Poker Tournaments

Free Online Poker Skill Guide To The Most Important Poker Money Winning Skill Of All

There’s one skill, or maybe you could call it personality trait that sets successful poker players apart from the herd more than any other, be you a fun free poker games player or casino cash player the fact is that if you do not possess it you’ll never do well, what is it then, simple – Patience.

Even the blind mouse finds the cheese sometimes, and no matter how unlucky you think you are, how many chips you have, or how many people are left in your tournament, the most important thing is that you are patient with yourself.

Sometimes you get so tired of seeing terrible cards and your chip stack starts to drain enough to the point where you get desperate, and start calling with J5 off-suit, or other hands with the same idea. I’ve done it, so have most of us and it’s killed me 99% of the time.

A key to success through patience is not to be patient just pre-flop, it must be all hand. Let me show an example, You draw a K (c) Q (d), and you call with 2 other people in the hand. The flop shows K(h) A(h) 8(h). Clearly this is a very risky hand, and most of the time you will fold no question.

But to the desperate, sometimes I would get a false source off confidence in my hand, and 85% of this time I will get burned, despite only having two others in the hand.

Patience is one of the many obvious traits important to poker success. More so, is consistency with patience. Sometimes we may get carried away for a bit and then the losses occur. To build this consistency try to make rules on what you are willing to call pre-flop and what you won’t.

Obviously free online poker is a much different game than live, as online is much more fast-paced and live is more in-depth and slower. Despite many complaints from my peers, I like to milk out every second of my time limit for each decision. I recommend this to any competitive and casual online poker players, because it may be the difference between a bad beat and a great fold.

Many times in online free poker play you will run into, what we call “Donks”. Most of the time they will have a much larger chip stack, and will win hands using brawn and bluffing. It?s important not give into his bullying, and play it slow. If you get a good flop, let him make the mistake. The classical check-raise works well, but if you move too early, your chance will be lost to cash in. “Donks” can be a great source of chips, if you be patient and play it out right.

You will get bad beats, sadly they’re unavoidable. It happens to the best of us, and there’s nothing we can do about it. What we can do, though, is play smart, take your time, and, again, be patient.

These are all extremely important no matter who you are playing with or how long you have been playing the game, which brings me to my final point. Experience. You can read all the articles, books and magazines and watch all the TV and take online courses and classes but nothing can replace or shortcut true experience, so get out there and play poker online for free if you’re new to it all, build your skills and understanding and work hard to develop that crucial patience habit.

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Free Online Poker Guide To How To Semi Bluff

In this free poker games article we’re going to look at the art of semi-bluffing.

A good place to start is to define what a semi bluff actually is. A full, or stone cold bluff is when you have a hand with no potential at all. But if you bluff where you have a bit of something and that’s what we call the semi-bluff.

For example, when you have a hand like Ad-Kd at a board of 6h-7h-8s-10h and you bet large or raise your opponent?s bet large, you are executing a pure bluff.

This is due to the fact that the hand didn’t get better with the Flop and got even worse at the Turn. But if you put your opponent on a weaker hand like A-Q or even a draw like A-J, then you can push him out of the pot by betting substantially. This big bluff is the only chance you have should you choose to go for it rather than fold. If he calls your bluff, then your A-K can’t stand much pressure.

Now lets say you have 7-6 and the Flop shows 5-4-J. Your opponent checks. You reckon he might just have a raggy Jack so you check. Your intention is to fold if your hand does not improve and/or if he plays aggressive, but your primary reason for checking is to catch a 3 or 8 and nail the opposing A-J, K-J or 9-9 later on.

However, suppose your opponent checks and you bet? In this situation betting has two purposes. Increasing the pot if you manage to improve to your Straight is one. Two, of course, is to nail your opponent. If he’s got nothing then he’s out of course. (With 9-9 he may move out.)

But what if he has the Jack? If he had a weak Jack (say, J-8) he may put you on a bigger Jack, say, A-J, or K-J and he may move out. Because you bet (or raise) it indicates that your pocket cards somehow fit the community cards.

Now, he may call, and you proceed to the Turn and the River. You figure out now he may have A-J or K-J. Or he may continue with 9-9.

If your hand doesn’t improve yet on the later rounds then you can pure-bluff your opponent all the way or stop.

If you hit your straight though, what then? It could be that he was putting you on a weaker Jack post the Flop (such as J-8) or he might raise with A-J or K-J. He has no idea that the Straight was completed!

He does not realize at all that the 3 or 8 made it for you. You can now crush your opponent. This is the semi part.

Here you can now win in two ways: Through the “bluff” part, your opponent will fold and you still have the pot. Or through the “semi”, both of you will show down your hands, and you win a larger pot.

Also, you can check and check until you complete the Straight, but you show your opponent your hand. The next time he will play with you, he might be scared if a similar situation arises.

If you semi-bluff, however, you still show your opponent if he decides to continue, but additionally, you can make your opponent fold so he cannot guess what you have.

Overall lesson? You can be more unpredictable with semi-bluffing so get practising! And what better place to play poker online free than http://www.NoPayPOKER.com where you don’t have the fear of losing money like you do at on money sites or live tables yet you can still win real cash on risk free free poker games.

Free Online Poker Lesson On How To Play Backdoor Draws

In a poker game whether it is free poker online or cash game, a backdoor draw is a draw missed on the Flop but made on the Turn. This free online poker article will show you , using some examples, ways you can play for a backdoor draws with the best chance of hitting it.

