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Basic Poker Rules for Online Poker Games
Most of the online poker rooms offer the same games, but there are some fun and interesting exceptions which I will
introduce later. I've outlined the basic poker rules for the following online poker games below.
All the online poker games I will be discussing are true poker games against real people - not
Video Poker, Let it Ride Poker, or Caribbean Stud Poker which are poker games where you play against the house
(and are a big underdog!). These poker games offered by the online poker rooms are all fun, can be played for free
with play money, and are against other real people. Check out our online poker room reviews at the bottom of this page
to pick and choose an online poker room to play at... for free!
Before we get started, these are some basic poker rules that apply to most all poker games. First of all, poker
is a 5 card game. You may play in games that have 7 cards or 9 cards or whatever, but you always use only
five cards to make your best poker hand.
In the event of a tie, let's say a pair of aces or an ace high flush, you always look at all five cards for the tie-breaker.
For example, let's say I have an ace high flush and so does my opponent. Well, then we look at the second card. If we
both have an ace, king high flush, then we look at the third card, and so on.
The rules of poker are pretty simple, the hierachy of hands determines the winner:
Royal Flush:
Straight Flush:
4 of a Kind:
Full House (or Boat):
Flush:
Straight:
3 of a Kind:
2 Pair:
1 Pair:
High Card:
Those are the basic poker rules that apply to all poker games. Now, let's continue
on to the specific poker rules of the different forms of online poker below.
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Poker Rules - Texas Holdem
The first set of poker rules that needs to be discussed is, of course, the Cadillac of Poker Games, Texas Holdem.
Texas Holdem is the game that the World Poker Tour and the World Series of Poker focus on, particularly the
No-Limit variance of Texas Holdem. Texas Holdem is, by far, the most popular of the online poker games.
The rules for Texas Holdem are quite simple. The game goes like this: the dealer button is established - this player
does not actually deal, but he will be the last player to act on three of the four betting rounds. This is the
best position to be in because you get to act last for most of the game, meaning that you have the
opportunity to see how all the players
will act before it is your turn, which is vital information. To the left of the dealer is the "small blind", this player
must post half the amount of the blind - which is a dollar amount depending on the stakes of the table. To the left
of the small blind is the "big blind", who must post the full blind dollar amount. For example, if you are playing $1-2
limit Texas Holdem game, the small blind must put down $.50 and the big blind must place $1.00 on the table before
anything happens. This is how the poker game starts.
Now, once the blinds are established, each player is dealt two cards face down. These are referred to as your
"hole cards". You can view your cards and then determine if you want to play. The action rotates around the table,
this first starts with the player to the left of the big blind, this position is often referred to as UTG for "Under the Gun".
This player decides whether he wants to play his hand, and if so, must match or raise the big blind amount. In our
example of a $1-2 game, the player must place a bet of $1.00 or more to stay in the game, or fold his cards. The action
continues around the table, to the dealer, the small blind, and finally, the big blind. The big blind may not have
to put anymore money on the table if the pot is not raised, since he already has a $1.00 put in. This is the first
round of betting, and the only round of betting where the big blind position is last to act. All subsequent betting rounds
ends with the player on the dealer button. If this is a $1-2 limit Texas Holdem game, then all bets or raises on this round
are $1.
After this initial round of betting, three cards are placed on the board, at the same time, face-up.
This is called the "Flop". The second round of betting ensues, starting with the small blind position and ending with the
dealer position. Again the bets on this round would be $1 in a $1-2 holdem game.
After the betting on the flop, the "Turn" card is dealt on the board. Now there are 4 cards on the board and two in your
hand. The third round of betting begins, again starting with the small blind position and ending with the dealer position. Now,
if you are playing a $1-2 limit Texas Holdem game, this is when the big bet, $2, kicks in. From here on out, all bets
or raises are always exactly $2.
Finally, the fifth and final card is dealt on the board, the "River" card, and the fourth and final round of betting ensues.
