Author: Jerome

Learning to speak Texas Hold’em as well as you play it is all part of the fun and excitement of the world’s most popular poker game!
Some of the terms and slang used are self-explanatory, some humourous, others startlingly apt, but all very relevant to the game and your knowledge of it.
To help you along we have put together a comprehensive list of terms. Read them, memorise the ones you find worthy of repeat, and begin to speak Hold’em as well as you play it!
This is the final installment and covers the letters T-Z.
Have fun reading!

T is for:

Table Stakes:

• This means a player can only win or lose the amount they have in play at the beginning of a hand. It is very rare that you will find a game which is not table stakes these days

Tank:

• This is when a player is at a critical point in a poker hand and they are taking their time in coming to a major decision. – They are in the Tank

Tell:

• A verbal or non-verbal action a player makes that gives away information relating to their hand. Online tells can include the size of bet and timing of the bet

Texas Penny:

• $100

Third Man Walking:

• Only 2 players are allowed to be absent from a table at one time. The 3rd person to leave is known as the “Third Man Walking”. When the blind reaches them, they will have their chips removed from the table

Three Bet (3-Bet):

• A Re-Raise, Bet, Raise (2-Bet), Re-Raise (3-Bet)

Three of a Kind:

• 3 cards of the same rank

Tight:

• A tight player is seen as one who plays very few hands. They will wait for premium hands before entering pots and play. A common poker strategy is known as TAG or ‘tight aggressive’. This is a strategy where the player concerned enters few hands but when they finally do, they make large and consistent bets as well as raises

Tilt:

• This is when a player is experiencing a bad run, they continue to play badly and lose lots of hands because they are unable to control their temper or get their focus back. If you are going on the tilt, take a break and only re-enter/start playing again when you are fully back in control

Time:

Two meanings:
• If a player asks for more time to think over their decision. This can happen in live as well as online games
• Some operators charge a time fee on top of, or in place of the rake

Toke:

• A tip to the dealer from a player who has just won the pot

Top Kicker:

• When a player has the highest possible kicker, usually an Ace (unless there is already an ace on the board)

Top Pair:

• When a player pairs one of their hole cards with the highest ranked card on the board

Top Top:

• Having the Top Pair with the Top Kicker

Top Two:

• These are the best 2 possible pairs based on what a player holds and the community cards

Tournament:

• Players buy into a tournament for a set amount. They then receive tournament chips. All players involved in the tournament then play down to the last person who has all the chips and therefore wins the tournament. It is usual for the top 10% of players in a tournament to be paid winnings

Trips:

• This is a slang term for 3-of-a-kind. It also refers to making 3-of-a-kind by matching 1 of your hole cards with a Pair on the board

Turbo:

• Quick thinking required! This is a tournament variation where all players have less time than normal to make decisions and the blinds go up faster than normal

Turn:

• The turn is also known as 4th Street. This is the 4th community card and is dealt face-up on the board

U is for:

Underdog:

• Any player who has a statistically lower chance of winning a pot with the cards they hold compared to their opponent is classed as the underdog

Under the Gun (UTG):

• It is all about position! This is the player who is first to act in a betting round. Pre-Flop you are UTG if you are to the left of the Big Blinds (BBs) and after the flop, UTG is the first active player sitting to the left of the dealer

Up:

• This describes the value of a 2-pair poker hand – Example: A player holding a Pair of Kings, a Pair of 8’s and a 3 of Clubs would be described as ‘Kings Up’

Up the Ante:

• To increase the stakes

V is for:

Value Bet:

• When a player is quite certain they have the best hand and want pay-off from their opponent. A common strategy when placing a Value Bet is to place a smaller than normal bet in order to persuade an opponent to call

Villain:

• This is a nickname given to opponents in a game. You will see the term used regularly in online guides and poker books

VPIP:

• The acronym for “Voluntary Put (Money) In Pot”. It is a measure of how often a particular player enters a pot. It does not include when they are in the big or small blind. This measurement shows the range of starting hands that individual is using

W is for:

Walk:

• When all other players fold to the BB, or the straddle player if this is in play, leaving them to collect the pot

Weak Ace:

• Holding an Ace with a low ranked card

Wet Board:

• When the community cards on the board offer lots of possibilities in terms of draws or to connect. Example: 8, 9, Jack

Wheel:

• This is the lowest possible straight a player can have. A wheel consists of: An Ace, 2, 3, 4 and 5

Whale Count:

• An alternative name used when describing a high roller

Window Card:

• In Hold’em this is the 1st card turned over when showing the flop

Wired Pair:

• These are dealt hold cards which are a pair

Z is for:

Zero Sum:

• This term refers to any game where a player’s odds of winning are exactly equal to their odds of losing
That’s it for the letters T-Z and our final installment of “Texas Hold’em – The A-Z of Poker speak”. There is little doubt you will be familiar with some of the terms above, but hopefully you have added to your Texas Hold’em vocabulary with ones previously unheard of.

