What makes up a poker hand?

A poker hand is made up of five cards. In Texas Hold’Em Poker each player is dealt two cards face down – these are referred to as Hole Cards.

These cards are used in conjunction with the community cards which are dealt on the table.

The community cards are made up of the following:

• The Flop – 3 cards face up, after which a round of betting ensues.
• The Turn – 1 card face up, after which a round of betting ensues.
• The River – 1 card face up, after which a round of betting ensues.

A player may make use of the community cards in conjunction with his/her two hole cards to make the best five card hand.
 

Terminology

• Aces Up  - A two pair where the one pair is A’s and the other a lower pair.
• Action  - Betting activity at a poker table.
• All-in  - Placing all your chips in the pot with a single bet.
• Ante  - A compulsory “blind bet” made before cards are dealt to players.
• Back door  - Unexpectedly hitting a flush with the last two board cards.
• Back door straight -  Completing an unlikely straight with the last two board cards.
• Bad Beat  - When, against the odds, a good hand is beaten by another player drawing a better one.
• Bankroll  - A player’s stake money.
• Bet  - To contribute money to the pot.
• Betting intervals -  Occasions during play when rounds of betting occur.
• Bicycle/Wheel  - The lowest straight – 5, 4, 3, 2, A.
• Big Slick  - When you are holding A K as your hole cards.
• Blind  - Compulsory bet made by two players to the left of the dealer before cards are dealt. The first player to the left of the dealer bets a “small blind” and the player directly to his left bets the “big blind”. Big blind is double the small blind in value.
• Bluff  - Attempt to conceal true value of cards held.
• Board  - 5 Community cards revealed on the table made up of the flop, turn and river.
• Boat  - A full house.
• Bump  - Increase the betting level.
• Burn  - Dealer’s action of discarding the top card of the deck before the flop, turn and river are dealt. This is to prevent any cheating.
• Buy-in  - Amount needed to sit in at a poker game.
• Call  - Match a bet already made to continue playing the hand.
• Cash in  - Exchanging chips for cash at the end of a game.
• Check  - To defer the opportunity to bet. You can only check if there are no bets already made in the betting round.
• Check-Raise  - When a player checks and then later raises an opponent’s bet when the action comes back.
• Chips  - Round, coloured disks that represent cash when playing poker. Each colour represents a different denomination.
• Community Cards  - that are revealed on the table and common to all players.
• Crying call  - A call made by a player when he/she does not believe that they can win.
• Cut  - When the deck is divided after the dealer has shuffled the cards.
• Dead man’s hand  - A’s and 8’s (two pair)
• Deuce  - The “2” card. A pair of 2’s is known as deuces.
• Drawing dead  - Being unable to beat an existing hand while still having cards to come.
• Drop  - Another term for fold.
• Family pot  - A pot that involved most if not all the players at the table.
• Fifth street  - Term for the fifth community card dealt – also known as the river card.
• Fish  - A poor player.
• Floorman  - General authority on the rules of the tournament/card room. Also arbitrator of disputes.
• Flop  - First three community cards dealt.
• Flush  - A hand that contains 5 cards of the same suit but not in sequential order.
• Fold  - Discard the hand.
• Fourth street  - The fourth community card dealt – also known as the turn card.
• Freeze-out  - This term relates to a tournament where all players start with the same amount of chips and are eliminated once their chips are finished.
• Full House  - Three of a kind and a pair eg: KKK22 or 44499
• Gut shot straight draw  - For example if you are holding 7,8,9,J and you are needing the “middle draw pin” to make a straight. In this case the 10. Also known as gut shot.
• Hand  - The cards each player uses in the game.
• Heads up  - Playing against just one other opponent.
• Hole (cards)  - First two cards dealt to a player face down. Also known as pocket cards.
• Inside straight draw  - Similar to gut straight draw – but it is the other cards that are needed. Eg: A,K,Q,J and you need the 10.
• Kicker  - Highest retained card besides the stronger holding. Eg: If two players have a pair of 9’s the next highest “kicker” card determines who wins. If one has a K and the other’s highest card is a 10, the K wins.
• Loose player  - Someone who regularly bets against the odds.
• Main pot  - The original pot to the point where a player goes all-in. After which side pots will be formed.
• Maniac  - A very loose player.
• Misdeal  - Error made in the dealing of a hand.
• Muck  - Pile of discarded cards. Also describes the act of folding a hand – mucking the hand.
• Nuts  - Best available hand from the cards played.
• Offsuit  - Cards that do not match suits.
• On the come  - Need to improve the hand in order to have a chance of winning.
• Open ended straight  - A drawing hand with four cards, in consecutive order, where a card on either end will complete the straight. Eg: Q,J,10,9 where either the K or the 8 will complete the straight for you.
• Pass  - An alternate way of saying “fold”
• Pocket pair  - Two cards of the same rank dealt to you in the first two cards.
• Pocket rockets  - Pair of Aces.
• Poker face  - Expressionless facial appearance. Reveals no emotion at all.
• Quads  - Four of a kind.
• Rag  - A worthless card or hand.
• Raise  - To call and raise a bet with a minimum of the big blind or the amount of the last raise. A raise can only be less than the minimum when a player calls all-in.
• Raiser  - The player who makes the raise.
• River  - Final community card dealt. Also known as Fifth street.
• Rock  - Conservative player who only plays premium hands.
• Royal Flush  - The highest hand in Poker – A,K,Q,J,10 of same suit.
• Run  - Another term for a straight.
• Rush  - A hot streak in poker hands.
• Sandbag  - To slow play a hand.
• See  - To call a bet.
• Showdown  - The moment cards are revealed to determine the winner.
• Side pot  - After an all-in, side pots are created for players who wish to continue placing bets. The all-in player is not in the side pot.
• Slow play  - Checking or betting lightly to disguise the strength of the hand in an attempt to encourage other players to stay in the hand.
• Split pot  - Pot shared between 2 or more players who have the same strength hand at the showdown.
• Straight  - 5 consecutive unsuited cards. Also called a run.
• Straight flush  - 5 consecutive cards of the same suit.
• String bet  - Where a player calls a bet and then without announcing raise adds more chips to his bet. This is an illegal move.
• Sucker  - A very bad player.
• Tap out  - To bet all one’s chips.
• Tapped out  - Out of chips.
• Tell  - An involuntary mannerism that could indicate the strength of the hand.
• Tight player  - Someone who bets very cautiously and only on strong hands.
• Tilt  - Wild play without discipline, usually after a series of bad beats.
• Trey  - Any “3” card.
• Trips  - Three of a kind, short for triplets.
• Turn card  - Fourth community card dealt. Also known as Fourth Street.
• Underdog  - Hand that is unlikely to win – also called dog.