Backdoor Draw As an example

In this situation you have 8-7 then the flop shows 5-A-J. There is no Straight draw as you need 2 cards to complete it.

But if a 4, a 6 or a 9 falls on the Turn, you have a backdoor Straight draw which you can hope on the river. If you complete your Straight on the river then you have a backdoor Straight (you can also have made hands like backdoor Flushes or Trips or Full Houses, by the way).

Lets presume we have 8-7, then the flop shows 5-A-J. Usually, when we don’t have anything on the Flop which will improve on the Turn into a complete hand, we fold.

But what about if you check and a conservative challenger decides to check his, say, A-10 or A-9? You then check, too (just as normally). When the Six (or Four or Nine) still doesn’t come then our options are to just retreat or bluff.

But additionally you can call in this situation. Suppose the pot is 200 (blinds 10-20), only two of us are in the pot, and he is first to act and bets only 25. The bet will swell the pot size to 225, and we are getting 9-to-1 on a call here.

We may as well call, so we can get a chance at even just a draw.

Also, it’s possible that after he bet his 25 he might be seeking to push you out of the pot with a really small bluff but it doesn’t change matters. Just call so you can have a chance at a backdoor draw.

And, note, don’t show you are a weak player by folding to some bunk bluff. Folding in a 500 pot after a 30 bet? Now that’s not just cowardice. It’s senselessness.

If the Six, Four or Nine appears, this is the time to figure out whether or not we shall still proceed. Usually we hope he plays conservatively and we hit our free Straight on the river.

Back to the aforementioned situation: What about if at the already 250 pot, he bets 200? Fold. 100? Fold, or call, if you feel like calling.

For a gutshot draw we’re about 11-to-1 hitting our Straight; to have an up-and-down Straight draw, about 5 1/2-to-1. Therefore if he bets 100, the pot is 350, and on a call we get 3 1/2-to-1.

It may still not be the right price, but if you feel like calling, call the 100 bet if it’s up-and-down. If it is a Gutshot then fold. 50 or lower? We get 6-to-1 (300 pot, 50 to call); so the pot odds are advantageous for an up-and-down Straight draw, so just call. Not quite for a gutshot.

But it’s also possible to call like, you’re representing A-K and you could take action on the river.

Next, should you get the Straight at the river it is time to play aggressive. Typically an opponent will put you on a made hand that the Flop and your “weak” call indicated that you have, e.g., a second Pair, J-10, even third Pair.

But we completed a Straight that contains the Eight and the Seven, and he has hardly any clue about it! Why? Because you called on the Flop, and unless he is a strong player and knows about it, that call may indicate a made hand! If he bets, raise (maybe a raise for value that will not scare him off), or if he checks, bet large.

If it is not looking good!

If you don’t hit your Straight, surrender.

Or, if you called on the Turn with the plan of representing A-K and moving at the river just play it fast but only if you can afford to lose. If it is just a smaller bet, you could call, but only in order to get information. Muck out as quickly as possible.

That is, if you do go and chase the backdoor draw; if, say, you can afford it with your chip stack. In general, don’t chase cards. Chasing is the favorite pastime of losing poker players (maybe next to tilting).

Or don’t pursue a backdoor draw with the intention of chasing. Usually you should be on the offensive by bluffing; on the above example, he may even fold the A-10 if he checked and you bet substantially. Just treat the Straight as angel’s grace.

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Play Poker Online For Free And Win With All In With King-High Hands

When a desperate player in a poker tournament even a free poker games one doesn’t get A-A or K-K they tend to go all-in with Ace-something. Many will move all in with A-K, A-Q, and even A-4.

At worst, if someone with A-4 is called with the medium Pair, there is still one overcard. With A-K you can be called by Ace-lower whilst still being be a significant favorite.

This is fine but should not be your only all in gambit in such situations. In this this free poker games article you’ll see why you should also move all in with King-High when your backs up against the wall!

The trend for tournament players today has changed slightly in favor of moving all-in with King-something, like K-Q, K-J, K-10 (needless to say, the applications here apply also to A-K) and even K-x suited. Other players may also call with a smaller pocket Pair, therefore A-x has the same probability of winning as K-x against a smaller Pair if both cards are overcards.

And K-x posseses an additional benefit. While a hand like A-5 is a significant underdog against A-J, K-Q or K-5 is just a slight underdog.

Approximately, it is a 13 to 7 underdog, but compare this to A-5 that is a 15 to 5 (or 3-1) underdog. What you want to fetch with K-x is its live card value.

With the A-5, you must hit the Five in order to pair and take the lead. With K-5, you may have both King and Five pairing.

If you extend your all-in hand range to include K-x, you may have to move all-in more than ever before. Because many players will fold to an all-in (including marginal high A-x such as A-10 or A-9) other players at the table will receive a more aggressive impression of your play.

Also you can steal the blinds more often. The all-in itself (and not really the cards employed to move all-in) is an indication of strength; it is the same with A-x or K-x.

On the whole, if you are running out of chips and the all in approach beckons don’t limit yourself to just Ace-x, think of the King too, it could just make your day!

So why not experiment with the King High approach on the free online poker tables first, get used to it and then apply in more risky poker games later.

Hopefully this was interesting and helps your poker game be it free online poker or for cash. Certainly it will demonstrate that in any given poker game situation there are options to consider based on the cards you’ve got, the game period, opposition and known and estimated risk to name but a few.