Learning to speak Texas Hold’em as well as you play it is all part of the fun and excitement of the world’s most popular poker game!
Some of the terms and slang used are self-explanatory, some humourous, others startlingly apt, but all very relevant to the game and your knowledge of it.
To help you along we have put together a comprehensive list of terms. Read them, memorise the ones you find worthy of repeat, and begin to speak Hold’em as well as you play it!
This covers the letter ‘S’. The remainder of the alphabet will be gradually introduced to allow meanings to soak in.
Have fun reading!

S is for:

Satellite:

• A satellite tournament is one that awards the winners entry into another, larger tournament

Scare Card:

• This is a card that has the potential of giving you or your opponent a winning hand

Scoop:

• Very nice to have! When a player wins both the high and the low pots in a split pot game

Semi-Bluff:

• When a player with a strong drawing hand makes a bet before completing their hand

Set:

• 3-of-a-kind with 2 of the cards being hole cards

Set-up:

3 different meanings:
• Cards used by the dealer
• When 2 players have no choice but to get it all in
• A pre-ordered deck that is used to cheat another player

Shark:

• Be aware if playing against a Shark, they are strong, experienced poker players

Shoot:

• This is to make 1 final call and by doing so agreeing to check on all remaining streets

Shootout:

• This is a tournament where a player has to defeat all players on their table before they can move on

Short Buy:

• When a player buys in for less than the minimum amount. In general, a player can short buy once while at the table and only after they have bought in at least once for a legitimate amount

Short Stack:

• Any player that does not have many chips left is on the short stack

Short Handed:

• This term is used on a table that only has a few players. Occurrences include cash games before others buy in and tournaments when there are only a few players left. Short handed games can have a huge effect on a player’s starting hand ranges

Showdown:

• Once the 5 community cards are dealt and all betting rounds over, if there is still more than 1 player left with cards, those involved will turn over their cards to establish who has the best hand and therefore wins the pot

Side Game:

• This is when a ring game runs concurrently with a tournament

Side Pot:

• In Texas Hold’em games when a pot has 3 or more players remaining with 1 of them all-in, a side pot will be created to enable the players who still have chips to continue betting until the showdown. It should be noted that the player who is ‘all-in’ can only win the initial pot and not the side pot

Sit and Go:

• This is a poker tournament style where the game commences once a certain number of players have entered. The majority of ‘sit and go’ tournaments are single table and consist of 9 or 10 players

Slow Play:

• This is when a player intentionally plays a very strong hand slowly in order to convince other players that their weaker hand is the best. Another term for Slow Play is “Sandbag”

Slow Roll:

• This will not win you any friends as it is frowned upon by poker players. It is when a player intentionally takes longer than necessary to show a winning hand in a showdown, or calls another large bet when holding a very strong hand

Small Blind:

• This is the smaller of the 2 forced bets that all players must place pre-flop. You are in the Small Blind Position when sitting directly to the left of the dealer

Splash the Pot:

• When a player tosses their chips into the pot and makes it difficult to see the amount of chips actually thrown

Split Pot:

• When 2 or more players have the same hand on showdown the pot is split between them

Split Two Pair:

• When a player pairs the rank of both of their hole cards

Spread:

• This is the table range between minimum and maximum bets

Spread-Limit:

• A betting structure which allows players to bet any amount between a set minimum and maximum figure

Squeeze:

• An aggressive play. It is seen when a player raises after an initial bet has been laid and others have already called the bet

Stack:

Two meanings:
• These are chips a player has in play on the table
• A stack of exactly 20 chips all of the same denomination

Steal:

• Taking a pot uncontested by making a modest, well-timed bet

Steam:

• To be avoided! This is when a player works themselves into a state of anger which induces Tilt

Stop and Go:

• An advanced poker play. It is when a player who has previously only checked and called suddenly takes the lead betting on a later street

Straddle:

• A bet from the player sitting to the left of the Big Blind (BB). It is usually double the amount of the BB bet. It also acts as a 3rd blind. The straddling player can then either check or re-raise once the action returns to them

Straight:

• 5 cards in sequential order. The ace can be used as a high or a low card

Straight Flush:

• A straight but with cards all of the same suit

Streets:

• The turn is known as 4th Street, the River as 5th Street. Together they are known as ‘Streets’

Suck-Out:

• Hitting a lucky card to beat a much better hand

Suited:

• A player is suited when holding 2 cards of the same suit

Suited Connectors:

• 2 cards of the same suit in sequential order. Example: A 10 and Jack of Clubs are suited connectors
That’s it for the letter S in our installment of “Texas Hold’em – The A-Z of Poker speak”. There is little doubt you will be familiar with some of the terms above, but hopefully you have added to your Texas Hold’em vocabulary with ones previously unheard of.

