Nevada Poker Rules

Know these general Nevada rules in the Card Rooms.

Poker rules and policies differ from one casino poker room to another, even from one part of the nation to another.

Bridge and Paper Cards	Bridge Cards, Joker and Cut Card

Poker in casinos is played with a deck of 52 cards. Narrow bridge size plastic cards generally are used in casino poker rooms. These cards are much easier for the dealer to handle than the wide paper cards. A spare deck is kept in the dealer's rack.

Here are some common casino poker rules with some of their variations. You might encounter these poker rules in poker rooms. Take notice that a particular casino's poker rules (house) and policies always supersede these general poker rules.

Keep in mind there is no specific set of poker rules, and there are many poker rules.

English Is The Language

English is the official language in American poker rooms. Only English is permitted to be spoken by any player or spectator at the table during the course of a game. Anything said to or by a player must be loud and clear and in English so other players can hear.

One Player Per Hand

A player cannot ask for or receive advice from any other player, spectator or the casino dealer during the course of a hand. Neither can the player ask a spectator for advice. The casino dealer is not there to give advice either.

A player cannot expose her cards or disclose the content of her hand to another player.

Show One, Show All

If an active player shows her hand to another active player, and any other active player asks to see it too, then she has to show it to all active players.

Players Must Protect Their Own Hands

A player is responsible for guarding her own hand at all times. A player can guard her hand by putting a token or some other article on top of the hole (face down) cards showing the hand is still alive, or she can hold on to the cards.

A player must guard her cards from touching the muck.

A player with a winning hand should protect her winning hand until the dealer has pushed the pot to her.

A player is responsible for calling attention to any other disparities she observes during the course of a hand.

Cards Must Be In View

All the players' cards must be in sight, so that the other players and the casino dealer can see who has a hand.

Cards Must Be Above The Poker Table

Cards must be kept above the table. Players are not allowed to take the cards off the table or past the edge.

Burn Card

After each round of wagering, and before dealing the next round of cards, the dealer, with her free hand, softly taps the table, and then takes the top card from the deck by placing it face down at the edge (under a chip) of the pot. That is known as burning a card.

When the dealer begins each deal, she does not burn a card, that's the only time.

Direction Of Play

The direction of play is always clockwise, from dealer's left to right.

Showdown Of Hands

Showdown happens at the completion of the last betting round, when players turn and show all cards face up on the table to see who has the winning hand.

The Order Of Showdown

Players are required to show their hands according to the sequence in which they had the chance to bet. -Don't worry, everybody will just show their hands at showdown in a real game.-

Player's Accountability

It is the player's responsibility to turn up her cards. At showdown, a player has to turn up her cards by herself. If she does not, she is not considered in the showdown. This is an important poker rule.

Cards Speak

The strength of a hand called incorrectly or a verbal concession is not binding at showdown. When all hands are shown face up at the completion of a hand, the cards speak for themselves.

The cards themselves establish the value of the hand and the highest ranking hand wins the pot, or the best hand wins the pot depending which kind of poker game is being played.

Now, it becomes the casino dealer's responsibility to read the hands properly and award the pot to the player with the best live hand. After all of this, it is still the player's accountability (rule). No player has the right to touch the pot.

Another player or the dealer cannot turn a player's hand face up if that player is away from the table at the time of the showdown.

Players leaving the table with a hand face down at the showdown have waived all rights to the pot.

The dealer is not required to turn any of the players' cards face up for them. It is the player's responsibility to turn all cards face up at the showdown (rule).

Five Cards Decision In Poker

The final decision of the winning hand is always founded on five cards only. If there is a tie, the pot is split. The sixth and seventh cards are never taken into account.

Suits In Poker Games

Suit does not matter. Suit has no meaning in poker. All suits are considered the same value. Suits never break a tie for winning the pot. Suits are used to break ties between cards of the same rank.

Buy-In

To sit and play at a table, a player must put money on the table. It has to be at least the specified minimum buy-in for that table. The minimum buy-in usually is five times the maximum bet.

