'A' Game
When a player is playing at the top level of his abilities he is said to be, 'playing his/her 'A' game'.
ACES FULL
A hand with 3 aces and a pair of any other value.
ACE IN THE HOLE
When one of your face down cards ('Hole cards') is an ace.
ACES UP
A pair of aces and another pair of any other value.
ACTION
A check, bet, call, fold or raise.
ADVERTISE
To show down a mediocre hand and give the impression that you play loose or that you are weak player. The other players will then hopefully give you more action when you are holding a (a legitimately strong hand).
ALL IN
When a player bets all his or her chips.
BACK-DOOR FLUSH
When you have three cards of the same suit on the 'Flop' you need the turn and river to be of the same suit to make a flush.
BACK-DOOR STRAIGHT
When you have three cards of a straight, but you need the 'Turn' and 'River' to make a straight.
BAD BEAT
When a weak hand outdraws and beats a strong hand.
BANKROLL
The amount of money that a player has available to wager.
BEHIND
When your hand is not the best hand at any point in the round.
BET
To put money in the pot before anyone else has done so.
BET FOR VALUE
When you bet in order to increase the pot size, not to make your opponents fold.
BET THE POT
To make a bet that is the size of the pot.
BIG DOG
An underdog. The person who has a very low chance of winning.
BIG BLIND
The compulsory bet that is made by the person sitting two seats to the left of the dealer button. This is the largest compulsory bet. In tournament play this amount increases after each timed round.
BIG SLICK
Poker slang for Ace-King.
BLANK
A card that is not of value to the players hand.
BLIND (SMALL BLIND/BIG BLIND)
A mandatory bet placed by the two players to the left of the dealer button.
BLUFF
To raise or bet a weak hand in order to make your opponent think you have a strong hand.
BOARD CARDS
Board cards are the cards that everyone shares and are located in the center of the table. They're also referred to as 'Community cards'.
BULLETS
A pair of Aces.
BUST A PLAYER
To eliminate a player from the game by taking all of his or her chips.
BUST OUT
To lose all your chips and thus be eliminated from a tournament.
BUTTON
A white disc-shaped object that moves clockwise around the table each hand and indicates where
the action begins.
BUY-IN
A minimum amount of money that must be paid in order to play in a tournament and live games.
CALL
To match (rather than raise) the previous bet.
CALLING STATION
A player who makes a lot of calls (often bad calls), much to the pleasure of the better players at the table.
CAP
The number of raises allowed in a game.
CHANGE GEARS
To strategically alternate your play between conservative and aggressive.
CHASE
To continue in a hand trying to outdraw an opponent's hand even when you are sure you are 'Behind'.
CHECK
To not bet, reserving the option to call or raise later in the betting round.
CHECK-RAISE
To lead with a check and then raise after someone else bets out with his/her hand.
COME OVER THE TOP
To raise or re-raise another players bet.
COMMUNITY CARDS
The cards that are played face up on the center of the table, and which can be used by all of the
active players in Texas Hold 'em and Omaha.
CONNECTORS
Consecutively ranked cards that can help a player make a straight.
DEAD MAN'S HAND
A pair of aces and a pair of eights; Wild Bill Hickock was shot holding this hand.
DEAD MONEY
Money that was put into the pot by players who have since folded. Also used in reference to the players in a large tournament (for example, the Main Event at the World Series) who are very unlikely to win the tournament.
DOUBLE-UP
Betting all your chips and winning, ending up with twice as many chips.
DOWN CARDS
The players cards which are dealt face down.
DRAWING HAND
A drawing hand is one that will only improve if the cards you need to fill your hand come up on the board. You are considered to be "on a draw" when you are relying on board cards to complete your hand.
DRAWING DEAD
To have a hand that is dead in the water no matter what miracle cards turn up on the board. With this hand, you are sure to lose!