There’s lots more to come:

Do keep a close eye out as we build this extensive compendium on the A-Z of Hold’em jargon. It will add to your knowledge of common terms as well as the more obscure ones. What is more, you will be able to impart your knowledge to friends as well as foes!
Our final article covers the letters ‘T-Z’ and includes the reasons you should take a break if heading towards the ‘Tilt’, what a ‘Wet Board’ is, and why a ‘Wheel’ is certainly not the worst hand to have!

Learning to speak Texas Hold’em as well as you play it is all part of the fun and excitement of the world’s most popular poker game!
Some of the terms and slang used are self-explanatory, some humourous, others startlingly apt, but all very relevant to the game and your knowledge of it.
To help you along we have put together a comprehensive list of terms. Read them, memorise the ones you find worthy of repeat, and begin to speak Hold’em as well as you play it!
This covers the letter R. The remainder of the alphabet will be gradually introduced to allow meanings to soak in.
Have fun reading!

R is for:

Rabbit Hunt:

• This is to see what would have come on later streets once the hand has finished

Rack:

• These are the trays used to carry chips. It is typical for a rack to hold 5 rows of 20 chips each

Rags:

• These are cards which do not have any value and offer a low chance of winning any hand

Rail/Railbird:

• The rail is the edge of a poker table which is usually raised and padded. A railbird is a fan or spectators watching the game’s action

Rainbow:

• These are community cards, all of different suits. They can occur either on the flop or the turn

Raise:

• When a player makes a raise, they are betting more and in addition to another player’s bet

Rake:

• Cash games at a casino or online will take a cut from each hand to make money. The rake depends upon such things as the location and generally has a cap to ensure not too much money is deducted from large pots. Sometimes called the “Vig” or “Viggorish”

Rake Back:

• Some online operators will return a certain amount of the ‘Rake’ taken from players either as part of a promotional campaign or a ‘player’s club’ reward scheme

Range:

• The possible hands of an opponent

Re-Buy:

This has 2 meanings and is also known as Reload:
1. Some tournaments allow players to re-enter once they have busted out. This is done through a re-buy
2. In cash games if a player has below a certain amount of chip they can re-buy additional chips

Re-deal:

• If a hand is misdealt then a re-deal is carried out

Re-draw:

• Making one hand but then having a draw for a better one

Represent:

• This is when a player plays their hand as if it was a specific hand. Regardless of whether that is what they are holding or not

Reverse Implied Odds:

• This is an estimate of the amount a player could lose if they hit the draw but their hand is still worse than an opponent’s

Reverse Tell:

• When a player intentionally tries to deceive their opponent by acting in a way which suggests a common tell, but it is actually the opposite. Also known as a “false” tell

Ring Game:

• This is an alternative name for a cash game where real money is gambled on each hand. In ring games players may come and go as they please and can re-buy in the event they run out of money

River:

• The 5th and final community card which is dealt face-up on the board. It is also known as 5th street

Rock:

• Classed as a very tight player. They rarely play anything but the best of hands

ROI:

• While this is a standard financial term and means “Return On Investment” it is used to work out how much a player is making. To calculate ROI simply divide your profit by your expenses and then multiply by 100. This will give you your ROI percentage

Royal Flush:

• Yes please! This is the best possible hand in poker. It is when a player has a straight from 10 to Ace all of the same suit

Rounder:

• This term refers to a player who plays poker for a living. The term originated from players who ‘made the rounds’ by visiting all the high stakes games they could find

Runner:

• In general, this refers to the turn and river when a player catches cards on both to beat another hand. It is possible to make a ‘runner flush’ when getting Hearts on the turn and on the river

Running Good/Running Bad:

• Indicates a stretch of good/bad luck with the cards

Rush:

• What you want! This is a prolonged winning streak. Also referred to as a “Heater”
That’s it for the letter R in our installment of “Texas Hold’em – The A-Z of Poker speak”. There is little doubt you will be familiar with some of the terms above, but hopefully you have added to your Texas Hold’em vocabulary with ones previously unheard of.

There’s lots more to come:

Do keep a close eye out as we build this extensive compendium on the A-Z of Hold’em jargon. It will add to your knowledge of common terms as well as the more obscure ones. What is more, you will be able to impart your knowledge to friends as well as foes!
Our next article continues with the letter ‘S’ and includes why a ‘Scare Card’ can be good or bad, why you should be wary of the ‘Sharks’ out there, and the reason to take a break if the ‘Steam’ comes over you!

Learning to speak Texas Hold’em as well as you play it is all part of the fun and excitement of the world’s most popular poker game!
Some of the terms and slang used are self-explanatory, some humourous, others startlingly apt, but all very relevant to the game and your knowledge of it.
To help you along we have put together a comprehensive list of terms. Read them, memorise the ones you find worthy of repeat, and begin to speak Hold’em as well as you play it!
This covers the letters P-Q. The remainder of the alphabet will be gradually introduced to allow meanings to soak in.
Have fun reading!