The poker room sets and specifies these guiding rules such as,
"how much to buy in,"
"only chips play on the table, no bills (cash) or both".

Maximum Bet

A maximum amount permitted for wagering. In most casino poker rooms, usually it is one bet and three raises for each round of betting. Other poker rooms allow more than just three raises.

All-In Bets

A player cannot be forced to withdraw from a hand because she does not have enough money to call a full bet, to make a full bet or to raise. She has the right to play and get action on the leftover chips (money) in front of her on the table. That's declaring all-in.

If another active player or players has already placed more money into the pot than the player declaring "all in," the difference will be given back to her or them, or put into a side pot, to be competed among the other active players.

Note:
These days, a lot of casino poker rooms have a minimum size chip declaration in their poker rules. This means, if a player declares all-in, she can only do it in units of this size chip. If this is $5 and she has $8 left, she can only be all-in for $5.

String Bets

String bets are not permitted. A player must put the full amount of money out at one time or announce her intended action before putting out any money.

A player wishing to make a certain amount of a bet or raise has to announce her intentions if she is not coming out with the total amount of the bet (chips) in one move.

Oversize Chip

Placing a large nomination chip or bill into the pot bigger than the bet is just a call, unless a raise is announced by the player before the chip hits the table.

Examples:

Player A bets $40. Player B puts a $100 check (chip) in the pot without saying anything. Player B should receive $60 back in change from the pot.

Player A bets $65.
Player B announces a raise ($130) and she puts in two $100 checks.
Player C does not say anything, but puts two $100 checks too.
Players B and C both should receive $70 back in change from the pot. Even though Player C put in enough money to re-raise, but she did not say anything.

Splashing

Players should not splash the pot. That's putting or throwing chips directly into the pot. It is hard for other players to see or tell how much exactly is being put in that way. Every player should put her bets right in front her seat position.

Blind Bets In Poker Rules

A blind bet is a forced bet that one or more players has to wage to initiate the action on the first round of betting before any card has been dealt. The blind button goes around the table with each new deal. Hold'em and Draw Low-ball use blinds, for example.

There are small and big blind bets.

Straddles

The first player after the blinds (big blind) may place a straddle bet. It is twice the amount of the big blind. This has to be done before any card has been dealt. A straddle is live, giving that particular player the last option to check or raise only on the first round of betting.

Some poker rooms allow straddle bets others don't. Some other poker rooms allow a second straddle bet, but it is not considered a life bet.

A straddle is nothing more than an optional blind bet.

Bring-In Bet

A Bring-in bet is also a forced bet as on the low Door Card in Seven-Card Stud that a player has to make to start the action. The Door Card is the third card face up in Seven-Card Stud. The Door Card is also called Third Street.

Ante In Poker Rules

An Ante is a required bet from every player, before any cards are dealt in a poker game, like in Seven-Card Stud. An ante is a dictated amount.

Check And Raise

Check and raise is generally permitted, unless the poker room is prohibiting such rule.

Making Change From The Pot In Poker

Only the dealer makes change from the pot. The players are not allowed to make change for their wagers from the pot. Most of the time, a player can make change from her own wager she has made earlier, if the wager is still in front her seat for that present round of betting.

Winning The Pot

The player who wins the pot should not reach for the pot. The dealer will push the pot to her.

Eight Or Better

An eight or better is required to qualify for a low hand.

Difficult Situations And Arguments

In case of a difficult situation or argument, a floor person, not the dealer, will make a decision.

The Board In Poker Rules

The Board means the Community cards, the five face up cards in the middle of the poker table in Hold'em or Omaha games.

The Board can also mean the cards that are face up in a player's hand.

The Board also means a list of players waiting for seats in certain games.

Community Cards In Poker Games

The five face up cards (the Board) in the middle of the table in Texas Hold'em or Omaha games.

These are some of the poker rules. There are many more.