If you’re new to this thought process then by far the simplest way to get ahead is always to practice a LOT on free online poker sites for instance http://www.NoPayPOKER.com and ONLY when you are winning consistently progress to real money stakes.

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Play Poker Online For Free And Hit The Rare Straight Flush Draw

This draw is one of the rarest in poker, free poker online or cash tables.

You have, say, 8d-7d and the Flop comes 5d-6d-K. Anyone who holds A-K has the best hand, but is not the favorite.

If your AK opponent’s hand does not get better than 3 of a kind later then you will just be favorite to win the pot at 54 to 46.

If your opponent holds no Diamonds, you still have 15 more outs to complete a Straight or Flush (9 Diamonds, 4 Fours and 4 Nines, and minus 2 to avoid overcounting the 4d and the 9d which will give you the unlikely Straight Flush) and this converts to a 54% chance of completing your hand.

There are various ways to play this hand, and many analyses possible. Let’s consider 4 strong options.

1. You can fight it out in an all-in match-up. Since the odds for you to comple the hand are 54 to 46, which is about the same as Q-Q beating A-K, the question you need to ask yourself before moving all-in is are you willing to do the same with a small Pair if you know your opponent will call with two overcards?

If the reply is Yes, you can proceed. Otherwise, you will find far more palatable options for you. The thing is that this is just one of the possible ways. If you get called, treat it as Q-Q against A-K.

If the opponent folds, then it is okay; you’ve won the pot. However, rather than ending the hand suddenly, you might want to keep your opponent hanging so that you can obtain maximum value, so there are other ways.

2. You may play this like playing an Straight or a Flush draw. If my opposition plays weakly, then I play this weakly too, or bet instead. I can decide to build to pot by betting firmly (but not largely yet). If you hit the Straight or Flush, begin with the usual way of slow-playing or value-betting.

The only worry is the fact that a greater Flush is possible for your opponent, but pay it off. Now, if your opponent plays strongly, you can revert to #1. If your opponent has the Set, you’re still 54 to 46.

3. Also you can afford to call big bets more than you will call big bets when you have just a Straight or a Flush draw. Whatever bet the opponent throws is callable, because any bet gives you pot odds.

Ideally, you should be the one doing the betting (or raising), but in case you want to slow-play, and hope that you hit and trap the opponent later, this can be done too.

4. Finally, you have the option of not playing it at all. Consider; say you are both in the top 20% in chips in the tournament (e.g. in the tournament with 50 players left, both of you are in the top 10).

Now the opponent suddenly moves all-in, you must consider: You’ve not made anything yet. Top pair can still be the favorite. Your opponent might also hold the Set. Now since your stack is comfortable, fold and wait for a less risky spot.

Hopefully this was interesting and helps your poker game be it free poker online or for cash. Certainly it will demonstrate that in a given poker game situation you will find options to think about based on the cards you’ve got, the game phase, opposition and known and predicted risk to name but a few. If you’re not used to this approach then undoubtedly the best way to get ahead is always to practice a LOT on free poker online sites for instance NoPayPOKER.com and ONLY when you are winning consistently progress to real money stakes.

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Free Online Poker High Power Players Guide To Making The Most Out Of The Poker Call

The poker call is one of the most misunderstood and badly played moves in both money and free online poker and Texas Holdem.

It is such that players who always call are disparaged as calling stations; however, it is not because they always call that they easily spill their chips to other players. The lose because they do not call at the right times and places.

With this free poker games article, we’ll explain to you by way of example the way you use calling in poker correctly.

Are there right reasons for calling?

The reasons for calling often crossover with those used by more aggressive players for betting. Here are some example situations where you may use the poker call.

- For example, if you have A-K in a board of 10-3-K-7-8, if you are first to act, you bet; you don’t check and call.

- You value-bet. However, if you are not first to act, what should you do if someone else bets?

- Might you raise? Here, good betting reasons are not so good raising reasons. As you still have a hand you don’t raise but neither do you fold.

The rule now, for the above hand, is:

- If you’re first to act, you bet.

- If you’re not first to act, and someone bets, call an amount less than or equal to the amount you intend to bet if you’re the first to act.

- If the amount is greater, you fold. This rule applies only if you have a hand.

- Without a hand, like just Ace-high, you bet, but you fold to a bet.

- Don’t call with Ace-high (unless from curiosity).

Let us try another hand.

You have 8-7 and the Flop is K-6-9. You can check-call, but you can also bet. As your hand is not complete betting is the better option as you can hope to make the other player fold.

- If you check-call, however (or call a bet), chances are you’ll send a message to your opponent that you’re on a draw, and then your opponent may keep bullying you later.

- Nevertheless, you want to complete a strong hand, so you call.

- Just make sure you have the pot odds to call, however.

- If your opponent continues bullying you when you complete the Straight, you can raise.

Now, in another hand, you have A-6 in a Flop of 9-6-2.

- Since the flop comes small cards, anyone with big cards will fold to a bet.

- You can bet your Sixes. Or you can call, especially if your opposing player ended the hand right there with A-Q.

- You can call, and later, if your opponent keeps hammering you with small bets, you may call each small bet, because your odds are still satisfactory.

- Additionally, you may pair your kicker or your Six if you call.

Finally, if you have Q-Q in a Flop of Q-10-10, you’ve got the other guy dead.