P is for:

Pair:

• A fairly obvious starter! 2 cards of the same rank

Paints:

• Picture or Face cards: Jacks, Queens, Kings

Pass:

• When a player folds

Pay Off:

• When a player calls on the final round. This is regardless of whether they think they may or may not have the best hand

Play Back:

• When a player raises or re-raises another players ‘play’

Play the Board:

• When playing Hold’em, any player whose hole cards are worse than the hand all cards on the board show, means that player will use the 5 community cards as their hand

Pocket Cards:

• The 2 face-down cards a player is dealt that belong solely to them

Pocket Pair:

• This donates a player holding a pair as their 2-hole cards

Pocket Rockets:

• When you are dealt a pair of aces as hole cards. Chances are slim! The odds for getting dealt this hand are 220:1

Position:

• A player’s position as to where they are sitting in relation to the dealer button. As the button moves you will be classed as being in an early, middle or late position. There are also individual names for certain positions such as: Small Blind (SB), Big Blind (BB), Under the Gun (UTG), Hijack, Cutoff and Dealer

Post:

• Placing your chips in the pot is ‘posting a play’. A player must post the Blinds

Pot:

• Make it yours! The pot is the amount of money made up of bets and calls that sits in the middle of the table

Pot Committed:

• In general, if there is a huge pot compared to a players remaining stack then they are ‘pot committed’ to that hand and can’t fold

Pot Odds:

• Amount of money in the pot at any time compared to how much a player needs to call in order to stay in that hand. Pot odds should be used to make decision during a game. Example: $200 in the pot and the bet you need to call is $20 – The pot odds are 10:1. This means that if your hand should win 1 in 10 times or more – make the call

Pre-Flop:

• Refers to before the 1st 3 community cards being dealt as well as during the 1st round of betting

Prize Fund/Prize Money:

• This is calculated on the number of tournament entrants and is multiplied by the entry stake to give the total amount in the prize fund

Protect:

• When a player makes a bet in order to get others to fold. Meaning their hand has better odds of a win against fewer other opponents

Push:

This has two meanings:
1. When the dealer pushes the chips to the winning player at the end of a hand
2. When dealers rotate to other tables

Q is for:

Quads:

• 4 of a kind

Qualifier/Qualifying Low:

• A hand needs to be eligible for half of the pot in High-Low games

Quarter:

This has 2 meanings:
1. It can be a $25 chip, or a $2,500 bet, dependent upon the game stakes
2. In High-Low games when a player wins a quarter of the pot. It occurs when a player has the same low hand as another player. In this case they only win 50% of the low half of the pot
That’s it for the letters P-Q in our installment of “Texas Hold’em – The A-Z of Poker speak”. There is little doubt you will be familiar with some of the terms above, but hopefully you have added to your Texas Hold’em vocabulary with ones previously unheard of.

There’s lots more to come:

Do keep a close eye out as we build this extensive compendium on the A-Z of Hold’em jargon. It will add to your knowledge of common terms as well as the more obscure ones. What is more, you will be able to impart your knowledge to friends as well as foes!
Our next article continues with the letter ‘R‘ and includes the reasons why ‘Rags’ are not what you want, a ‘Royal Flush’ is definitely what you do want and the ‘Rabbit Hunt’ is interesting to see!

Learning to speak Texas Hold’em as well as you play it is all part of the fun and excitement of the world’s most popular poker game!
Some of the terms and slang used are self-explanatory, some humourous, others startlingly apt, but all very relevant to the game and your knowledge of it.
To help you along we have put together a comprehensive list of terms. Read them, memorise the ones you find worthy of repeat, and begin to speak Hold’em as well as you play it!
This is part 6 covering the letter O. The remainder of the alphabet will be gradually introduced to allow meanings to soak in.
Have fun reading!

O is for:

Odds:

• This indicates the statistical chance of any outcome. In most cases it is shown as a ratio.

Off suit:

• When a player is holding 2-hole cards of different suits

On the Button:

• The Dealers position – The last player to act in a round

On their backs:

• When 2 or more players are all-in and no other player has bet. Players turn over their cards and the remainder of the board is dealt

On Tilt:

• It happens to the best of us! It is when a player has had a few bad beats and their emotions begin to take over. The problem is, you are risking making things worse rather than better because in this state a player tends to chase their losses rather than accepting and moving on

One Chip Rule:

• When a player places one oversized chip into the pot and does not declare a raise, it is assumed they are calling. This is regardless of their intent

One-Eyed Royals:

• Refers to the Jack of Spades, Jack of Hearts or King of Diamonds. Each of these picture cards show only one eye. It is also common to hear the Jacks referred to as One-Eyed Jacks

Open Limp:

• This is when a player is limping to act as the 1st player in a hand

Open Pair:

• This is when a pair has been dealt face-up

Open-Ended Straight Draw:

• When a player is holding 4 cards in sequential order and they require 1 more card on either end of the hand to make a straight

Option:

