Tournament Glossary

[Valiant23]

I've been playing for about a month now, and think I understand the basics of Poker (Texas Hold 'em). However, I've primarily played in one kind of tournament (freeroll). The terminology can be confusing, and I'm hoping you all can help fill in the blanks in my knowledge. STT Single Table Tournament. One table. Up to 10(?) players. Each is allocated equal chips. Prizes are paid from the table entries dependant on finish. MTT Multi Table Tournament. Amount of tables dependant on the number of entries, which can reach into the thousands. Up to 10(?) players per table. Again each player starts with equal chips. Prizes are paid depending where you finish. As an example Poker.com has a limit in some MTT's of 1000 players and pay the top 100, although you may not make much unless you reach the final table. Freerolls Are a type of MTT which cost no money to enter. There are several types of freerolls: Promotional Freerolls Absolutely free. All you normally need is a real money account. The poker host puts up the prize money to entice/persuade punters to use their site, and encourage participation. Payout is the same as MTT above. Forum Freerolls PuntersLounge recently had a $1000 freeroll at GoldenPalace poker. This was not an open freeroll, as you had to be a member of the Worlds best betting forum to be eligible :ok. Sponsored Freerolls Such as the extremely popular Telegraph FF Poker Tournament. To play in these freerolls you need a password-in the case of the Telegraph this changes on a weekly basis. This may also be viewed as a Satellite Tournament as there is no cash prize available at the qualifying stage. The prize here is a seat in the final, which is played at a later date. Jamiebhoy recently won 1st prize ($10,000) in a manchesteronline-sponsored tournament. To do this he had to qualify for the final, then beat 300 people in a MTT called the Manchesteronline final. Special Entry Freerolls Many sites offer freerolls that are open to people who can meet a certain criteria. This may be playing x number of 'raked hands', or making a deposit at the poker room, or any number of other conditions. Satellites Are MTT's that do not have an initial cash prize on offer. They are not always free to enter, but offer a cheap way to enter a high value tournament. As an example a poker room could have a WSOP satellite tournament that cost $10 +$1 to enter. The prize on offer is a seat at a WSOP tournament that could be bought for (as an example) $1,000. Obviously it provides an opportunity, rather than a cash reward. Bounty Tournaments Are special tournaments in which certain players have a cash(?) bounty on their heads. The one I'm familiar with is BetFreds' Beat The Boss, where the owner (Fred Done), or one of his representatives play in a MTT. The person responsible for taking the last of his chips will win a prize regardless of their final finishing position. Any others? Note to Mods: If you feel this is already covered in 'Poker Novice', please merge or delete as appropriate. I've done it because I feel this is a separate issue from the game of poker, and may serve a purpose in 'Poker News'

[GaF]

Re: Tournament Glossary

Forum Freerolls PuntersLounge recently had a $1000 freeroll at GoldenPalace poker. This was not an open freeroll, as you had to be a member of the best betting forum on the internet to be eligible :ok.

Not just the best betting forum on the internet, it's the "World's best betting forum" ;) Other than that small error, superb piece of work mate :clap :clap :clap :clap Definitely a place for it in Poker News. Indeed, I've been considering a general glossary for it for a while, but haven't gotten around to it yet - this is a great start for me - cheers :ok :ok have you seen - the Beat the Boss tourney on Betfred now has a raked hands requirement :cry

[cains]

Re: Tournament Glossary Here GAF... Is some for the glosery... Should cover most of the poker arena.. :ok You have already made a lot for this poker section, so thought i would help you out with this. ;) ABC Player

An ABC player is a player who is very predictable. This player generally reads a poker book or two and follows them to the word. They always play hands the same way and are generally pretty tight These types of players are often winners at lower stakes and loose games but are easily crushed by advanced players.

Ace High

A hand with no pairs and an Ace high card. This hand beats all other hands with no high cards, and is a possible winner in a heads-up or very short game.

Ace Rag

Ace with a weak kicker

Action

Betting, raising, and calling. A game with a lot of action is a game in which a lot of money is changing hands. These are good games to seek, because the more money moves, the more opportunity you have to win money.

Advertise

When a player advertises, he plays in a different fashion from his usual strategy in order to confuse his opponents. A player will generally alter their strategy so that they play more loose and are more apt to be paid off by their opponents when they hold a strong hand. Example: He is normally is not a loose player, he is just advertising by showing down those bad hands.

Aggressive

A player who bets and raises a lot when he has a good hand.

Ajax

Also known as: Blackjack The hold'em starting hand Ace-Jack (AJ)

All-In

Also known as: Going All-In. To bet all your chips, or to call with all your chips. If another player bets more chips than you have in a No Limit game, you can go all-in and stake your total stack against an equivalent amount of your opponent's stack.

Alligator Blood

Used to describe a player who plays fearlessly when short-stacked and wins, or optionally, a player who plays for a long time short-stacked, winning just enough to keep them in the game.

American Airlines

Also known as: Rockets, Pocket Rockets A hand with two aces in the hole (AA)

Ante

A small amount of chips placed into the pot before each hand. This acts as a "tax" for playing hands and is usually used in Stud games, whereas Hold'em games usually have blinds.

Aquarium

An aquarium is a poker room or game that has a lot of fish in it.

Assassin

During tournament play, a player on a lucky streak who eliminates several/all opponents from play.

Axs

Axs is a poker abbreviation for Ace-X suited. It means to hold an ace and a low card of the same suit. The other card is generally 9 or below. For example, a hand of A6 of clubs would fall into the category of Axs.

Bad Beat

A bad beat is a loss in which the losing player had the better odds on the winning player earlier in the hand. In general, the term is used when all the chips go in the pot when the losing player had odds. To take a bad beat means to be on the losing end of a bad beat; to lay a bad beat means to be on the winning end of a bad beat.

Ballerina

Two two's in your hand

Baseball

A 3 and 9 as your hole cards. Based on the well-known poker game with 3's and 9's wild. Too bad they're not wild in hold'em =).