At the end of the betting, the players will show their two hole cards, and the best 5 of the possible 7 cards determines
the winner. The rules dictate that you may choose to use one, both, or none of you hole cards, whichever makes you the best poker hand.
Those are the rules of Texas Holdem in a nut shell. There are three types of Texas Holdem games which have slightly
different betting rules:
Limit Texas Holdem (there is a specific betting limit applied in each game)
Pot Limit Texas Holdem (A player can bet what is in the pot)
No Limit Texas Holdem (A player can bet all of his/her chips at any time)
Each version of the game requires subtle changes to your strategy - studying, practice, and experience will help you
determine which game is best for you.
Visit FlopTurnRiver - Texas Hold'em Strategies to learn how to win at this
game
or visit our Texas Holdem Rules section
to learn more about Texas Holdem poker rules.
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Poker Rules - 7 Card Stud
7 Card Stud is probably the second most popular of the online poker games, and all the online poker rooms also
offer 7 Card Stud, both for free and for real money. In fact, most of the online poker rooms offer two variations of the game - 7 Card Stud and
7 Card Stud Hi/Lo 8 or Better.
We'll first discuss the rules of 7 Card Stud.
The rules of 7 Card Stud are quite different from Texas Holde'm. Unlike Texas Hold'em,
where you can look at your two hole cards before determining whether you want to put any money into the pot,
in 7 Card Stud, all players must first ante before they receive their initial cards. Texas Hold'em uses the blind
structure whereas 7 Card Stud uses ante's.
There are five betting rounds in a complete game of 7 Card Stud Poker, not including Ante.
After the ante, Each player is dealt two cards face-down (hole cards) and one card face-up (door card).
The action is started by forcing the lowest upcard by rank and suit to bet the amount that corresponds to the bring-in
for each limit. The action then rotates clockwise and players must either call the minimum bet forced by the low card,
or make the first raise, which only completes the bet to the lower value of the limit structure. For example, if you
were playing a $3-6 7 Card Stud game, every player may have to ante $.50, and
the low card by rank and then by suit is required to initiate action with a minimum
small bring-in bet, which may be $1.00. Raises thereafter are of the exact amounts of the fixed limits for each
betting round in a game of 7 card stud poker - in this case, the raise would be $2, and all subsequent raises
would be the full $3 bet.
According to the rules of 7 Card Stud, on the first round of betting, Suits are ranked: spades (highest), hearts, diamonds, clubs.
This helps determine the low card who must make the bring-in bet.
You can easily remember this order because it's alphabetical!
On subsequent rounds, the high hand on board initiates betting action. If hands are tied, the player to the
left of the dealer acts first.
After the first round of betting is completed, each player is dealt one card face-up. This is commonly called 4th street.
The second round of betting begins, starting with the highest hand showing, and the bets are still $3 in our example.
Each player is dealt another card face-up (5th street), and at this point the limit is raised to the higher limit amount and
bets are now $6 in our example. Third round of betting.
Each player is dealt another card face-up. This is commonly called 6th street, and we have our fourth round of betting.
Finally, the seventh card is dealt, also known as the river card, but this one is dealt face-down. The fifth and final
round of betting begins. Players then show their hand, "the showdown", and use any 5 of their 7 cards to make their best
possible poker hand. Those are the basic poker rules of 7 Card Stud.
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Poker Rules - 7 Card Stud Hi/Lo 8 or Better
7 Card Stud Hi/Lo 8 or Better is also offered for free in most of
the online poker rooms as well.
The rules of 7 Card stud Hi Lo 8 or Better is very similar to the rules of the standard 7 Card Stud poker game.
The only difference is that the pot is split between the high hand hand and the low hand (if one qualifies).
The rules to qualify for the low hand are this - a low hand must be five unpaired cards, with the highest card no greater than an 8.
A, 2, 3, 4, 5 is the best low hand (as straights and flushes do not apply to low hands).