• During a hand where there are no pre-flop raisers the “option” is given to the BB (Big Blind) to check and see the flop, or they can bet

Orbit:

• 1 complete rotation of the dealer button around the table

Out Button:

• Consider this if you are “on tilt”. The out button is a disk placed on the table and in front of a player who wants to sit out a hand(s) but stay in the game

Outs:

• This is the number of cards that are left in the deck in order for a player to make a certain hand

Out of Position:

• When a player has to act before an opponent

Over-Bet:

• When a single bet that is more than the current pot size is laid

Over call:

• This is when a player calls a bet after other players have called ahead of them

Over card:

• Donates a card that has a higher rank than a player’s pair

Over pair:

• This is a pocket pair that is higher than the cards already on the board

Overs:

This has two meanings:
• When a player holds cards higher than the pair of an opponent
• Some fixed-Limit games allow players the choice to play “overs”. This allows them to bet twice the set limit, but if there are only other “overs” players still in the hand.
That’s it for the letter O in our installment of “Texas Hold’em – The A-Z of Poker speak”. There is little doubt you will be familiar with some of the terms above, but hopefully you have added to your Texas Hold’em vocabulary with ones previously unheard of.

There’s lots more to come:

Do keep a close eye out as we build this extensive compendium on the A-Z of Hold’em jargon. It will add to your knowledge of common terms as well as the more obscure ones. What is more, you will be able to impart your knowledge to friends as well as foes!
Our next article continues with the letters P-Q and includes the reasons why ‘Playing the Board’ and holding ‘Pocket Rockets’ will do players the power of good!

Learning to speak Texas Hold’em as well as you play it is all part of the fun and excitement of the world’s most popular poker game!
Some of the terms and slang used are self-explanatory, some humourous, others startlingly apt, but all very relevant to the game and your knowledge of it.
To help you along we have put together a comprehensive list of terms. Read them, memorise the ones you find worthy of repeat, and begin to speak Hold’em as well as you play it!
This is part 5 covering the letters L-N. The remainder of the alphabet will be gradually introduced to allow meanings to soak in.
Have fun reading!

L is for:

Ladies:

• 2 Queens

Late Position:

• This is classed when you are the dealer, or you get to act after most other players. It is usually considered as the 2 positions next to the button (dealer)

Laydown:

• Another term for folding

Lead:

• The first player to play into a pot

Limit:

• This is a game where betting is capped at 4 raises each round and no bet can be bigger than the BB (Big Blind)

Limp/Limper:

• When a player calls the big blind pre-flop, they are seen to limp into the pot. It is also when a player calls the minimum flop when there hasn’t been a raise. This is seen most often when the 1st player to act only calls the BB

Live Blind:

• When a player puts in a dark play and is allowed to raise. This is regardless of whether another player raises or not. It is also termed as an “Option”

Live Hand:

• Seen as a hand that could still win the pot

Live One:

• A not very knowledgeable poker player. They often play lots of hands

Look:

• This is when a player calls the final play before the showdown

Loose:

• A Loose player is classed as one who enters many hands. They are also seen to have wide-ranging starting hands

M is for:

Made Hand:

• Generally, a quite strong, completed hand

Main Pot:

• This is the centre pot which all players contribute to. Other plays are placed in a side pot(s). These are contested between the remaining players. It occurs when a player or players go “all-in”

Micro Cash Game:

• Perfect for new players to poker! It is where you are only required to have a small amount of cash to join the table and blinds are very small

Middle Pair:

• This is when a player makes a pair with 1 of their down cards plus the middle card on the flop

Middle Position:

• You are in middle position when placed between the early and late positions in a round

Minimum buy-in:

• The least stake you can start a game with

Minimum sit down:

• This is the minimum amount of chips allowed to enable you to join a game. It is normally a multiple of the BB (Example: $1/$2 Blinds with a multiplier of x10 will require $20 to join the table)

Monster:

This has 2 meanings:
• A very big hand
• In tournaments, a player who has a small stack but begins to accumulate chips is known as a Monster

Muck:

This has 3 meanings:
• When a player folds their hand
• ‘The Muck’ is known as the pile of cards which have been discarded by players around the table, including the dealer
• In a showdown, the caller will ‘muck’ or throw away their hand in the event the 1st player shows a better hand

N is for:

No Limit:

• This is the most popular form of Hold’em. There is no limit to the bets a player is allowed to make at any point in the hand

Nuts:

This has 2 meanings:
• The best possible hand a player can have at a particular time during the hand
• The one you want! A hand that cannot be beaten after the river.
That’s it for the letters L to N in our installment of “Texas Hold’em – The A-Z of Poker speak”. There is little doubt you will be familiar with some of the terms above, but hopefully you have added to your Texas Hold’em vocabulary with ones previously unheard of.