When your opponent bets, and you raise, the chances are greater that your opponent will fold than not.

- For the reason that although your opponent might have A-Q, it is not likely as you know there are three Queens already out.

- Also an extra Ten is not as likely for the same reason.

- Your opponent might have K-J or A-K (for a useless Straight draw) or a Flush completer.

Give the opposing players openings to finish their hands, this way you hope to tempt more action from them. If an opponent completes the Straight or the Flush later, you will have the advantage. So just call, and call, until everyone escalates.

This also applies if you feel your opponent has got the spare Queen or Ten. You can let your opponent just bet and bet until the river, where he thinks you might be calling as you just had a Queen or a small Pair, so at the river you may move your chips in.

Now, what is flawed with calling stations’ calling beliefs?

- To start with: they call even with the pot odds against their favor. They usually chase inside Straight draws where they lose their chips in the long term when they keep doing this.

- Secondly: they call big bets with small, but marginal, hands even if they know they are beat. In a flop of 9-6-2 above, A-6 may call, but only if your opponents’ bets are small. But when in front of a large bet, fold A-6 because you might not win against 9-x if you cannot pair your kicker or turn Trips.

Calling stations are the ones always calling with small pocket Pairs in the presence of overcards.

- Lastly: they generally think that every player is bluffing so they are invariably tempted to call even with Ace-high. In other words, they call a bluff or something that appears like a bluff.

I hope these examples have helped you understand the poker call better. When you play try to look for similar situations where you can apply the call artfully and be aware of when not to use it.

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Play Poker Online Free Guide To Poker Card, Pocket And Hand Name Nicknames

For this free poker online how to play poker for beginners guide we are going to demystify a lot of the code words and phrases used in poker to name the various cards hand permutations. At the end you will no longer be completely perplexed when trying to play poker and words such as Fishhooks, Robbins and Jesse James (to name just a few) are being bandied about!!

First lets look at individual card names. Then the ranked order of ‘pocket cards’ (what you get dealt at the start of a poker game).

Here we’ll define pocket pairs and the better meaning playable) unpaired starting hands. Finally you’ll learn some of more popular and famous hands.

The thirteen cards used for poker have a number of different nicknames. A letter or number symbol is also often used to identify the cards.

- Ace – Bullet, Rocket (A)
- King – Cowboy, Monarch (K)
- Queen – Lady, Dame, Dyke (Q)
- Jack – Knave, Hook, Fishhook, (J)
- 10 – Dime (T)
- 9 – Niner (9)
- 8 – Snowman, Fat Lady, Ocho (8)
- 7 – Hockey Stick (7)
- 6 – Boot (6)
- 5 – Spot (5)|Jesse James
- 4 – Sailboat, Sharp Top, Four spot (4)
- 3 – Trey, Crab (3)
- 2 – Deuce, Duck (2)

Now when a poker game starts you’re given 2 cards known as pocket cards.

Statistically in about about 6% of deals you get a matched pair, for example, 2 Hooks (Jacks) these are called pocket pairs.

In order of “power” they are:

- AA – Pocket Rockets, Rockets, Bullets, or American Airlines
- KK – Cowboys, King Kong, Gorillas, Kangaroos, Monarchs, or Krispy Kreme
- QQ – Ladies, Hookers, or Siegfried & Roy
- JJ – Fishhooks, Hooks, Jokers, or Jay Birds
- TT – Dimes or Tension
- 99 – Gretzky, Popeye’s, or Phil Hellmuth
- 88 – Snowmen, Fat Ladies, Dog Balls, or Race Tracks
- 77 – HockeySticks, SunsetStrip, or Mullets
- 66 – Route 66, Kicks, or Cherries
- 55 – Presto, Speed Limit, or Nickels
- 44 – Magnum, Sail Boats, or Middle Age
- 33 – Crabs or Treys
- 22 – Ducks, Pocket Swans, or Deuces.

While pocket pairs are great to have they just don’t happen often enough to be your only playable hand option.

The following unpaired pockets though, are ones you may play depending on the risk and cost in the game and what you’re reading from other players, in order of potential, they are:

- AK – Big Slick or Walking back to Houston
- AQ – Little Slick, Big Chick, or Doyle Brunson
- AJ – Blackjack, Ajax, or Jackass
- AT – Bookend or Johnny Moss
- A5 – High Five
- A4 – Topped Four
- A3 – Ashtray or Baskin and Robbins
- A2 – Hunting Season or Acey-Deucy
- KQ – Marriage (if suited) or Mixed Marriage (if not suited)
- KJ – Kojak, King John, or Tucson Monster
- KT – Kate or Katie
- QJ – Maverick or Oedipus
- QT – Quentin Tarantino
- JT – Days of Old
- T9 – Paint Plus Connector
- 98 – Oldsmobile
- 87 – RPM
- 76 – Union Oil
- 65 – Medicare
- 54 – Jesse James or Colt.

There are many names for the bigger and final hand combos, here are a few of the ones you may hear more often.

- KKK – Alabama Night Riders or Three Wise Men
- TTT – Thirty Miles of Bad Road
- 222 – Huey, Dewey and Louie.
- AA88Q – Dead Man’s Hand
- AKQJT – Broadway
- A5432 – Wheel
- 3 of a Kind – Set (if you hold a pocket pair matched by a ‘community card’)
- 3 of a kind – Trips (if one is in your pocket and two are ‘board cards’)
- Full House – Boat or All The In-Laws
- 4 of a Kind – Quads or Quad Set.

