How betting works
Checks, bets, calls and raises, the minimum raise, going all in and how side pots are split, with worked examples.
Betting is what turns cards into poker. The cards decide who has the best hand; the betting decides who is still there to show it, and how much they win.
Your options
On your turn you can do one of these, depending on what has happened before you:
| If nobody has bet yet | If someone has bet |
|---|---|
| Check - bet nothing, pass the action on | Fold - give up the hand |
| Bet - put chips in first | Call - match the current bet |
| Raise - increase the bet |
You can always fold, but folding when you could check for free just throws a hand away.
A betting round ends when every player still in the hand has either put in the same amount or is all in, and everyone has had at least one chance to act.
How much can you bet?
Home Game, like almost every Hold'em game today, is no-limit: you can bet any amount from the minimum up to everything in front of you.
- Minimum bet: one big blind.
- Minimum raise: a raise must be at least as big as the last bet or raise on that street. If the big blind is 50 and someone raises to 150 (a raise of 100), the next raise must be to at least 250.
- All in: you may always bet all your chips, even if that is less than a full raise.
Bet sizes people talk about
Bets are usually described as a fraction of the pot. With 300 in the middle:
| Size | Chips | When it is used |
|---|---|---|
| A third of the pot | 100 | Cheap continuation bets on dry boards |
| Half the pot | 150 | A standard, flexible size |
| Two-thirds | 200 | Strong hands and draws on wet boards |
| Pot | 300 | Big value or big bluffs |
The bigger your bet, the worse the price you offer anyone who wants to call: see pot odds.
A short round, step by step
Blinds are 25/50. Bianca (UTG) raises to 150. Dan calls 150. Ana on the button raises to 450 (a 3-bet). The small blind folds; the big blind folds. Bianca calls another 300. Dan folds.
The pot is now 25 + 50 + 450 + 450 + 150 = 1,125, and Bianca and Ana see the flop.
All in and side pots
You can never win more from a player than you put in yourself. When stacks are different sizes, the extra chips form side pots.
Three players are all in before the flop:
- Ana has 100.
- Bogdan has 300.
- Cristi has 500, but only needs to match Bogdan's 300.
The chips are split like this:
| Pot | Made of | Size | Who can win it |
|---|---|---|---|
| Main pot | 100 from each of the three | 300 | Ana, Bogdan, Cristi |
| Side pot | 200 more from Bogdan and Cristi | 400 | Bogdan, Cristi |
Cristi's last 200 was never called, so it simply goes back to him. Now suppose Ana has the best hand, Bogdan the second best: Ana wins the main pot (300) and Bogdan wins the side pot (400). Ana could not win the side pot, because she never put anything in it.
Home Game builds and pays side pots automatically, including the odd chip when a pot splits unevenly.
Etiquette that matters, online or at a table
- Act in turn. Folding early gives the players before you information.
- Say what you are doing. In a live game, saying "raise" before you move chips avoids arguments.
- Do not slow-roll. If you know you have won at showdown, show your cards. Making someone wait while you hold the winner is the rudest thing in poker.
Next: opening ranges, or brush up on hand rankings.