There’s lots more to come:

Do keep a close eye out as we build this extensive compendium on the A-Z of Hold’em jargon. It will add to your knowledge of common terms as well as the more obscure ones. What is more, you will be able to impart your knowledge to friends as well as foes!
Our next article continues with the letter ‘O’ and includes ‘Orbit’, why you do not want to be ‘On The Tilt’ and what happens to players who are ‘On Their Backs’!

Learning to speak Texas Hold’em as well as you play it is all part of the fun and excitement of the world’s most popular poker game!
Some of the terms and slang used are self-explanatory, some humourous, others startlingly apt, but all very relevant to the game and your knowledge of it.
To help you along we have put together a comprehensive list of terms. Read them, memorise the ones you find worthy of repeat, and begin to speak Hold’em as well as you play it!
This is part 4 covering the letters G-K. The remainder of the alphabet will be gradually introduced to allow meanings to soak in.
Have fun reading!

G is for:

Grinder:

• Is someone who involves themselves in long poker sessions and make solid, small profits. This is achieved through minimal gambling and risk taking.

Gut Shot:

• This means you either draw to and/or hit an inside straight. It is also known as an “inside straight draw”

H is for:

Hand History:

• For those who play online poker this can be a useful reference archive. Hand History allows you to keep a record of every hand you have played. This detail can be used to analyse play and help improve your game

Heads Up:

• A Heads Up play is when only 2 players are left in the pot. It is also used in tournaments to indicate the final 2 players left. They will play until the winner triumphs

Heater:

This keeps your hands hot and your wallet even hotter! It is when a player is on a hot run with their cards and they are hitting lots of strong hands

High-Card:

• In flop tournaments, this determines who will be the first dealer. Each player is dealt 1 card. The person with the highest card gets to deal first. Note: Priority of suit order in the event 2 players have the same high card is: Spades, Hearts, Diamonds, Clubs

High-Low:

• Split pot games

Hijack:

• A player is in the Hijack position when they are to the right of the Cut-Off and 2 places to the right of the dealer

Hole Cards:

• The 2 cards all players are dealt before betting begins

Hooks:

• A pair of Jacks

I is for:

Implied Odds:

• While implied odds do not actually exist during an active round, players can factor them in when they hit the right card to make a hand. In such instances, working out implied odds gives you the amount of money you would win should you make the required hand

In Position:

• When you act after 1 or more players in a hand this is classed as “being in position” The advantage it carries is that you get to see how every other player acts first

In The Money:

• Where you want to be! This is the final part of a tournament. Every player left will win something

K is for:

Keep Them Honest:

• This is when you call at the end of a hand in order to prevent another player from bluffing

Key Card:

• This is the card that gives you a big draw or one that makes your hand

Key Hand:

• This is known as the hand that is the turning point for a player. This can be for positive or negative reasons

Kicker:

• When multiple players have tied hands with each having a 2, 3 or 4-card hand the next highest card breaks the tie. This is the Kicker card. If players are holding a 3-card hand (i.e. 3-of-a-kind) 2 Kickers can be used

Kick It:

• This is when a player calls a Raise

Kill Pot:

• This is forced play from a player who has just won a pot (or pots!). It is intended to stimulate the table action

Knock:

• Rather than play you pass

Kojak:

• Any hand containing a K-J
That’s it for the letters G to K in our installment of “Texas Hold’em – The A-Z of Poker speak”. There is little doubt you will be familiar with some of the terms above, but hopefully you have added to your Texas Hold’em vocabulary with ones previously unheard of.

There’s lots more to come:

Do keep a close eye out as we build this extensive compendium on the A-Z of Hold’em jargon. It will add to your knowledge of common terms as well as the more obscure ones. What is more, you will be able to impart your knowledge to friends as well as foes!
Our next article continues with the letter’s ‘L’ to ‘N’ and includes ‘Limper’, ‘Muck’ and why ‘The Nuts’ and ‘Monster’ are what you are after!

Learning to speak Texas Hold’em as well as you play it is all part of the fun and excitement of the world’s most popular poker game!
Some of the terms and slang used are self-explanatory, some humourous, others startlingly apt, but all very relevant to the game and your knowledge of it.
To help you along we have put together a comprehensive list of terms. Read them, memorise the ones you find worthy of repeat, and begin to speak Hold’em as well as you play it!
This is part 3 covering the letters D-F. The remainder of the alphabet will be gradually introduced to allow meanings to soak in.
Have fun reading!

D is for:

Dead Man’s Hand:

• Supposedly the hand Wild Bill Hickock held when he was shot: Aces & Eights!

Deuce:

• A 2

Draw/Drawing:

• A player who needs 1 or 2 cards more to make a strong hand is ‘drawing’ in the hope they will hit what is required and be paid off

Drawing Dead:

• When you are in a hand, or an all-in showdown and unable to win. This is regardless of what remaining cards hit the table

Ducks:

• A pair of 2’s

Down Card:

• Hole cards that are dealt face down

Doyle Brunson:

• This is a Hold’em hand of 10-2. – Brunson won the World Championship for two consecutive years with these cards!