I hope this was a fun and useful article, if you are at the stage of learning the card names then I suggest when you play you play free poker online where you can learn without fear of loss.

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How To Play Poker For Beginners Basic Poker Hand Play Process Guide

In part 2 of this learn how to play poker online free poker course we are continuing with the basic rules lesson from part 1.

Now it is time to get into specific detail and learn each part of a hand of poker so that you can (cautiously!) start to play.

To begin, the action starts as the blind bets are laid by the Small and Big Blinds (SB and BB). Now it’s time for cards! If this means nothing to you go back to How To Play Poker For Beginners part 1.

From the Dealer Button (DB) going clockwise rounf the table each player gets 2 cards, face down, handed out one at a time (so the DB goes round the table twice). These are also called Pocket Cards or hole cards.

Now the betting begins; and, after all, isn’t that why you decided to take up the game of poker? That is why I’m sure you now find yourself seated at a free poker tournament table isn’t it? The whole betting and winning with it’s associated moves of dare and deception is the main reason you’ve joined that online poker site be it free poker or massive stakes isn’t it?

Of course that’s why you’re there, poker is all about winning money at the end of the day! Nothing more, nothing less (with the possible exception of social interaction in the chat lobby or the table’s chat box).

At this point in the hand (holding 2 pocket cards), each player is betting on what hand they feel their pocket cards could lead to.

The betting starts with the player to the immediate left of the Big Blind (BB).

This player is often referred to as the ‘Under The Gun’ (UTG) position at the table. This is because the Small and Big Blind position players were forced to lay down bets before they got any cards.

Thus, both the SB and BB are already taking part in the hand; albeit not voluntarily, at least not yet; they’ll have to wait until the betting comes around to them.

And, for this round of betting, each player has three choices:

1) To fold. You do this if you think you have rubbish cards, also called “rags” cards. By folding in this first round you won’t lose anything but nor can you play the rest of the hand.

2) To raise. Usually when they think that they hold really good pocket cards.

3) Or you can call to match the Big Blind bet. You may do this if you think your cards have at least a bit of potential.

A 4th option you might have heard about, checking, often available in subsequent betting rounds, isn’t an option at this stage.

When the betting reaches the person who posted the Small Blind (SB), if they want to fold then they’ll lose the chips they were forced to put into the pot prior to the cards being dealt. Or, this player can call the Big Blind (by simply putting up the difference between the Small Blind and the Big Blind). Or, this player can call whatever raise has been made, or this player can initiate a raise; or even a re-raise, aa a beginner keep it simple and either just Call the BB or fold, watch and learn othrs to see the raise, new raise and reraise in action.

Then, the Big Blind (BB) player gets to act. If there has been no raise then the BB can Check (do nothing and let the play pass by), or Call, Raise or Re-raise.

About Raises
In a No Limit Texas holdem tournament the amount a player can use to raise is limited only by the chips they hold (limit games as the name suggests have a limit) If say the chip stack is 1500 then the player can raise by any amount upto 1500.

If the player uses all the chips then this is the infamous All In bet. Any time a player raises with all their chips it is called Moving All-in.

And, of paramount importance, especially since you are at the how to play poker online level of the game, make sure that YOUR use of an All-In bet is minimal.

Please do not become yet another free online poker ‘chip-flinger’ (someone who tosses chips around without regard to the quality of their cards).

Once the opening round of betting is completed it’s time to see ‘The Flop’. Things will now start to get really interesting!

The Flop is the set of three cards that are dealt face up in the middle of the table by the Dealer.

1) Each player may use these community cards’ to build their hand. Make sure to read and print a guide to what card hands beat what so that you have a feel for what you are trying to build!

2) Again, as here-to-fore mentioned, the center of the table where these cards are dealt is commonly known as ‘The Board’.

3) With ‘The Flop’ exposed, it’s time for the next round of betting. And, the betting that will occur is based on the 5 cards now available to each player, i.e., 2 Pocket cards and 3 Board’ cards.

The betting commences with the player to the immediate left of the Dealer Button, regardless of whether the Dealer is still active in the hand or not.

The player to the left of the Dealer Button will keep the initial betting action for the rest of the hand. Later, you’ll come to learn that this is the worst position to be in at the table.

Apart from that, the betting process is the same as it was in ‘pre-flop’ betting. However, bear in mind, all of the players who were dealt ‘Pocket’ cards may not be currently playing the hand as they could have folded during the opening round of betting.

So, whichever remaining player is ‘to the immediate left’ of the Dealer Button (DB), it is that person who will be the first player to act; through the hand providing he doesn’t fold.

He is able to check or bet.

A) If he checks, he’s simply passing the choices of checking or betting to the player who sits to his left.

B) If he doesn’t check, and decides to bet, then those that follow will have 3 choices:

1) They can fold

2) They can call

3) Or they can raise. But, since a bet was made, those that follow don’t have the option of ‘checking’.

Once the round of betting has finished, it’s time for another card to be dealt face up on The Board.

This fourth card is called The Turn card, or 4th Street, and, again, the card can be used by all of the remaining players (those players that have not folded). It’s another ‘community card’.

Thus, each remaining player now has use of 6 cards, 4 Board cards, and 2 Pocket cards. Now there are 4 cards on The Board, one additional card to come.