Baskin Robbins

The Hold'em starting hand Ace-Three.. 31 Flavors :)

BB

Short for big blind or big bet

Beer Hand

Generally a 2-7 offsuit, although some consider the 2-7 suited to be a beer hand as well. 2-7 Time for a beer Considered the worst stating hand in hold em

Belly Buster

Also known as: Gutshot. An inside straight draw, synonym of gutshot.

Bet

To put chips into the pot. Other players must either Call your bet, Raise you, or Fold.

Bet the Pot

Also known as: Pot-Sized Bet. To bet an amount of chips approximately equal to the amount of chips in the pot. In Pot Limit games, this is the maximum bet; however, the pot size in Pot-Limit games is calculated in an unintuitive way: All the money in the pot, plus (if you have been raised) the amount you would bet if you reraised.

Bicycle

Also known as: Wheel. The poker hand A2345. This is the lowest possible straight.

Big Bet

The larger bet in a fixed-limit game. For example, in a $10-$20 game, the $10 bet is the small bet and the $20 bet is the big bet.

Big Blind

The larger of the two forced bets preflop. The person in second position posts the big blind, which is equivalent to a small bet.

Big Chick

Hole Cards: One Ace, One Queen

Big Slick

A hand with an ace and a king in the hole (AK).

Bird on a Stick

The Holdem Starting Hand 72.

Blackjack

The hold'em starting hand Ace-Jack (AJ). Named after the popular casino game.

Blank

A card that means nothing to anyone's hand. For example, in a hold'em game if the board is: As Ks Jd 8h, if a 3c came on the river, the 3c is considered a blank considered a blank.

Blinds

These are the forced bets that take the place of an ante. The person to the left of the dealer must pay the small blind and the person after him must pay the big blind.

Bluff

To bluff means to make a bet that you hope is not called by your opponents. The aim of a bluff is to win a pot because everyone else folds.

Board Cards

The cards in the middle of the table that are shared by everyone.

Boat

Also known as: Full Boat, Full House. A Full House.

Bottom Pair

Also known as: Third Pair. A Pair consisting of the lowest card on the Flop and one of your hole cards.

Break

Betting a strong hand very forcefully in order to win a huge pot. Often, this means you will put your opponent all-in. This also can mean killing another player's spirits by beating him or her into submission. For example, if a player consistently loses over a night and loses a lot of his/her money, that player may be considered 'broken.'

Brick and Mortar

This refers to a land-based casino such as the ones on the Vegas strip.

Broadway

Broadway means a straight from ten to ace. This is the best possible straight.

Buckets

A pocket pair of fours.

Bullets

Also known as: Rockets, American Airlines. Pocket Aces.

Burn

1.To place a card down prior to dealing the flop,turn and river. 2. (Verb) - To burn a Card. The card that is placed down is termed the 'burned/burnt card'.

Button

At most casinos, the players themselves do not deal the cards. Therefore, a button is used to indicate who is in the dealer's seat. Except in the preflop round, the player who is on the button acts last in a round of betting.

Call

To place an amount of chips in the pot equal to the previous bet. It is necessary to at least call a bet to stay in the game; the other options are to raise or fold. .

Calling Station

Also known as: Loose-Passive, Policeman. Type of player who will call a lot. They do not think about other people's hands, but rather just want to see if their hand will win. They do not bluff much and are not aggressive; they just call a lot.

Candy Canes

Another term for pocket sevens in Texas Hold'em.

Canine

The hold'em starting hand King-Nine (K9).

Cap

In Limit, to make the maximum amount of raises allowed in a betting round. A common cap seen in internet games is 4 bets per round (in other words, one bet and three raises).

case

The case (x) refers to the last card available of that rank in the deck. For example, if I hold pocket tens and the board is TAA4 and a ten comes on the river, that final card is considered the case ten.

Cash Game

Also known as: Ring Game. This is the typical, non-tournament poker game where players buy-in and cash out as they please.

Chase

Also known as: Draw. To call in the hopes of hitting a draw. This word often connotes that someone is a calling station and will call even with bad odds.

Check

To not put any chips into the pot, to decline to bet. If it is your turn to act, and there is no bet to you, you may check instead of betting. However, if there is a bet to you, then you must call, raise, or fold.

Check-Raise

To check with the intention of raising your opponent's bet. This is a technique used to get more money into the pot (two bets instead of one), and is more effective at Limit Poker than at No Limit

Chop

A chop essentially means to split the pot. It can be used in two situations: 1. If everyone folds to the blinds, the blinds may elect to have the blind money returned to them and proceed to the next hand. 2. A chop can refer to just splitting the pot between the players. Either the players hands are tied or the players agree to simply split the pot in half instead of seeing whose hand wins (this occurs rarely and only if the pot is very large and the players hands are of almost equivalent value).

Cold Call

This means to call a bet and a raise. An example would be if it is preflop and you are in late position, a person in earlier position raises the blinds and you call two bets flat. See also: Call, Raise.

Cold Cards

A player who is receiving cold cards is usually an experienced rounder who is having bad luck due to a long running string of bad cards. A similar example is a writer who is experiencing "writers block".

Collusion

Collusion is a form of cheating. Players will work in a team to try to gain an advantage over the other players. They will somehow signal to each other what their cards are. They will then use this information to gain an unfair advantage. Collusion is illegal. It is sometimes hard for brick and mortar cardrooms to detect colluders, but online poker rooms can track potential colluders becasue they can review hand histories.

Colt 45

4 and 5 of spades

Community Cards

Also known as: Board Cards.

Computer Hand

A starting hand that, on average, is the median of all other hands. Q

Connected

When your hole cards are consecutive, (89, 45, etc. When someone is suited and connected they are holding consecutive cards of the same suit, (QsJs, 2d3d)

Counterfeit

Sometimes a card will come on the board that will hurt your hand because it makes previously valuable cards in your hand communal property. For example, suppose you hold A9 in a game of Texas Hold'em. The board is 5678. You hold a straight to the 9! However, if the final card on the river comes a 9, your hand is counterfeited. Now, everyone has a straight to the nine. Being counterfeited occurs a lot in Omaha Hi-Lo. Many times people's lows are counterfeited by the board. Suppose you hold AAK2. The board is 367Q. You hold the nut low (A2367). However, if the river comes a 2, you no longer hold the nut low. Your low is A2367 still. However, someone with A4 in their hand will have you beat with a low of A2346.