In order to win the low hand, players must have 5 un-paired cards with the highest card of eight or below, otherwise
the poker hand does not qualify for the low hand.
The winning low hand (8 or better) is first decided by the player with the lowest high card.
Upon a tie with the high card, the hand goes to the player with the next lowest high card.
If two highest cards are tied, then you move on to the third highest card etc.
Any hand of 5 cards that contains card values of 9 or higher CANNOT qualify as a low hand.
If there is no qualifying low hand, then the high hand wins the entire pot.
At the showing of hands (showdown),each player can use any five of their cards for their high hand
and any five of their cards for their low hand.
The best low hand is A, 2, 3, 4, 5. This will also count as a straight for high. Aces can be used for both high and low.
Straights and flushes are not considered when evaluating a low hand.
A player can "scoop" (win the entire pot) by showing the highest and lowest hands.
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Poker Rules - Omaha
Omaha is another popular poker game offered by the online poker rooms. Omaha is a form of Texas Hold'em, and so the rules
of Omaha are very similar to Texas Hold'em rules.
Like Texas Hold'em, the game is commonly played at
a 9 or 10-handed table, and the betting and blinds structures are exactly the same.
So what's the difference? Each player starts with FOUR hole cards instead of two!
So, pre-flop, each player is dealt 4 cards face-down, and must then decide to call the bet and play their cards.
Just like Texas Hold'em, the dealer then places five cards face-up in the center of the table - first the flop which
is 3 cards, round of betting, the turn card, round of betting, and the river card, and the final round of betting.
Like Texas Hold'em, these community cards are part of each player's hand.
The next major difference in the rules between Omaha and Texas Hold'em is that each player forms a five-card hand by
using only two and exactly two of his four hole cards together with only three and exactly three of the five community cards.
Many more winning combinations are possible than in Texas Hold'em as you can guess.
Even though Omaha's rules are very similar to Texas Hold'em rules, the strategies are completely different. Just because you
can play Texas Hold'em with the big boys, does not mean you can instantly transition that game to Omaha. If you're
dealt a 4-of-a-kind in Omaha, it's a bad thing! You can only use two of those four cards, and you will not
be able to make trips with them!
Omaha, like Texas Hold'em and 7 Card Stud, is a common game among the online poker rooms. And its variant,
Omaha Hi/Lo 8 or Better, is also a common online poker game offered by most if not all the online poker rooms for
free or real money.
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Poker Rules - Omaha Hi/Lo 8 or Better
Much like 7 Card Stud Hi/Lo 8 or Better, in this version of Omaha, the high hand and the qualifying low hand
split the pot.
A low hand must be five unpaired cards (with the highest card no greater than an 8).
A, 2, 3, 4, 5 is the best low hand (as straights and flushes do not apply to low hands).
In order to win the low hand, players must have 5 un-paired cards with the highest card of eight or below, otherwise
the poker hand does not qualify for the low hand, and the high hand wins the entire pot.
And, it's possible to win both the high hand and low hand, winning the entire pot.
That completes the rules of the standard online poker games offered by most or all of the online poker rooms.
However, there are online
poker rooms that offer some additional online poker games. I'll discuss the rules of this second tier of online poker games below.
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Poker Rules - 5 Card Stud
5 Card Stud is a popular home poker game, but is not offered by many of the online poker rooms.
and
are two of the few online poker rooms that offers the game of 5 Card Stud.
The rules of 5 Card Stud are these - all players must first ante before they receive their initial cards,
just like in 7 Card Stud. There are four betting rounds in a complete game of 5 Card Stud, not including the ante.
Each player is dealt two cards, one face down and then one face up. That first card will be your only
card that is face down. On this first round of betting, the low card by suit is required to
initiate action with a bet equal to half the lower limit
(bring-in). Suits are ranked: spades (highest), hearts, diamonds, clubs.