It’s now time for the fifth and final community card to be dealt: The River, or 5th Street.

And, seeing as all the cards have now been dealt, each player remaining in the hand can see what their best five card hand is. Therefore, it’s now time for the final round of betting. And, when the betting ends, the hand is over.

It’s time to see who wins.

Each player who has remained in the hand shows their cards, beginning with the last person to initiate a bet. At a cash or free online poker site the software will handle the process of showing the cards.

The winner is determined via use of the universal poker hand rankings. You’ll find that in subsequent chapter; entitled ‘What Beats What’.

If a player wins a pot because every other player has folded, he can decide whether or not to show his cards or not.

Most people don’t, and it’s typically advised by me to never show your cards. If you’re not required to do so; keep ‘em guessing!

Yet, when you reach an ‘advanced level’ of play, you will get a whole different perspective from me. You see, there are occasions when ‘deceitful strategies’ are going to be added to your acquired set of playing skills. And, a part of the ‘deceitful strategies’ will have you showing your cards. Not now though.

Summing up How To Play Poker For Beginners Free Online Poker Rules Part 2

In part 1 you learned the bare bones of poker, the structure and concepts of the game. Now that you’ve read part 2 you ought to now understand the actual mechanics of a hand of poker. In part 3 we will move on to more poker words and terminology, all those crazy card and hand nicknames are going to be unveiled! But so long as you’ve understood the first 2 parts now you can go and start to play poker. However I do advise you read up on what cards beat what first! Then you’ll get a feel for how to build your hand in the game stages and be able to think about whether to fold, call, raise or check.

At this point I strongly urge you not to try and play on sites where real money is involved, you certainly will lose all or nearly all of it 99% certain!

Be patient (incidentally that is a key poker skill you will need to master) and begin out on one of the excellent free poker sites you will find online. Later when you are more skilled there is lots of time for you to win a bunch of money and the time you spend playing free online poker will pave the way for this.

Nick runs marketing for leading free poker online site NoPayPOKER.com. www.NoPayPOKER.com is USA legal and uses faux currency which makes it totally risk free and so is the perfect place to how to play poker online as well as practice your game if you are more experienced or want a break from the stress of money sites!

How To Play Poker Online Outline Of How To Play A Poker Hand

In part 2 of this learn how to play poker online free online poker course we are continuing with the basic rules lesson from part 1.

Now it is time to get into specific detail and learn each part of a hand of poker so that you can (cautiously!) start to play.

Now you are seated at the table and the Small Blind (SB) and Big Bling (BB) have placed their starting blind bets. Now it’s time for cards! If this means nothing to you go back to How To Play Poker For Beginners part 1.

From the Dealer Button (DB) going clockwise rounf the table each player gets 2 cards, face down, handed out one at a time (so the DB goes round the table twice). These are your Pocket Cards, also known simply as pockets and alternatively hole cards.

Now it is time for the betting to begin, that is after all, I imagine why you want to play poker! That is why I’m sure you now find yourself seated at a free online poker tournament table isn’t it? The whole betting and winning with it’s associated moves of dare and deception is the main reason you’ve joined that online poker site be it free online poker or massive stakes isn’t it?

Of course that’s why you’re there, poker is all about winning money at the end of the day! With the possible exception of the social side anyway, the table and lobby conversations though if you are at all serious about money then this is a very minor reason.

At this stage in the hand (holding 2 pocket cards), each player is betting on what hand they feel their pocket cards could lead to.

The betting starts with the player to the immediate left of the Big Blind (BB).

This player sits in what’s known as the Under The Gun position, UTG for short. This is because the Small and Big Blind position players were forced to lay down bets before they got any cards.

Thus, both the SB and BB are already taking part in the hand; albeit not voluntarily, at least not yet; they’ll have to wait until the betting comes around to them.

And, with this round of betting, each player has three choices:

1) To fold. Usually when they think that their pocket cards are garbage (or rags). By folding in this first round you won’t lose anything but nor can you play the rest of the hand.

2) To raise. You raise if you think you’ve got good cards.

3) Or you can call to match the Big Blind bet. You may do this if you think your cards have at least a bit of potential.

A 4th option you might have heard of, checking, often available in subsequent betting rounds, isn’t an option at this stage.

When the betting reaches the person who posted the Small Blind (SB), if they want to fold then they’ll lose the chips they were forced to put into the pot prior to the cards being dealt. Or, as SB you can Call the BB by putting in the difference between the SB and BB amounts. Or, this player can call whatever raise has been made, or this player can initiate a raise; or even a re-raise, aa a beginner keep it simple and either just Call the BB or fold, watch and learn othrs to see the raise, new raise and reraise in action.

Then, the Big Blind (BB) player gets to act. If there has been no raise then the BB can Check (do nothing and let the play pass by), or Call, Raise or Re-raise.

About Raises
As this is a No Limit Texas Hold Em tournament, the amount of any one raise is only limited by the number of chips the player who is doing the raising is in possession of. If say the chip stack is 1500 then the player can raise by any amount upto 1500.

Should he opt to make a 1,500 chip bet, it would be called an All-In bet. It’s always an all-in bet any time a player raises by the total amount of chips he currently holds.

And, of paramount importance, especially since you are at the how to play poker online level of the game, make certain that YOUR use of an All-In bet is the minimum.