Cowboys

Reference to holding pocket kings (KK) as a starting hand in Texas Hold'em.

Crabs

To get dealt pocket 3's.

Cutoff

The seat in front of the button, i.e., the last player to act before the button does.

Dead Man's Hand

1. Holding two pair of aces and eights. Legendary lawman and gambler Wild Bill Hickok was shot to death while holding this hand. 2. (Less common) A hand in Texas Hold 'Em consisting of a 2 7 offsuit. This is considered the worst hand in Texas Hold 'Em.

Dead Money

An inexperienced player who has virtually no shot at winning a tournament. Their chips are said to be "dead money."

Destiny Seat

Also known as: Hot Seat, Lucky Seat. A position that wins regardless of what [hole cards] the player has. Wins all hands played, even with ridiculously inferior odds. Lays [bad beats] and causes [tilt] in players.

Dime

Gambler slang for $1,000.

Dollar

A dollar is gambling slang for a $100 bet.

Dolly Parton

A Hold 'Em hand of 9-5 (for her movie of same name).

Dominated

In Hold'em, a hand that is similar to another hand but has a lower kicker. For example, AQ dominates A8 because even if an ace come, AQ still has a better hand. To win, the person with A8 would need to hit an 8 without the other player hitting a queen or would need to hit a weird straight or flush. Someone whose hand is dominated has few outs and thus little chance to win.

Door Card

This is a player's first exposed 'up' card in seven card stud.

Double Up

To double the size of your chip stack on a single hand. (This is typically done by going All In against another player and winning the hand.)

Down Card

Also known as: Hole Card.

Doyle Brunson

The Hold'em Starting Hand Ten-Two (T2). Doyle Brunson won the WSOP two years in a row with this hand.:

Draw

Drawing means hoping to improve your hand with the cards that will come on the board. You are on a draw when you want other cards to come out on the board to complete your hand. If you have 10 9 and the flop is QJ2, you are trying to draw an eight or a king on the turn or river.

Drawing Dead

Drawing to a hand that will lose even if you hit your draw. For example, if you have a flush draw but your opponent already has a full house, you are drawing dead.

Drawout

Also known as: Bad Beat. When someone hits a draw against you to win the hand.

Ducks

Also known as: "deuces". A pocket pair of two's, also known as deuces.

Early Position

These are the people in the small blind, big blind, and under the gun positions. These players have to act earlier during betting rounds after the flop.

EP

Short for early position.

EV

Short for expected value

Expected Value

This is a mathematical term that is highly relevent to poker. It is how much you expect to win on a hand in the long run. For example, suppose you have a 50% chance of winning a $12 pot. Sometimes you will win $12 and sometimes you will win $0. However, your expected value is $6. The way you calculate expected value is (percentage chance of winning * pot size). For more information, please read this article: http://www.pokertips.org/strategy/expected-value.php Expected value is central to the concept of pot equity

Family Pot

Also known as: Multi-way Pot. When more than three players are contending for a pot, the pot is often considered a family pot. These pots often occur when there are many fish at the table, and the game is very loose.

Fifth Street

Also known as: River. Also known as the river

Fish

A fish is a bad player, who often loses a lot of money.

Fishhooks

Pocket jacks

Five of a Kind

A poker hand consisting of five cards of the same rank. This is only possible when playing with wild cards.

Fixed-Limit

Also known as: Limit Poker. Fixed-Limit is another way to say Limit Poker. There are set bets. For example, in a $3-$6 game, the bets and raises preflop and on the flop are $3 each, and the bets and raises on the river are $6 each.

Flat Tire

Jack and Four suited or not. As in, "If you have a flat tire, it's what you use the jack "four". Also know to deflate bad player's stacks.

Float the Boat

When a player catches the miracle card he/she needs to win on the river.

Flop

The first three board cards in Holdem.

Flush

A poker hand consisting of 5 cards of the same suit.

Flush Draw

When a player has four cards in his hand of the same suit and is hoping to draw a fifth to make a flush.

Fold

To not match the bet in the pot and to thus forfeit the hand. The player throws the hand into the muck and is out of the hand. You should fold when you think you will lose the hand.

Four of a Kind

Also known as: Quads. A poker hand consisting of four cards of the same rank and one other card.

Fourth Street

Also known as: The Turn. Also known as the turn

Free Card

A free card refers to seeing the turn or river card without having to make/call a bet. Example: Suppose you have a T9 of spades, and you are on the button. The flop is AK4; the ace and king are of spades. It is checked to you, and you check as well. The turn comes. The turn card is a free card; you did not have to call a bet to see if you would complete your flush draw on the turn.

Freeroll

Most often, a freeroll refers to a touranment with no entry free. These sorts of tournaments are generally promotions run by poker rooms to attract customers. For example, a $5000 freeroll means that the poker room is putting up $5000 in prize money for a tournament, and there is no entry fee into the tournament. A freeroll can also be used in reference to a poker game. It occurs when two players with the same hand are against each other. However, one player will have a draw to a stronger hand, and the other player will not. For example, suppose Joe has QJ of spades and Bob has QJ of diamonds. The board is AKT, with the ace and king of spades, and the ten of clubs. This means both Joe and Bob have a straight. However, Joe also has a draw to a flush. This means that either Joe and Bob will tie for the pot or Joe will win. In this case, Joe is considered to have a freeroll.

Full Boat

Also known as: Full House, Boat.

Full Employment

The starting hand Jack 4. Named full employment because if you play Jack 4 you'll always have a day job.

Full House

Also known as: Boat, Full Boat. A poker hand consisting of a three-of-a-kind and a pair.

Gambler

A gambler can mean many things: -It can mean anyone who wagers money. -It can be synonymous with a maniac. Often, people who enjoy drawing, even with bad odds are called gamblers. These types of gamblers are considered fish. -It can mean a professional, solid poker player. According to Doyle Brunson, a gambler is the nickname of the highest breed of poker player. They can win significant amounts of money at high stakes games.