On subsequent rounds, the high hand on board initiates betting action, again, just like 7 Card Stud.
Then, each player receives one more card face down and the second round of betting begins.
Each bet and raise during the first two rounds of betting is set at the lower limit of the stakes structure.
For example, in a $3/$6 game, all bets and raises are $3 for the first two rounds.
The exception to this rule is if any player displays a pair with their 2 face-up cards after the third street is dealt.
In this circumstance, all players have the option to bet either the lower limit or the higher limit.
If a player bets the higher limit, then all subsequent raises must be made at the higher limit. (This is true of 7 Card Stud
as well.)
The fourth card is dealt face down, and our third round of betting begins, and then our fifth and final card is
dealt face down, and the fourth and final round of betting begins.
Each bet and raise during the last two rounds of betting is set at the higher limit of the stakes structure.
For example, in a $3/$6 game, all bets and raises are $6 for the last two rounds (fourth card and the river).
Those are the rules of 5 Card Stud, if you are interested in playing this online poker game, check out
or
.
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Poker Rules - Razz
Razz is one of the lesser known poker games that gained some awareness during the 2004 World Series of Poker coverage on
ESPN. ESPN's coverage of the Razz title at the WSOP introduced many people to this simple, but often brutal
poker game.
The rules of Razz combine the rules of lowball and 7 card stud. The goal is to make the best five-card low hand
from the seven cards you are dealt. It is played with anywhere from 2-8 players.
The game is dealt and structured just like 7 Card Stud - there is an ante to required to play, and
there are 5 betting rounds, the first 2 of which are at the lower limit and the last 3 are
at the higher limit. Each player starts with two hole cards and one upcard and then
we have a betting round.
Then the dealer gives each active player three more upcards, and then a final downcard, with betting rounds after each.
Each player ends up with seven cards, four face up and three face down. At the showdown,
the player holding the best low hand using only five of his seven cards wins the pot.
Aces are always low, and flushes and straights have no effect on the value of a hand.
The best possible hand is A-2-3-4-5.
The only online poker room that I am aware of that offers Razz is
. If you are interested in learning and
playing this crazy poker game that players often love to hate, visit .
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Poker Rules - 5 Card Draw
5 Card Draw is a fun and simple poker game that most of us learned as children. Again, this is not a popular
online poker game, but
does offer it! The rules are pretty simple.
In the online version of this poker game,
uses the blind structure - just like Texas Hold'em and Omaha. There is a small blind and a big blind that must
post. Then each player is dealt 5 cards face down. Each player may fold their hand, or match or raise
the big blind bet to stay in the game. This is the first of two betting rounds. In a $2-4 game, the big blind would
be $2, and all bets in this round would be $2.
After this betting round, each player may discard 0 to 5 of their cards and receive new cards. You do not need to hold
an ace to draw 4 cards like some home game versions of this poker game. This second and final round of betting
would be at increments of $4. Again, if you are interested in playing 5 Card Draw online,
.
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Poker Rules - Crazy Pineapple
Crazy Pineapple is another lesser known online poker game, but it is easy to learn. The rules of Crazy Pineapple are very similar
to that of Texas Holdem. There are only two differences between the two poker games:
You receive 3 hole cards instead of two
You must discard 1 of those hole cards AFTER betting on the flop has completed!
LOL, sound like fun?
Everything else is exactly the same as Texas Holdem - blind structure, flop, turn, river dealing structure, and you
may use one, both, or none of your hole cards to make the best 5 card poker hand. So, the key here is to understand
some of the odds, and discarding the right card based on the probablities of improving your hand to be the winning
hand!
This online poker game - Crazy Pineapple - is offered at
and
.
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Now that You Know the Rules, Play the Poker Games!
I hope these quick write-ups helped explain the basic rules of the online poker games.
All of these online poker games
can be played for free or real money. Check out our list of
recommended and reviewed poker rooms
to help you decide where you'd like to play. Have fun and good luck!
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