Please do not become yet another free online poker ‘chip-flinger’ (someone who tosses chips around without regard to the quality of their cards).

Once the opening round of betting is completed it’s time to see ‘The Flop’. Things will now start to get really interesting!

The Flop is the set of three cards that are dealt face up in the middle of the table by the Dealer.

1) Each player can use these community cards’ to build their hand. Make sure to read and print a guide to what card hands beat what so that you have a feel for what you are trying to build!

2) Again, as here-to-fore mentioned, the middle of the table where these cards are dealt is typically referred to as ‘The Board’.

3) With ‘The Flop’ exposed, it’s time for the next round of betting. And, the betting that will occur is based on the 5 cards currently available to each player, i.e., 2 Pocket cards and 3 Board’ cards.

The betting starts with the player to the immediate left of the Dealer Button, regardless of whether the Dealer is still active in the hand or not.

The player to the left of the Dealer Button will keep the initial betting action for the rest of the hand. Later, you’ll come to learn that this is the worst position to be in at the table.

Apart from that, the betting process is the same as it was in ‘pre-flop’ betting. However, bear in mind, all of the players who were dealt ‘Pocket’ cards may not be currently playing the hand as they could have folded during the opening round of betting.

So, whichever remaining player is ‘to the immediate left’ of the Dealer Button (DB), it is that person who will be the first player to act; through the hand providing he doesn’t fold.

He can check or bet.

A) If he checks, he’s simply passing the options of checking or betting to the player who sits to his left.

B) If he doesn’t check, and decides to bet, then those that follow will have 3 choices:

1) They can fold

2) They can call

3) Or they can raise. But, since a bet was made, those that follow don’t have the option of ‘checking’.

Once the round of betting has finished, it’s time for another card to be dealt face up on The Board.

This fourth card is called The Turn card, or 4th Street, and, again, the card can be used by all of the remaining players (those players that have not folded). It’s another ‘community card’.

Thus, each remaining player now has access to 6 cards, 4 Board cards, and 2 Pocket cards. There are 4 cards on The Board, one additional card to come.

It is now time for the fifth and final community card to be dealt: The River, or 5th Street.

And, seeing as all the cards have finally been dealt, each player remaining in the hand can see what their finest five card hand is. Therefore, it’s now time for the final round of betting. And, once the betting ends, the hand is over.

It’s time to see who wins.

Each player that has remained in the hand shows their cards, beginning with the last person to initiate a bet. At a cash or free online poker site the software will handle the process of showing the cards.

The winner is determined via use of the universal poker hand rankings. You’ll find that in subsequent chapter; entitled ‘What Beats What’.

If a player wins a pot because every other player has folded, he can decide whether to show his cards or not.

The majority of people don’t, and it’s typically advised by me never to show your cards. If you’re not required to do so; keep ‘em guessing!

Yet, when you reach an ‘advanced level’ of play, you will get a whole different perspective from me. You see, there are occasions when ‘deceitful strategies’ will be added to your acquired set of playing skills. And, a part of the ‘deceitful strategies’ will have you showing your cards. Not now though.

Summing up How To Play Poker For Beginners Free Online Poker Rules Part 2

In part 1 you learned the bare bones of poker, the structure and ideas of the game. Now that you’ve read part 2 you should now understand the specific mechanics of a hand of poker.

In part 3 we are going to move on to more poker words and terminology, all those crazy card and hand nicknames are going to be unveiled! But as long as you’ve understood the first 2 parts now you can go and start to play poker.

It’s a very good idea though to firstly read and print off a sheet on what card hands beat what! Then you’ll get a feel for how to build your hand in the game stages and be able to think about whether to fold, call, raise or check.

At this point I strongly urge you not to try and play on sites where real cash is involved, you will lose all or nearly all of it 99% certain!

Be patient (by the way that is a key poker skill it’s essential to master) and begin out on one of the excellent free poker sites you’ll find online. Later when you are more skilled there’s lots of time to win a bunch of money and the time you spend playing free online poker will set you up for this.

Nick runs marketing for leading free poker online site NoPayPOKER.com. NoPayPOKER.com uses a faux currency called FreeD which means the poker is 100% risk free, this makes it the perfect place to how to play poker online, plus if you’re more experienced it’s a great place to practice, oh and the the fact that the FreeD can be cashed in for real Dollars is a nice touch too!

Learn How To Play Poker For Beginners Basic Poker Game Process Guide

In this learn how to play poker for beginners session you will learn the basic poker game processes. Happily for you, once you get the hang of them they’re not as hard as they may seem at first glance. So, let’s begin by looking at free online poker freeroll tournaments which is the sort of game you should start with as a poker beginner.

free online poker freeroll tournaments vary from 20 to hundreds of players. A good point with these game is that most of the other players you’ll find on them are no more than average and many are beginners too.

So, to start, you login to your free online poker site and go join a game. As mentioned each of these tournaments will have multiple tables. You can divide the number of players by 10, and you’ll know how many tables are a part of the tournament. If the number is not exactly divisible by 10 as is likely then you round up, so if there are 77 players it means there will be 8 tables to start.

Now the online poker software of the site you play at will seat you at a randomly selected table and seat. There are loads of games running daily round the clock on good free online poker sites so don’t worry about your success (or lack of!) initially, there are always more games to enter.

Who Wins and How?
Fundamentally, the winner of any 1 hand will be the player who has the best cards.