Drop:

• To fold

E is for:

Early Position:

• Considered as the player who is 2 positions to the left of the Blinds. When in Early Position you must act before the majority of other players.

Expected Value (EV):

• This can be described as a positive or a negative as in; +EV or -EV. It is a player’s rating on a specific poker play and indicates whether it will result in long-term positive or negative returns

F is for:

Family Pot:

• This is when all or most players call pre-flop
Fifth Street:
• In flop games this is the 5th community card on the table as well as the final round of playing. It is also known as the “river” card

Fish:

• Don’t be one, but playing against a “fish” can be profitable! It is the term used to describe a weak, inexperienced player

Flat Call:

• This is when you call a player without raising

Float:

• When a player calls a bet with a bluff in mind which will allow them to take the pot on a later street

Flop:

• These are the first 3 community cards dealt in Hold’em (and Omaha). They are dealt in the centre of the table, face-up. It also indicates the 2nd round of playing

Flush:

• A 5-card hand all of the same suit

Flush Draw:

• When a player is holding 4 same-suit cards and is hoping to draw a 5th to make their flush

Fold:

• Surrendering a hand, ending participation in that round and therefore rendering yourself unable to win the pot

Fold Equity:

• This is the implied equity a player stands to achieve by making a bet with the intention of forcing their opponent to fold. Example: This can be used to good effect if an opponent has a small stack. You raise enough to cover the stack. Unless they are willing to play for their total stack they are forced to fold

Forced Play:

• A required play to begin the action on the 1st round

Four of a Kind:

• 4 same ranked cards. Also called “quads”

Fourth Street:

• An alternative term for the “turn” or 4th community card

Full House:

• Yes please! A 5-card hand consisting of 3-of-a-kind plus a pair

Free card:

• In the event all players check they all get to see a free card

Free-Roll:

Two meanings:
• If a tournament states there is no “buy-in” required, it is free to enter.
• A player in a hand that can only win or chop is free-rolling for the win

Freeze-Out:

• In a “freeze-out” tournament players cannot rebuy
That’s it for the letters D to-F in our installment of “Texas Hold’em – The A-Z of Poker speak”. There is little doubt you will be familiar with some of the terms above, but hopefully you have added to your Texas Hold’em vocabulary with ones previously unheard of.

There’s lots more to come:

Do keep a close eye out as we build this extensive compendium on the A-Z of Hold’em jargon. It will add to your knowledge of common terms as well as the more obscure ones. What is more, you will be able to impart your knowledge to friends as well as foes!
Our next article continues with the letter’s ‘G’ to ‘K’ and includes ‘Grinder’, ‘Gut Shot’, ‘Heater’ and ‘Hijack. It will also explain how to ‘Keep Them Honest’!

Learning to speak Texas Hold’em as well as you play it is all part of the fun and excitement of the world’s most popular poker game!
Some of the terms and slang used are self-explanatory, some humourous, others startlingly apt, but all very relevant to the game and your knowledge of it.
To help you along we have put together a comprehensive list of terms. Read them, memorise the ones you find worthy of repeat, and begin to speak Hold’em as well as you play it!
This is part 3 covering the letter C. The remainder of the alphabet will be introduced gradually to allow meanings to soak in.
Have fun reading!

C is for:

Call:

• To make a “call” a player needs to match another player’s bet if they are to continue the hand and either see the next card or force a showdown. A call will define who wins the pot.

Calling Station:

• Don’t become a Calling Station! This term is used for a player that calls bets excessively and it is rare to see them Fold or Raise.

Cap:

• Taking the last of the maximum number of raises allowed for each round of play.

Case Card:

• This is the last card in the deck of a certain rank. Example: If you are holding 3-of-a-kind you will be hoping to get the fourth matching card (the case card).

Case Chips:

• Not what you want, but it will happen! This relates to a player’s last chips.

Cash Game:

• Chips have a point value in tournaments. In cash games the value is cash!

Check:

• Opting not to bet and passing the action to the next person in the hand. In table games a check can either be verbal or by a hand pat on the table.

Check-Raise:

• This should be a tactic you employ profitably. You Check in the hope (expectation!) of drawing other players into the bet. When they commit, you raise.

Chop:

• If participating players have the same value in their hand on showdown they “Chop the pot” and receive and equal share of it. This is also referred to as “Split the pot”

Coin Flip:

• Texas Hold’em regulars will come across this fairly frequently. It is when 2 players are all in and both have a fairly even chance of winning. Example: 1 player is holding high suited “connectors”.
E.g. Ace, King – The other has a “pocket pair” such as pocket 10’s. Coin Flip is also known as a “race”.

Cold Call:

• A Cold Call in Hold’em is classed when 1 player raises in a “pre-flop” round and then another player “calls” it.

Collusion:

• Don’t do it! Don’t partner up! As the term suggests, collusion is when 2 or more players conspire to cheat in a game.

