What Poker Games Are Played in Casinos?

Poker is a family of card games that share betting rules and usually hand rankings. Poker games differ in how the cards are dealt, how hands may be formed, whether the high or low hand wins the pot in a showdown (in some games, the pot is split between the high and low hands), limits on bets and raises, and how many rounds of betting are allowed. In most modern poker games the first round of betting begins with one or more of the players making some form of a forced bet (the blind or ante). In standard poker, each player is dealt two face-down cards.

The remaining players then call, check, or bet. A round of betting continues until every player has folded, put in all of their chips, or matched the amount put in by all other active players.

When only two players remain, special ‘head-to-head’ or ‘heads up’ rules are enforced and the blinds are posted differently. In heads up play, the dealer is always the small blind and the other player is the big blind.

The dealer acts first before the flop. After the flop, the dealer acts last and continues to do so for the remainder of the hand.

The three most common poker games played in casinos are Texas Hold ‘Em, 7-Card Stud, and Omaha Hold ‘Em. All three games are similar in that each player is dealt two hole cards face down and then five community cards are dealt face up in the middle of the table.

The object of each game is to make the best five-card hand using any combination of your two hole cards and/or any of the five community cards. Let’s take a closer look at each game.

Texas Hold ‘Em: In Texas Hold ‘Em, each player is dealt two hole cards and then five community cards are dealt face up in three stages: the flop (three community cards), the turn (one more community card), and finally the river (the last community card). Each player can use any combination of their two hole cards plus any combination of those five community cards to make their best five-card hand. The best hand wins!

7-Card Stud: In 7-Card Stud each player is dealt seven cards: three downcards followed by four upcards. The best five-card hand using any combination of those seven cards wins!

Omaha Hold ‘Em: Omaha Hold ‘Em is similar to Texas Hold ‘Em except that each player starts with four hole cards instead of two and must use exactly two hole cards plus any three community cards to make their best five-card hand.

Poker games are entertaining casino games that require both skill and luck to win. While there are many different poker games played in casinos, Texas Hold ‘Em, 7-Card Stud, and Omaha Hold ‘Em are three of the most popular. No matter which game you choose to play, remember to have fun!.