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Poker Variations: Omaha High

Lyndsie — Thu, 11 Jun 2009 01:50:26 +0000

Omaha High — not to be confused with Omaha High/Low — is another popular variation of poker. Some people liken it to Texas Hold ‘Em, although the similarities are strictly fundamental. Whereas novice players can often learn Texas Hold ‘Em while playing, they are going to want to stay away from Omaha High until they have some more experience.

In this game, you are dealt four cards, which will be face down. This game features only blinds, so there are rarely antes. Discarding is not permitted in this game either.

The only real similarities which exist between Omaha High and Texas Hold ‘Em are the community cards. The dealer deals the Flop, three cards, face up; the Turn, one card, face up; and the River, one card, face up. A betting session follows the dealing of each.

The main aim here, after all of the community cards are dealt, is to use two of your hole cards and three of the community cards, to create the best hand.

Poker Variations: Texas Hold ‘Em

Lyndsie — Sat, 30 May 2009 01:23:32 +0000

You know, there are so many variations of poker that it’s kind of hard to keep up with them. Bearing that in mind, it occurred to me that some of you guys might not be aware of all of the most popular games. So, I figured it would be worth it to discuss them, at least a little bit. There are some pretty helpful tutorials associated with a lot of them, and who knows, that could help you improve your game a pretty fair amount.

Right now, probably partly in thanks to the many televised poker shows and celebrity games, Texas Hold ‘Em is one of the most well known poker variations. That’s all well and good, it’s definitely a ton of fun to play once you learn the basics. Fortunately, they are not hard to figure out at all. This is actually a fairly easy game to learn.

There’s a reason this is probably the most popular variation of poker in the whole world. During the game, all of the players get two cards before the first voluntary round of betting. Eventually, five cards will be dealt, all of them face up. This is the flop, and all the players can use it. They use it to make up the best combination of five cards from their two cards and the five in the flop.

If that’s still confusing, check out this tutorial, found at PokerNews:

The Role of Kill Pots in Poker

Jesse — Fri, 15 May 2009 04:55:22 +0000

Kill pots form an essential part of any poker game. The phrase to ‘kill a pot’ basically signifies the act of putting an over blind that serves the purpose of raising the limit of betting allowed. A kill is basically used in the event when a player wants to be included into the game right away instead of following the conventional path and awaiting a chance to receive the major blind. There are a number of kinds of kills in poker. The term ‘half kill’ refers to raising the betting limit by one and a half portions of its actual size. That is, the betting limit is increased to one and a half times more than its original size. When a player is said to have made a ‘full kill’ it means that the amount of the bet is increased to double its size, that is, the kill is twice the size of the amount in the pot that was set as the original bet. Placing a kill in the game is not mandatory. It is an optional move that is made at the behest of the player and can occur anytime during the length of the game, depending upon the need for it. In games which involve a high-low split, if a player wins a pot amount that is higher than the decreed size, he or she is obliged to kill the next pot that occurs in the game. During such games a “kill button” is used. A “kill button” can be understood to be an indicator used for representing the player who gains a victory over the others by bagging the pot. This “kill button” is kept with the particular player until the closure of the hand, and for example at the Venetian Casino in Las Vegas you’ll see it out quite often. There are some cases in which the player in possession of the “kill button” goes on to win the pot in the following round as well. If this is the case the player continues to hold the kill button provided it fits into the financial capabilities of the person, and then the player is expected to kill the consecutive pot as well.

There are a number of rules governing the role and use of kill pots in poker. One of these rules states that under certain conditions, the kill button itself is a neutral device that is not the specific possession of any one player. This rule is valid provided that the button is being used in the initial hand of a game that is only just beginning or if the person who won the kill button in a round prior to the current one has folded his hand and chosen to leave the game or if one of the prior rounds of the game there was no particular winner and the pot itself was divided up amongst the players. Under the prevalence of these three situations, the kill button is treated as a property of the establishment and not a player, and can be won and claimed by the players in the subsequent course of the game.

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