Gap Concept

The gap concept is a term coined by David Sklansky. It is a tournament strategy concept relating to the idea that it takes a stronger hand to call a raise preflop than to make the original raise. In essence, there is a "gap" between the hands that can make a raise and hands that can call a raise. In a tournament, stealing the blinds holds a lot of value. Thus, one can be fairly liberal with raising the pot pre-flop in order to make a steal. However, to call a bet requires a much better hand because you can not win the hand preflop uncontested.

Ghost Dog

Hole cards of 4 7, suited or not.

Golf Bag

a flush of clubs

Grinder

Also known as: Rounder. A grinder is the same as a rounder. These tend to be semi-professional players that make most of their money playing poker, though they do not make much money. A grinder plays in a similar fashion as a rock. Often, these players can beat lower and mid-stakes games but can not beat or make much money at the higher stakes games.

Gutshot

Also known as: Belly Buster. An inside straight draw. An example of a gutshot (also known as belly buster) is to have 89JQ, aiming to hit a ten.

Half-Hacked

When in Hold 'Em poker, during a showdown or after a bluff, the winning player shows only one card to the opposing player and mucks the other. A perfect example of this was during the Tournament of Champions when Annie Duke had a 2-pair (Kings and Nines) and Phil Hellmuth had top Pair (Kings). After a series of bets, Annie decided to re-raise Phil, after much deliberation, Phil folded. Annie then showed just the nine and mucked the King, therefore making phil believe he folded the winning hand.

Heads Up

Heads Up refers to when there are only two people in the pot. Example, a one versus one game is a heads up match. Another example of "heads up" is if one person raises preflop and only one person calls. The pot is "heads up" at the flop because there are only two people competing for the pot.

High Card

High Card means to hold a poker hand that does not contain anything special. Someone does not hold any paired cards, a straight, or a flush. Thus, their poker hand is simply referred to their highest ranking card. A person with AKJ75 would have a high card ace, while the rest of the cards are kickers.

High Society

Gambler slang for $10,000.00 in chips

Hilton Sisters

Also known as: Ladies. To be dealt two queens at the beginning of a hand (Q,Q)

hockey sticks

a pair of sevens as your starting hand

Hole Card

Also known as: Down Card. A card which is dealt to the player face down so that no other player can see it.

Hooks

A Pair of Jacks

Hourly Rate

Hourly rate refers to how much one wins or losses per hour. For example, suppose someone lost $100 playing poker over 20 hours of play. That person's hourly rate is -$5. People also refer to hourly rate in terms of BB/hour. For example, if that person who lost $100 was playing $1-$2 limit, this means he or she lost 50 big blinds over 20 hours. Thus that person's hourly rate could also be measured as -2.5 big bets an hour. Please note, that for no-limit games, BB/hour generally refers to big blinds per hour.

Idiot End

Also known as: Bad End. This refers to drawing to the lower end of a straight. For example, if you hold a 45 and the flop is 679, you are drawing to a very low straight. If you hit an 8, someone with even just a ten will beat you. Often, fish lose a lot more money than they should when they draw to the idiot end of a straight.

Implied Odds

The same as pot odds except it takes into account making bets in the future. Thus, you may call a bet at the flop, but have implied odds of making bigger bets on later rounds if you hit your draw. So, if you have AK of diamonds and the flop comes two diamonds, your implied odds are what you have to call at the flop compared to how large the pot will be at the end of the hand.

Jackson Five

Starting hand of a Jack and a Five

Jacquese

The Texas Hold 'Em starting hand of Jack Queen.

Johnny Moss

The hold'em starting hand Ace-Ten. Named after the famous poker player.

Kamikaze

a) A person who is so on tilt that they are literally throwing away their money with no regard. b) The hold'em starting hand KK

Kicker

A kicker is the highest card that is unrelated to the type of poker hand one has. For example, someone with the hand AKKQ54 has a pair of kings with an ace kicker. Kickers are used to break ties. For example, if someone else had KKJ65, that person would have a pair of kings with jack kicker. The person with a pair of kings with ace kicker would beat the person with a jack kicker. If two people have the same type of hand with the same type of kicker, the next highest kicker is used. For example, in a matchup between AKKJ5 versus AKKJ4, the person with AKKJ5 would win. Kickers are also used to determine who wins if both players hold a flush or straight. The highest ranking card of the flush or straight is considered the kicker. For example, if I hold AKT75 of clubs and John holds K8764 of spades, I would win because my flush is to the ace and his is only to the king. Again, if two people have the same highest kicker, the next highest kicker is used until the tie is broken. If two players hold the a flush with all the same kickers, then the pot is split between the two players.

Kill

Kill is when person who wins two pots in a row must post big blind as well.

Kojak

The Hold'em starting hand King-Jack (KJ)

Ladies

The Hold'em starting hand with two queens (QQ).

Lady

Reference to a queen. A pair of queens is often referred to as 'ladies.'

Late Position

These are players that act later in betting rounds. For example, the button and the player in the cutoff position are in late position.

Leak

A consistent flaw in play.

Limit Poker

Poker with fixed bets. In a $2-4 limit game, all bets and raises are two dollars in the first two rounds (preflop and flop), and all bets and raises are four dollars in the last two rounds (turn and river).

Limp In

To only call the big blind.

Limp Raise

To make a small raise preflop. Usually used when you have a very strong hand like AA and wish to provoke a reraise.

Little Slick

Also known as: Big Chick. The hold'em starting hand ace-queen (AQ).

Live One

A fish who will call and raise a lot. A live one is a bad player who is either a calling station or a maniac. They play almost all of their hands and enjoy seeing showdowns.

Longhand

This refers to a poker game with seven or more people.

Loose

Someone who plays a lot of hands. A loose player is often either a maniac or a calling station.

Lotto Player

A player who plays any cards and stays in the pot.

LP

Short for late position.

Maniac

Nickname for a player who is very aggressive. This type of player plays a lot of hand, raises frequently, and often bluffs. Often, maniacs lose a lot of money at poker.

Mechanic

A cheater who uses sleight-of-hand to arrange the deck or deal benefit himself or a partner.

Mid-Life Crisis

Pocket 4s (44)

Middle Position

These are players that tend to act during the middle of a betting round. For example, in a field of 9 players, the players in the 4-6 position are players in middle position.

