two cards for one round or fails to burn a card, the
cards will be corrected, if at all possible, to their proper positions. If
this should happen on a final downcard, and either a card intermingles with
a player's other holecards or a player looks at the card, the player must
accept that card.
If the dealer burns and deals one or more cards before a round of betting
has been completed, the card(s) must be eliminated from play. After the betting
for that round is completed, an additional card for each remaining player
still active in the hand is also eliminated from play (to later deal the same
cards to the players who would have received them without the error). After
that round of betting has concluded, the dealer burns a card and play resumes.
The removed cards are held off to the side in the event the dealer runs out
of cards. If the prematurely dealt card is the final downcard and has been
looked at or intermingled with the player's other holecards, the player must
keep the card, and on sixth street betting may not bet or raise (because the
player now has all seven cards).
If there are not enough cards left in the deck for all players, all the
cards are dealt except the last card, which is mixed with the burncards (and
any cards removed from the deck, as in the previous rule). The dealer then
scrambles and cuts these cards, burns again, and delivers the remaining downcards,
using the last card if necessary. If there are not as many cards as players
remaining without a card, the dealer does not burn, so that each player can
receive a fresh card. If the dealer determines that there will not be enough
fresh cards for all of the remaining players, then the dealer announces to
the table that a common card will be used. The dealer will burn a card and
turn one card faceup in the center of the table as a common card that plays
in everyone’s hand. The player who is now high using the common card
initiates the action for the last round.
An all-in player should receive holecards dealt facedown, but if the final
holecard to such a player is dealt faceup, the card must be kept, and the
other players receive their normal card.
If the dealer turns the last card faceup to any player, the hand now high
on the board using all the upcards will start the action. The following rules
apply to the dealing of cards:
(a) If there are more than two players, all remaining players receive
their last card facedown. A player whose last card is faceup has the option
of declaring all-in (before betting action starts).
(b) If there are only two players remaining and the first player's final
downcard is dealt faceup, the second player's final downcard will also
be dealt faceup, and the betting proceeds as normal. In the event the
first player's final card is dealt facedown and the opponent's final card
is dealt faceup, the player with the faceup final card has the option
of declaring all-in (before betting action starts).
A hand with more than seven cards is dead. A hand with less than seven
cards at the showdown is dead, except any player missing a seventh card may
have the hand ruled live. See “Section 16 – Explanations,”
discussion #4, for more information on this rule.
A player who calls a bet even though beaten by an opponent’s upcards
is not entitled to a refund. (The player is receiving information about an
opponent’s hand that is not available for free.)
Omaha 8 or better is a game of Flushes. When playing hands stay away from “naked” A-2
combinations that have no back-up low. Always look for hands where the Ace is
suited.
Newly minted poker millionaire Mike Schneider has one regret about how he spent his spring break: He didn't get to see much of the Caribbean. read more
Spotting stars at the poker table is part of the fun
Roberts Rules Of Poker - Part 1 » 
