POKER TERMS

add-on
Usually in Re-buy tournaments, a single rebuy which all players are eligible regardless of their stack size. This is usually allowed only once, at the end of the rebuy period. The add-on often offers more chips per Peso invested than the normal buyin and rebuys.

aggressive
When a player usually opens with a bet or raise rather than to call or check.

all in
betting all of your chips in the hand.

ante
A forced bet required from all players before the hand begins.

bad beat
Losing with a considerably stronger hand at the time the chips are bet.

bankroll
The amount of money that a player has to bet for the duration of his or her poker career.

bankroll management
Choosing the correct stakes and game type to avoid running out of funds due to variance or downswings.

bet
Any money wagered during the play of a hand.

big blind
The larger of the two forced bets which is usually twice the small blind.

board
The set of community cards in a community card game.

bounty
An feature of certain poker tournaments that rewards players for eliminating other players with a cash prize for each player they eliminate which is separate from the tournament payout structure.

bubble
The last finishing position in a poker tournament before winning a prize.

button
The marker that indicates the dealer position at the table.

buy-in
The minimum required amount of chips that must be “bought” to become involved in a game or tournament.

call
To match a bet or raise.

cap
A limit on the number of raises allowed in a betting round. Typically three or four (in addition to the opening bet) in fixed limit holdem.

cash game
A game where each hand is played for real money as opposed to tournament play.

check
To bet nothing or to not bet. You can also check if you have posted the Big Blind and there has been no raises.

check-raise
A play where a player initially checks with the intention of raising when another player bets

chip dumping
A strategy whereby one player deliberately loses chips to another player. Where players have agreed to take such action together, this is a form of collusion and strictly forbidden.

chop
To split a pot because of a tie

collusion
A form of cheating involving cooperation among two or more players.

cutoff
The seat immediately to the right of the dealer button.

final table
The last table in a multi-table poker tournament. The final table is set when a enough people have been eliminated from the tournament leaving an exact amount of players to occupy one table

flop
The dealing of the first three face-up cards or community cards.

fold
To discard one’s hand and forfeit interest in the current pot.

freeroll
A tournament which is free to enter but has actual prizes.

freezeout
The most common form of tournament where there are no rebuys.

heads up poker
Playing against a single opponent.

hero call
Calling when a player has a relatively weak hand but believes that the opponent may be bluffing.

hijack seat
The seat to the right of the cutoff seat, or second to the right of the button.

hole cards
Face-down cards the player receives.

last to act
A player is last to act if all players between the player and the button have folded.

level
Used in tournament play to refer to the size of the blinds that are periodically increased.

limit
The minimum or maximum amount of a bet.

no-limit
Rules where players are allowed to bet any or all of their chips in a single bet.

nut hand (the nuts)
The nut hand is the best possible hand in a given situation.

offsuit
Cards that are not of the same suit. The ace of clubs and the king of spades are called ace-king offsuit

orbit
A full rotation of the blinds at a table. Equal to the number of people at the table.

out of position, OOP
A player is said to be out of position, if he is either first to act, or is not last to act on a betting round.

overpair
In community card games such as Texas holdem and Omaha, a pocket pair with a higher rank than any community card.

PLO
Pot limit Omaha.

pocket pair
In community card poker when two of a player’s private or hole cards make a pair.

pot
The total amount of bets in the middle

pre-flop
The time when players already have their pocket cards but no flop has been dealt yet. It's also the first round of bets.

rainbow
Three or four cards of different suits, especially said of a flop.

rebuy
An amount of chips bought after the buy-in. In some tournaments, players can rebuy chips one or more times for a limited period after the start of the game.

river
The river or “river card” is the final card dealt in a poker hand, to be followed by a final round of betting and, if necessary, a showdown. In Texas holdem and Omaha, the river is the fifth and last card to be dealt to the community card board, after the flop and turn.

satellite
A tournament in which the prize is a free entrance to another (larger) tournament.

shootout
A poker tournament format where the last remaining player of a table goes on to play the remaining players of other tables. Each table plays independently of the others; that is, there is no balancing tables as players are eliminated.

sit and go
A poker tournament that does not have a scheduled starting time that starts whenever the necessary players have joined. Single-table sit-and-goes, with nine or ten players, are the norm, but multi-table games are common as well.

small blind
The smaller of the two forced bets which is usually half the big blind.

suck out
A situation when a hand heavily favored to win loses to a less favored hand after all the cards are dealt.

suited
Having the same suit.

three bet
To be the first player to put in a 3rd unit of betting.

tilt
Poor play as a result of emotional upset or anger as a result of the outcome of a previous hand or hands.

trips
When one of a player’s hole cards in Texas holdem connects with two cards on the board to make three of a kind. This differs from a “set” where three of a kind is made when a player's pocket pair connects with one card on the flop to make three of a kind.

turbo
A turbo is a type of tournament where the blind levels increase much faster than in standard play.

turn
The turn or “turn card” is the fourth of five cards dealt to a community card board, constituting one face-up community card that each of the players in the game can use to make up their final hand.

under the gun
The playing position to the direct left of the blinds in Texas holdem or Omaha. The player who is under the gun must act first on the first round of betting.

value bet
A bet made by a player who wants it to be called. This is usually because he has a stronger hand that he expects to win at showdown.