Mommas and Poppas

pair of Queens and Kings

Motown

jack and fives

MP

Short for middle position.

MTT

Multi Table Tournament

Muck

1. (n.) The area on the table where all of the dead cards are placed. Any hand that was folded and all burned cards are placed in the muck. 2. (v.) To throw your hand away into the muck. This term is often used when another hand is shown at the showdown that beats your hand. It can also mean to fold one's hand.

Near Nuts

Almost the best hand possible, but there is one or more very unlikely hands that could beat it. For example, if you have AA, and the board is AKK93, you have the near nuts, because someone else may have 4-of-a-kind kings.

Newlyweds

Used in Texas Hold em' meaning a starting hand of King-Queen, offsuit or not.

Nickel

Gambler slang for $500.

Nit

Also known as: Rock. A nit is a tight-passive player that avoids confrontations. Typically, the term nit is used when this type of passive player plays in a pot-limit or no-limit game. Nits tend to avoid big pots and do not like to gamble.

NL

No-Limit

No Limit

A betting structure in which there is no maximum bet. Players may bet as much as they want at any time.

Nut-Nut

Also known as: Double Nuts. The best possible low AND high hand in a high-low split game (for example, Omaha Hi-Lo). As an example, you have hole cards of A-2-6-7 and the board is rainbow 3-4-5-9-Q. Your A-2 gives you a wheel (the nut low) and your 6-7 gives you a straight, 3 to the 7 (the best possible high hand given that the rainbow board makes no flush possible). Raise it up, brother!

Nuts

Also known as: Lock, Nut Hand. The best possible hand that is a guaranteed winner.

Octopus

Pocket 8s

Offsuit

Also known as: Unsuited. A Hold'em starting hand with two cards of different suits. These hands are weaker than suited hands because of fewer flush possibilities. Offsuit hands are sometimes denoted by an 'o'; for example, 64o is pronounced "six-four offsuit" and refers to a hand with a six and a four of different suits.

Oldsmobile

The hold'em starting hand nine-eight (98).

Online Poker

Also known as: Internet Poker. This refers to playing poker over the internet. Online poker has boomed in recent years and allows players all over the world to compete against each other. Online poker games can be for real money or play money.

Open-Ended

A 4-card straight draw that can be completed at either end (such as a 6-7-8-9). As opposed to an inside straight draw (such as 6-7-9-10).

Outs

Cards that can improve your hand. If the flop is QJ2 and you have 10 9, you want a king or an eight to complete your straight. There are 4 kings and 4 eights in the deck, so you have 8 total outs

Overbet the Pot

In a No Limit game, to make a bet that is larger than the size of the pot.

Overpair

An overpair is a pocket pair that is higher than any card on the board. For example, if you hold pocket kings and the flop is Q97, you hold an overpair.

Pair

A pair is two cards of the same rank. For example, holding the hand AAK54 would be referred to as holding a pair of aces.

Passive

Also known as: Weak. Someone who does not bet and raise a lot. Someone who is passive is either a rock or a calling station, depending on how much they call with bad hands.

Pinball Machine

Also known as: Tilt-A-Whirl. Someone playing overly loose or aggresive after a bad beat.

PL

Pot-Limit

Play Money

Also known as: Fake Money. This refers to playing a poker game where the chips do not represent real money. Nothing of any value is won or lost in this type of game, so it is not considered gambling. All major online poker rooms have play money games.

Playing the Board

In hold'em, player uses only the cards on the board and none of his/her hole cards.

PLO

Pot Limit Omaha.

PLO8

Pot Limit Omaha high/low split eight or better.

Pocket Pair

In Hold'em, having two hole cards of the same rank. In other words, having a pair face down.

Pocket Rockets

Also known as: Rockets, American Airlines. The Hold'em Starting Hand AA.

Poker Hand

A group of five cards which are ranked according to the hand rankings: Five of a Kind (when playing with wilds) Straight Flush Four of a Kind Full House Flush Straight Three of a Kind Two Pair Pair High Card

Position

Where you sit at the poker table. The dealer has the best position because he bets last and therefore has a better understanding of what other people have in their hand. The small blind has the worst position because he goes first.

Post Oak Bluff

To make a small bet in relation to the size of the pot to bluff and try to take it down.

Pot Equity

Pot equity is your expected value from the pot. Suppose you have a 20% chance to win the pot. There is $100 in the pot. Thus, your pot equity is $20 (.20 *100).

Pot Limit

A betting structure in which the maximum size bet is the size of the pot. However, the pot size is calculated in an unintuitive way: All the money in the pot, plus (if you have been raised) the amount you would bet if you reraised.

Pot Odds

This is the odds you are getting when you are drawing, without considering future bets. Basically, if you are drawing to hit your hand, you want to make sure there is enough money in the pot to justify drawing. The way you do this is you calculate your expected value of hitting your hand, which is called pot odds. The simple mathematical formula for pot odds is: (pot + bet) * (chance of hitting) >= bet For example, say you have a flush draw of diamonds. You are fairly certain you will win if you hit the flush but will lose otherwise. Thus, there are 9 other diamonds out there (13 - your two, - two on board), so you have a roughly 19% chance of hitting a flush on the next card. If the pot is 90, and the bet is 10, you have odds with your flush draw. (90 +10) *.19= 19 19>10, so you should call However, lets say the pot is 10, you're at the turn (one card left) and your opponent bets 40. So the pot is 50 (including his bet) and the bet is 40 to you. (50 + 40) *.19= 17.1 17.1 http://simulator.pokertips.org/odds.php

Preflop

The stage of a hold'em game when you have two cards in your hand and there are no cards on the board yet.

Prop

Prop is short for proposition player. This is someone who is paid by the house to play poker. However, the player plays with his own money; the house merely pays him or her an hourly wage to play poker in order to keep the games going. The difference between a prop and a shill is that a shill plays poker with the house money. Props are generally considered okay and a decent way to earn a few extra dollars. However, shills are looked down upon, and it is unheard of for a casino to employ shills.

Quads

Also known as: Four of a Kind. Quads means four of a kind, holding four cards of the same rank.

