POKER SCHOOL

Poker is a card game that may or may not involve real money; however it requires the players to still make bets. There are many different types poker games like. Texas Hold'em, Omaha Hi, and Seven card stud. On ActionPoker you can enjoy those three games and also Guts, Pan, Big 2 and Chinese Poker (also called 13 Card Poker)
Cards are usually dealt completely or partially face down; it depends on the type of poker game you are playing. The most important part is that you try to make the best hand possible with a 5 card combination (see hand rankings). The player with the highest hand will win the hand. This looks simple so far but it involves skills to put your opponents out so you can win the hand, even if you have the lowest hand.

The main objective in a poker game is to win the money from the pot, which is the sum of all bets placed by all players involved in the hand. The pot is placed in the center of the table. When a player wins a hand he is awarded the money from the pot.

During the hand players bet in chips (a coin-like token that is used in casinos to represent money with different standard values like $1, $5, $T, $25, $50, $T0 and so on).So, every hand has a number of betting rounds where players commit their chips to participate for the pot, which implicates then that you must play having the strongest hand or pretend (bluff) you do so the others players decide to withdraw from the hand (fold).

It is most important to know when to fold and when to continue betting. There are different factors involved:

Your total chips left
The position you are at the table
The other players’ chips left
The behavior the other players’ have had on previous rounds
The cards you have
The possibilities of the next card to be useful for you

And many others that will shape the way the hands are played. There is no way to play one hand the same way as they all have different variables that makes them unique. This is why it is so important to know when to go for a hand and when not to, as you will not have a second chance to repeat that same hand with the same specific variables.
So to win a hand you are reduced to two choices:

You continue until the end of the hand involving money and show your cards at the end to compare against the other players and see who’s got the best hand to determine the winner.
Your opponents refuse to match the bet as they feel their hand won’t make it through and fold the cards, giving you the win. Whether you had better hand or not, if they all fold you win.

Now, most of poker games require either that you pay an ante or a blind before receiving your cards. These are obligatory bets to ensure there is money on the pot on every hand and forces players to maintain the action going.

Antes are posted by all players that wish to be dealt cards to start the hand. Blinds are posted by the two immediate players left of the dealer. The dealer (from where the cards are dealt) is represented by a round piece that says “Dealer” or just “D” and it is rotated every hand so all players pays the blind at some point.

Blinds are measured by the limit of the table, which is the how much money you can sit down with. There are 2 blinds, the Big and the Small; typically the Small Blind is half the amount of the Big Blind, but it can also be from one third up to two thirds of it.

Each betting round of the hand provides the following options to the players:

Check: As the first to act you have no previous bets that force you to involve funds, so you can pass on to the next player and continue active on the hand
Bet: Again, as the first one to act you can choose to submit a wager with the interest of winning the pot and showing that you have a hand worth your money.
Call: This is an option you will have after someone else before you makes a bet or a raise, and it requires you to match the amount if you want to continue playing that hand.
Raise: Is the action you take after a player has made a bet or a raise prior your turn and you increase the last wagered amount places before you to at least the double.
Fold: The action you take when previous bets having placed and you do not wish to continue playing that hand, so you bet nothing but you return your cards to the dealer and stay out of that hand’s action.

Each game has a strategy depending on various elements that combine to create a game style, this is where the fun is, by sharpening your skills to bluff, to play with the raises, to push your opponents to make a mistake or leave the hand is what makes the difference of winning or losing a hand, Ah! And of course, some luck is also good.

Poker Etiquette

At the game of poker, either live or online, having the proper manners to address to other players and to play is the key for your opponents to respect you, and also keep you out of trouble.

These are the basic guidelines to properly behave at a table:

Do not use improper or abusive language on the chat.
Do not speak about your cards while actively playing.
Do not tell what your cards were after you fold them if the hand is going on.
Do not threat other players.
Do not use excessive time on purpose to stall the game.
Do not abuse of the all in protection to skip a betting round and make it to the Showdown.
Team up with other players to play only against one player.
Use English language only at the chat.
Do not use the chat for ANY type of advertisement.
Do not hurry your opponents.
Create and use multiple accounts to obtain illicit benefit from the poker room.
Don’t give advice to other players on how to play their hands.