The outline of the game process is this:
You take your seat and the game starts. The Dealer Button player is selected and the small and large blind players make their bets (all covered below so don’t worry!)

Firstly you are given two cards, known as pocket cards, only you can see these. Next there is a round of blind betting, it’s called blind as there is no way to guess or infer what cards other players have, no more than 3 raises to the first blind bet are allowed which is a rule that remains so in future rounds.

Next, the Dealer will expose 3 cards on the table. These are called community cards, and can be used by all of the players who are participating in the hand.

At this point, another round of betting occurs.

Next the dealer adds one more card to the community cards to make four face up cards for all players to use.

This is followed by another round of betting.
Last, the Dealer will add a 5th card to the community cards. Again followed by another round of betting.

Now lets look at this in more detail:
The first two cards you get that only yoiu can see are called Pocket Cards or just Pockets for short. They are dealt out, one at a time, left to right, to everyone at the table. Only you can see your pockets, never show anyone else these cards!

The Dealer then exposes 3 “community cards” to all players on the table. This stage is known as “The Flop”.

When he exposes the 4th “community card”, it’s known as “The Turn” (or, 4th Street).

And, when he exposes the 5th “community card”, it’s known as “The River” (or, 5th Street).

All 3 to 5 “community cards” that are exposed on the poker table at any one time are known as “The Board”.

Every player who is participating in the hand through the process of betting (if you “folded”, you’re no longer in the hand), attempts to make the best possible five-card hand.

They can use any 5 of the 7 cards that are available to them; one, both, or none of their pocket cards, together with 3, 4, or 5 of the “community cards”.
The player with the best 5 card hand wins all of the money that has been bet (The Pot).

The “Dealer Button” is involved in every hand to be played. One of the game’s participants gets the Dealer Button (DB); the selection of the player who first receives the DB is done by the free online poker software.

If you are playing at a live game such as in a casino then the DB is a round disc, normally with a D printed on it. At a paid or free online poker site, the software will automatically place a symbol of sorts on your PC screen to identify the DB.

the DB position is very important as the a players to the left of the DB have to make the blind bets.

The DB is the best position to have and blind the worst, no something to worry about now, the NoPayPOKER.com intermediate level article series Building A Bankroll goes into great depth on this subject. Additionally, at the end of every hand, the Dealer Button (DB) moves one position to the left; thus, everyone acts as the “virtual dealer” in an Internet game, and, everyone is forced to place “blind” bets.

Blind Bets? What are they?
This is how the game starts.
The player to the immediate left of the Dealer Button (DB) is compelled to put up the Small Blind (SB).
The player to the immediate left of the Small Blind (SB) is compelled to put up the Big Blind (BB).
These “blind bets” are placed in the pot, in front of the dealer. This essentially kickstarts the betting, and, it”s all done before anyone has gotten any cards!

This, for the lack of any other rational reason, means that the winner of the hand that’s about to be played, will, at a minimum, collect the small amount of money that has been “forced” into the pot by the blind bets.

In a multi-table freeroll, or any No Limit free online poker tournament game, the size of the Small Blind (SB) and the size of the Big Blind (BB) are very low at the start of the game. And, every player in the game begins the game with the same amount of free online poker faux-money; or, for practical purposes, poker chips.

Usually, in 15 minute intervals, the size of the “blinds” increase.
As an example, if the beginning “blinds” were $10 (SB) and $20 (BB), within 15 minutes the “blinds” would change to $20 (SB) and $40 (BB).

And, thereafter, as the game progresses, the “blinds” continue to go up every 15 minutes.

In the end, at the final table in a tournament (the last remaining 10 players), the “blinds” could easily reach the point of being $2,000 (SB) and $4,000 (BB).

Now don’t be alarmed, the dollar amounts tied to the Small Blinds (SB) and Big Blinds (BB) in the preceding paragraph, during all freeroll games played on free online poker sites are “fictional” amounts of money. It’s not real money. It’s merely a “tournament representation” of money; it’s free online poker faux-money, they’re poker chips, not real dollars.

This is one reason why it is a very good idea to learn to play poker as a beginner on free poker sites, it can get very expensive very quickly if you start on a real money site!

Winning and Money

The good news with a poker tournament is that the 1st place player doesn’t take all the money. Yes, the absolute winner does get a lions share but other players do get a cut too. How many players and how much is determined by the number of players who enter and the size of the pot. You an find out this information before the game starts.

As the game progresses players are knocked out and tables amalgamate. At some point only those who will share the money are left. If you are still in at this stage then you are now “in the money” or “in the bubble” as it is also commonly called.

When just 10 players are left you will be on the “Final Table”, typically to win any decent amount you need to be here even in very large poker tournament though places lower than this can often at least pay back your cost of joining the game if it is a buy in game.

Right at the end with just 2 players left you will be “head to head”…but that is a story for another day!

Summing up How To Play Poker For Beginners Part 1
In this stage we looked at basic game processes. In part 2 we’ll get into more detail on the stages described and look at what you actually physically do and consider some essential basic free online poker strategy.

Nick runs marketing for leading free online poker site NoPayPOKER.com. NoPayPOKER.com uses a virtual currency, FreeD which makes the poker games totally risk free, this makes NoPay the ideal place to learn how to play poker for beginners. More experienced players also like it as it’s a great place to try new ideas and stategies out, plus the fact that the FreeD can be swapped for real Dollars is a nice touch too!