Rabbit Hunt

When a player wins a pot without a showdown, some players want to know if they would have won had they stayed in the hand longer. To "rabit hunt" means to ask the dealer to expose what cards would have come if the player decided to play his hand. Generally, these players want to see if they would have hit their straight, flush,etc. Rabbit hunting is frowned upon when playing poker.

Rags

Useless cards or cards that don't improve your hand. Generally these are cards whose ranks are between 2-9.

Rags to Riches

To be in the big blind with a hand you wouldn't call(ex. 2,3 os), but since you are in the big blind you check. With your rags(2,3 os), the flop comes A45. your rags just became riches.

Railbird

A railbird is someone who watches poker games. They get their name because generally observers of poker games must stand behind a rail. Sometimes, railbirds are poker players who are broke and want to get back into the action.

Rainbow

This describes a board that is comprised entirely of different suits. For example, a flop of Ace of clubs, King of hearts, and 5 of diamonds could be described as AK5 rainbow.

Raise

To make a bet larger than the previous bet, thus forcing the original bettor to call the difference or fold.

Rake

This is the fee the poker rooms charge players. Most often, it is a percentage of the pot. For example, many poker rooms will take 5% of the pot up to $3 as a fee for hosting the game. Many times, brick and mortar casinos will simply charge players a set fee per half hour in replace of the rake. When considering a poker game to play, keep in mind how much the rake will cost you. Often, the rake may be so high in relation to the limit played that it is impossible to win money at the game in the long run.

Ram-and-jam

to bet, raise, and re-raise aggressively in order to intimidate opponents (Mike Caro method) or when you have the stone cold nuts.

Rank

The number or letter on the card. The highest rank is Ace, and the lowest rank is 2. However, the Ace can usually be used as a "1" in a straight. The ranks are sometimes abbreviated as follows: A - Ace K - King Q - Queen J - Jack T - Ten 9 - Nine 8 - Eight ... 2 - Two

Re-draw

This term is used to describe when a player who has a made hand is drawn out by another player. Then, on the river, the original player with the made hand draws another card to beat the person who drew out on him on the turn. Example: Joe's starting hand is Qs Qd and Bethany's starting hand is Ah 4h. The flop is Qh Jh 3s. Joe has a set of queens and Bethany has a flush draw. Suppose the turn is a 6h. Bethany now is beating Joe with her flush. If the river comes a 3d, then Joe will hit a full house. Joe will have hit a re-draw.

Reload Bonus

A reload bonus is a bonus that a poker room gives to its existing players. Like a signup bonus, a reload bonus is typically a percentage of a player's deposit.

Ring Game

Also known as: Cash Game. A ring game is a non-tournament poker game. This is the typical type of poker game where players buy-in and cash-out whenever they wish. The chips used at the table represent money. Thus, if a player buys in for $10 worth of chips and cashes out $50 worth of chips, he or she makes a profit of $40. In contrast, a tournament game rewards players based on their final rank in the tournament. For example, if 10 people buy in for $10, then there will be $100 in the prize pool. Players would then receive a set amount of chips. These chips can not be cashed out for money; they are used solely for play in the tournament. Play would continue until one person possesed all of the chips. A typical tournament would then award $50 to first place (person who possessed all of the chips a the end of the tournament), $30 to second place (person who was eliminated last), and $20 to third place (person eliminated just before second place finisher), with fourth and lower receiving nothing.

River

This is the fifth and final card that comes on the board in Holdem, after the turn.

Riverboat

A full house made on the river (

5th street

).

Rock

Also known as: Tight-Passive. This is a nickname for a type of player who will fold a lot. These types of players generally break even. They fold most of their losers, but will not aggressively bet their winners and will thus not make much money. They are also easily bullied out of pots.

Rockets

Also known as: American Airlines. Reference to holding pocket aces (AA) as a starting hand in Texas Hold'em.

Rockies

A Set of Aces

Roger

A Hold 'Em Poker starting hand of T4, referring to a "10-4" response of "Roger"

ROI

ROI is short for "return on investment." This is a poker term that is used to measure the profitability of one's play in poker tournaments. ROI is calculated as (100 * total profit/total buy-in). Thus, if one received a prize of $150 in a tournament with a buy-in of $100+$9, one's ROI is calculated as 100 * $41/$109= 37.61%. ROI is used for tournaments though because tournaments always have a fixed buy-in in relation to the prize pool. ROI is not useful for ring game play. Some people keep track of their ROI for ring games based on their buy-in and how much they cash out. This is silly. Hourly rate is the measuring stick for ring game play. For example, if one wins $10 at $.50-$1 limit over 5 hours, that person's hourly rate is $2/hour. It will not matter if that person buys in for $100 at that game or $1 million, he or she made $2/hour. However, that person's ROI drastically changes. At a buy-in of $100, that person's ROI is 10%. At a buy-in of a million, that person's ROI is .001%. You can keep track of your own ROI for free at www.checkyourbets.com.

Rope-a-dope

To slowplay an opponent when you have the stone nuts; usually involves a lot of acting and feigning weakness in order to get your opponent(s) to bet/raise big on a bluff or weaker hand.

Rounder

Also known as: Grinder. A rounder is synonymous with a grinder. These are players who make their living or a significant amount of their income from playing poker. They tend to play mid or low stakes games and win money bit by bit. Rounding is often considered to be a difficult way to make money because rounders tend to not make much money per hour.

Route 66

Pocket sixes.

Royal Flush

The poker hand consisting of AKQJT of the same suit. The royal flush is the highest possible Straight Flush.

Runner

This means a card that was drawn to help someone's hand. It is generally used in conjunction with the hand the person improved to. For example, if someone hits two cards to make a flush (i.e. improves on the turn and river), then the person is said to hit runner, runner flush.

Sailboats

Pocket 4s

Sandbagging

Also known as: Slowplay. Sandbagging is another term for slowplaying. It means to either check or bet weakly when you have a strong hand. Sandbagging also can be a synonym for check-raising.

Sausage

A player who plays with no sense. Example (all in with a 2,9)

SB

Short for small blind or small bet

Scare Card

A scare card is a card placed on the board that has the potential to significantly improve someone's hand. For example, if the board is Ah Kh 5d, a Th would be a scare card. That ten would complete both a flush draw or a straight draw. Scare cards often present excellent bluffing opportunities for players.