ActionPoker is always happy to welcome all players at our tables to participate of the game of poker, but it will also ensure that the environment is clean, comfortable and friendly, so players that violate the code of conduct will not be accepted.

Poker Tips

Developing your game style and improving your skills is a matter of time, but you may also find helpful to follow certain things that will keep you safer while playing at the tables. Each player should develop a strategy of his own, but no player has came up with a strategy without following some advice first. Here you will find some advice to start stacking up your bankroll. Enjoy!

General
Texas Hold’em
Omaha – Omaha Hi/Lo
7 Card Stud
Sit and Go Tournaments
Multi-Table Tournaments

General:

Normally you need a basic setting to get started at poker, and here you will find the basic tips to start you up at the games:

Never invest more than you can afford: If you can’t afford to lose $1,000 don’t invest them, start with an amount you feel comfortable with.
Use mathematics when analyzing a hand: Know the probabilities of the game, and the number of outs (cards that could come out and improve your hand), learn to play using pot odds.
Learn the different game structures: Learn the mechanics behind Limit, No Limit, and Pot Limit. Understand how blinds and antes and betting structure work.
Don’t let your emotions get you: Poker is a passionate game and if you let your emotions and your personal pride interfere you will lose your money in a few hands. Keep your mind cool, evaluate your game play and your opponent’s behavior, even if it is a reckless one, you still need to keep your emotional state stable and be disciplined. Losing is just part of the game, remember that when you win someone is losing and therefore you cannot expect to win all the times, even if you know and feel your game style is superior.

Texas Hold’em:

The most popular poker game in the world is also the easiest one to learn and master, however there is a careful strategy that you need to start playing successfully at it. Here below you will find the basic guidelines to make your Hold’em game worth your money:

Don’t play too many hands: Choose well your hands, evaluate the position you are at (before, on or after the dealer button), and always start up with solid combinations (two pair, three of a kind, straights, flushes). Don’t compromise your bankroll by playing loosely, especially if you are just starting at this game.
Be unpredictable: Try to not reveal a patter in your play, occasionally limp on hands that should be raised, or raise on hands that should be called. Play with this behavior before and after the flop so your opponents have a harder time to read you.
Always use solid starting hands: On every hand you should evaluate the hand you have to determine how strong it usually is. You can use this guide:

PAIR of HIGH CARDS - AA, KK, QQ, JJ, TT
ACE and HIGH CARD SUITED - AK, AQ, AJ, AT
FACES SUITED - KQ, KJ, QJ
ACE KING - AK

Bluff to get caught: Sometimes it will help you trick your opponents if you let them catch you bluffing, this will give them the impression that you play loosely and their strategy will be based on that, so on a later hand you can bluff the bluff and actually come with a strong hand and beat your opponents.
Learn to Check/Raise: This is an important move to master. After you have created an atmosphere that you play tight or lose, you will have the chance to Check/Raise to maximize your winnings. The mechanics are simple: while holding a top hand (like AA, KK, QQ, JJ, TT or any other) you choose to Check (provided that you have such option in your turn) to let other players bet, so when is your turn again you will raise the bet to put the other player in a difficult spot, as he has compromised money already and was the first to bet. Normally you should raise to the double of the bet amount, sometimes up to four times depending on the situation and how much bank roll each one has. So ultimately the other player will either have to leave his bet behind and lose it, which means you already won, or will call your raise, which is better for you. On the later round you simply smash him with bets and either making fold or winning at the Showdown. Just remember, like any other strategy, it won’t happen like that all the time and the other player could be slow playing a hand or just get lucky and beat you.

Poker Hand Rankings

Texas Hold’em
Omaha
7 Card Stud
Guts

**The rest of the games do not have specific hand rankings like this, yet they can be found on the game description link:

Chinese Poker
Big 2
Pan