Community Cards:

• The cards that are dealt face up on the table. All players can use these cards in order to make their hand with their two “hole” cards.

Connectors:

• 2 cards in sequential order. These are usually a player’s “hole” cards.

Continuation Bet:

• As a general rule, when a player opts to bet pre-flop they will almost always bet on the flop. Continuation betting can also be used as a type of bluff: If you have what appears to be a strong pre-flop hand and place a bet, but post-flop things are not looking so positive you bet again anyway. Your opponent will often assume your hand remains strong as they are not aware of this change.

Cooler:

• When multiple players have strong hands this inevitably results in a big pot as well as unavoidable actions. When this happens, the outcome is usually all-in bets and calls.

Cowboys:

• A pair of Kings.

Cut Off:

• A player to the right of the dealer is termed as being in the Cut Off position.
That’s it for the letter ‘C’ in our installment of “Texas Hold’em – The A-Z of Poker speak”. There is little doubt you will be familiar with some of the terms above, but hopefully you have added to your Texas Hold’em vocabulary with ones previously unheard of.

There’s lots more to come:

Do keep a close eye out as we build this extensive compendium on the A-Z of Hold’em jargon. It will add to your knowledge of common terms as well as the more obscure ones. What is more, you will be able to impart your knowledge to friends as well as foes!
Our next article continues with the letter’s ‘D’ to ‘F’ and includes ‘Ducks’ and ‘Drawing Dead’. Where the term ‘Dead Man’s Hand’ originated from as well as ‘Fish’ ‘Float’ and ‘Fourth Street’!

Learning to speak Texas Hold’em as well as you play it is all part of the fun and excitement of the world’s most popular poker game!
Some of the terms and slang used are self-explanatory, some humourous, others startlingly apt, but all very relevant to the game and your knowledge of it.
To help you along we have put together a comprehensive list of terms. Read them, memorise the ones you find worthy of repeat, and begin to speak Hold’em as well as you play it!
This is part 2 covering the letter B. The remainder of the alphabet will be gradually introduced to allow meanings to soak in.
Have fun reading!

B is for:

Backdoor:

• This is when you hit the required cards to make your hand on the turn and the river. Example: 1 Diamond is on the table, you have 2 in your hand and 2 more Diamonds show on the turn and river. Result: You have hit a ‘backdoor’ Flush

Bad Beat:

• A player who has an initial, substantial, statistical lead over their opponent but lose the hand after the Flop, Turn or River

Bad Beat Story:

• Tales often retold (and then retold again!) relating to a player’s disbelief that their hand was ‘surely’ unbeatable. They staked high in anticipation of collecting a big pot only to be ‘mugged’ by an opponent due to some incredible cards produced on the turn and the river.

Big Blind (BB):

• The size of wager the 2nd player to the dealers left has to bet. The amount placed depends upon the stakes of each game. The BB must be placed before action begins and is equivalent to 1 complete 1st round bet. The reason it is called a blind? Because the player concerned has to place the bet without seeing their cards first.

Blind:

• This is a generic term for either/or the Big Blind (BB) or the Small Blind (SB). You are one of these blinds when you are:
• Sitting immediately to the dealers left = SB
• Sitting immediately left of the SB = BB

Board:

• Refers to the community cards every player uses in combination with their pocket cards in order to form the best hand

Bubble:

• In a tournament this is the label you do not want! The Bubble refers to the top finisher out of the money. Example: There are 350 players
in a tournament and the top 35 are in for a payout. The player finishing 36th is known as “The Bubble”

Burn:

• The top card is discarded before each betting round. If there happens to be a distinguishing mark on the burn card it stays where it is in order to conceal the next card to be deal before it comes out. In this way, no information (intentional or unintentional) is evident to any player

Button:

• Nice place to ‘B!’. This donates the position of the dealer. In live games it is usually indicated by placing a plastic disk in front of the dealer. This moves clockwise from player to player each time the dealer shuffles for a new hand. The huge advantage being “on the button” has is that you get to act last in the betting of that particular game.

Buy-In:

• This is the cost you will pay to enter a tournament or the minimum amount you will need to sit down in a cash game at a certain table. It is usually 20 x’s the BB (Big Blind). Example: If you are at a $5/$10 table you will need $200 to take a seat.
That’s it for the letter ‘B’ in our 1st installment of “Texas Hold’em – The A-Z of Poker speak”. There is little doubt you will be familiar with some of the terms above, but hopefully you have added to your Texas Hold’em vocabulary with ones previously unheard of.

There’s lots more to come:

Do keep a close eye out as we build this extensive compendium on the A-Z of Hold’em jargon. It will add to your knowledge of common terms as well as the more obscure ones. What is more, you will be able to impart your knowledge to friends as well as foes!
Our next article covers the letter ‘C’ and includes ‘Cap’, ‘Case Card’, ‘Chop’, those potentially useful ‘Cowboys’ and one you want to come out on top of the pile in: ‘Cooler!’