Scoop

To scoop a pot is to win the whole pot in a high/low split game. You can do this by holding the best high hand and the best low hand, or by holding the best high hand where there are no hands that qualify for low.

Sell

Betting a very strong hand fairly lightly in order to induce a call. Often, this method is used to milk a calling station out of money, bit by bit.

Semi-Bluff

A semi-bluff is when a player makes a bet with a hand that is currently weak but has the potential to become a very strong hand. A common example is when someone has a flush draw and makes a bet into the pot. The bettor hopes that the other players will fold, and he wil win the pot right there. However, even if the other players do not fold, he still has a good chance at improving and winning the pot anyway.

Set

Also known as: Trips, Thee of a Kind. A set means a three of a kind. Generally, people refer to a set when someone has a three of a kind because they have a pocket pair, with a board matching that rank of the pocket pair in hold'em. For example, if I hold 77 and the flop comes J76, I flopped a set of sevens.

Shark

A shark is a good player and typically wins. A shark's goal is often to simply just win money at poker, so they seek out games with a lot of fish. Basically, in the poker ecosystem, sharks feed on fish.

Shill

A shill is a poker player who is paid by the house and plays with the house money. He or she essentially tries to win money for the house at the poker game. Employing shills is considered immoral and is sometimes illegal. No poker players want to play at a casino that uses shills because they are afraid the games are not fair. Because of this, it is a very rare occurence for a casino to use shills. A shill is very different from a prop. Props are players that play poker with their own money. The only difference between a prop and a regular player is that a prop is paid hourly by the house in order to keep games going. Props will generally be forced to play at shorthanded tables or more unpopular games in order to earn their hourly stipend.

Shoes

Also known as: ducks. To mean a pair of twos in your hand. South African. This hand in europe is known as ducks.

Short Stack

A Short Stack is a player at the table with a low amount of chips; this player will usually have to go all in to try to double up their stack.

Shorthand

This refers to a poker game with six or fewer people.

Showdown

When two or more players play through the river to determine the winning hand. After the river betting round, players show their hands to each other to determine the winner. This is called the showdown.

Sidepot

In a multi-way pot, a sidepot is created for other players if one player goes all-in. These other players bets and raises will go to the sidepot, and only the players that participated in the sidepot are eligible to win it.

Siegfried and Roy

Also known as: ladies. Pocket Queens.

Signup Bonus

A signup bonus is a cash bonus that an online poker room gives to new players that sign up and make a deposit at the poker room. Typically, the poker room makes the bonus a percentage of the player's first deposit. Practically all bonuses have release requirements. This means the poker room will only award the bonus to the new player once the player has played a certain amount of raked hands. Generally, the amount of raked hands is equal to about ten times the bonus amount.

Sit and Go

Also known as: SNG. Sit and Go is a type of tournament. This means that there is a pre-selected amount of player spots available. Once enough people have registered to fill these spots, the tournament begins. Most often, a sit and go tournament is a single-table tournament. This means that once ten people register for the tournament, the tournament commences. Sit and go tournaments are very popular online, but they are somewhat rare in brick and mortar casinos.

Slow Rolling

Having the winning hand (often a massive hand) and taking a long time to show the hand when asked to declare. Considered bad etiquette.

Slowplay

Also known as: Sandbagging. Slowplaying is a deceptive move. It is the opposite of bluffing. It means to check or bet weakly when one holds a strong hand. The point of the slowplay is so the competition builds a hand that will become the second best hand. Then, when the competition builds this hand, one will jam the pot with bets. For example, suppose you hold 99 and the flop comes 994. You flopped quads! However, there is little chance you would be called at this point. A good idea is to slowplay and wait for the turn or river cards to come before you start firing. Then you can bet strongly because hopefully the competition will have some sort of hand that merits them calling you down.

Small Bet

The smaller bet in a fixed-limit game. In a $10-$20 hold'em game, the $10 bet is the small bet. The small bet is used during the pre-flop and flop rounds, and the big bet is used on the turn and river betting rounds.

Small Blind

The smaller of the two forced bets preflop. The person in first position posts the small blind, which is equivalent to half of a small bet.

Snap

Also known as: suckout. To break a better hand, similar to sucking out. For example, someone holding 2-7 offsuit can snap AA if the board comes out AK222.

SNG

Also known as: Sit and Go. Short for Sit and Go. It is a type of tournament.

Snowmen

The hold'em starting hand of apair of eights.

Socks

In South Africa this is a pair of Threes. This hand is called Socks because Twos are known as Shoes.

Speed Limit

The Hold'em starting hand with two fives (55). Or, a pair of fives.

Split

The starting hand of 7 10.

Stack

Stack can be a noun or a verb. (n) The amount of chips you have in front of you. The stack is how much money you have in a poker game. (v) To go all-in. To stack means to bet your whole stack. For example, "he bet and then I stacked. He called and doubled me up."

Steel Wheel

A straight flush, Ace to the Five.

Stone Cold Nuts

The best holding possible in a hand of poker that will win the entire pot (as opposed to possibly winning only half or some fraction). Such an example would be holding a suited ace and making a flush with it on an unpaired board in Hold'Em. This is in contrast to holding an ace high straight, which even though it may not possibly be beaten, could end up in a tie with another one.

Stone Nuts

Also known as: Nuts. Used to emphasize that a hand is not just the near nuts but is the absolute best hand. See also: Near Nuts.

Straddle

A straddle is a blind bet made by the person under the gun. A straddle bet is equivalent to two big blinds. The person who posts the straddle gets to bet last in the preflop round. A straddle is very ill-advised in a limit game because you are unnecessarily posting a large blind bet out of position. Straddles are more common for games such as pot limit Omaha, where the straddle acts to increase the stakes of the game.

Straight

A poker hand consisting of 5 cards whose ranks form a sequence. The highest possible straight is AKQJT (Broadway) and the lowest straight is 54321 (the wheel).

Straight Flush

A poker hand consisting of 5 cards of the same suit whose ranks form a sequence. Thus, a straight flush is both a Straight and a Flush. The highest possible straight flush is AKQJT of the same suit (also called the Royal Flush). The lowest possible straight flush is 5432A of the same suit.

String Bet

In a live game, someone does a string bet if they act like they are going to call but then make a raise. For example, it is standard etiquette that putting the requisite chips for a call into the pot just means a call. If one wants to raise, he or she needs to announce raise before placing chips into the pot. They cannot say 'I call your bet...and raise you 'x.' They must say "I raise." String bets confuse players as to whether the player is calling or raising, so they are not allowed.

Sucker Straight

Also known as: Idiot End. This refers to drawing to the lower end of a straight. One can hit this type of straight but still have a high probability of losing.

Suckout

Also known as: Suckout, Bad Beat. See Drawout. It means someone hit a draw against you to win the hand.

Suit

Spades, hearts, diamonds, or clubs. Suit is important for determining a flush, but has no other meaning in most poker games. The suits are sometimes abbreviated as follows: s - spades h - hearts d - diamonds c - clubs Therefore, AKh would mean Ace and King of hearts. However, sometimes the s only means suited. This usually is made clear by context.

Suited

Referring to a Hold'em starting hand with two cards of the same suit. Suited hands are better than unsuited hands because of flush possibilities. A suited hand is sometimes denoted by an 's'; for example, 98s is pronounced "Nine-eight suited" and refers to a 9 and an 8 of the same suit.

Suited Connector

Two hole cards of the same suit that are consecutive in rank. e.g. 9 and 8 of clubs.

Sunset Strip

Also known as: Walking Sticks. Pocket sevens. Also known as walking sticks

Table Stakes

All poker games are played table stakes. This means one can only bet what one has in front of him on the table on any given hand. Players cannot reach into their pockets and add to their bets. If a player runs out of chips in front of him in the middle of a hand, he or she is considered all-in.

Tap

To "tap" someone is to bet enough money for them to go all in in a No limit game.

Tapping the Aquarium

To tell a poor player what he's doing wrong, i.e., waking up a [fish].

The Trucker

Known as "The Trucker", Ten-Four is probably one of the worst hands you could recieve in Hold 'Em poker. Its name derives from the language used by trucking convoys, such as "Roger That", "Breaker Breaker", and of course "10-Four".

Three Bet

To "three bet" means to make the third bet in limit hold'em. For example, If person A bets, Person B raises, Person C re-raises, Person C would have three bet. It does not matter who makes the third bet. If this hand was Person A bets, Person B raises, Person A re-raises, then Person A would have three bet.

Three of a Kind

Also known as: Trips. A poker hand consisting of three cards of the same rank, and two unpaired cards.

Three Wise Men

A hand in Texas Hold 'Em that consists of three Kings.

Three-quarter

You can "three-quarter" someone in a high/low split game. This is where you hold the best high hand and the best low hand, while your opponent only hold one of those hands. On the showdown you win half of the pot with your high and split the other half with your low, or the other way around. This way you win three quarters of the pot and your opponent only one quarter.

Tight

Someone who does not play many hands. The opposite of loose.

Tilt

A player goes on tilt when his or her emotions take over. A player on tilt no longer plays rationally and instead plays like a maniac. Often, the player just suffered a bad beat and is very upset. A player on tilt often loses a lot of money, so going on tilt needs to be avoided. However, even the best players can go on tilt at times.

Time Pot

This is a form of rake. For poker rooms that charge players a fee per half-hour or hour, they will allow the players to have that money taken out of two or three pots. Since the 'time' money is taken out of these pots, they are called time pots. These are pots that exceed a certain threshold (they are typically $200 or more).

Toke

A toke is a tip to the dealer after a player wins a pot. Generally, players toke the dealer $1 for every pot they win. Dealers at brick and mortar casinos make the majority of their income off of these tips.

Trepasso

To get delt A,J

Trips

Also known as: Set, Three of a Kind. Trips means three of a kind, holding three cards of the same rank.

Turn

This is the fourth board card that comes out in holdem, the card after the flop

Two Pair

Two pair is exactly as it sounds- holding two pairs. Please note that it is impossible to hold a "three pair." Poker hands only consist of five cards. Even if one is playing a poker game where more than five cards are in consideration (such as Texas hold'em or 7 card stud), you only use your best 5 card poker hand.

Under the Gun

The position to the left of the big blind which acts first before board cards are dealt.

Underpair

An underpair is a pocket pair that is smaller than any card on the board. For example, if you hold pocket fours and the board is 89Q, you hold an underpair.

Unsuited

Also known as: Offsuit.

Upcard

A card that is dealt to the player face up, so that all players may see it. Upcards are used in Stud games.

UTG

UTG is short for under the gun.

Walking Sticks

To be dealt two sevens at the beginning of a hand (7,7)

Wayne Gretzky

To be dealt two nines at the beginning of a hand (9,9)

Wheel

Also known as: Bicycle. A wheel is the poker hand A2345, the lowest possible straight.

Wild

Also known as: Wild Card.

Wild Card

Also known as: Wild. A card, such as a joker or a designated rank, that can be assigned any rank and suit.

Wired Pair

A Pair in your starting hand.

Woolworth's

The starting hand of 5 10.

WPT

World Poker Tour

WSOP

World Series of Poker

[Ell Ess Dee]

Re: Tournament Glossary Bloody hell, Cains, you need to get out more :D .. Seriously though, top work...

[meatman]

Re: Tournament Glossary not a very big list is it :lol top work :ok

[GaF]

Re: Tournament Glossary Cheers for that Cains :ok Unfortunately, I'm not sure I could just copy and paste that into Poker News as the copyright will be owned by pokertips. (http://www.pokertips.org/glossary/viewall.php) For anyone who doesn't know the http://www.pokertips.org/ website - it is a nice site, with loads of good articles and worth a visit. But thanks for the help anyway Cains. GaF

[cains]

Re: Tournament Glossary we could re write it a bit. ;) But yes, might be a problem.. But thought it was a great list. :ok

[slapdash]

Re: Tournament Glossary You could put a link to it in Poker News. Isn't that what this World Wide Web thingy is all about?