Poker school
The language of poker, explained
Players talk in shorthand: 3-bets, cutoffs, equity, ICM. This is where each word is explained in plain English, with the numbers worked out. Start with the lessons, or look a term up in the glossary.
Lessons
- 01How a hand runsThe button, the blinds, the four streets and the five actions: the shape of every hand of Texas Hold’em, step by step. 4 min read.
- 02Position: why your seat mattersWhy acting last is worth so much, what each seat is called from under the gun to the button, and how the names change with the size of the table. 4 min read.
- 03Hands, ranges and combosHow players write hands down, why there are 1,326 starting hands but only 169 kinds, and why good players think about every hand an opponent could hold. 4 min read.
- 04The maths of a callPot odds, equity and outs, how to turn one into another, and a worked flush-draw example from the price to the decision. 5 min read.
- 05Betting with a purposeWhy you bet, for value or as a bluff; how fold equity and semi-bluffs work; how to choose a size; and the continuation bet. 5 min read.
- 06Tournaments: stacks, antes and prize moneyWhy tournament chips aren’t money: stacks in big blinds, antes, push or fold, ICM, the bubble and bounties. 5 min read.
- 07Live games: limpers, straddles and bigger raisesHow card-room cash games differ from online ones: limpers, the straddle, bigger opens, iso-raises, set-mining, and the drop. 5 min read.
Glossary
128 terms, each with what it means, a worked example where numbers help, and where you meet it in PokerIQ. Open the glossary.
- The table and positions (16)Who sits where, who acts when, and the name of every seat.
- Actions and betting (23)What players do on their turn, and the names for each kind of bet and raise.
- Hands and boards (22)Starting hands, made hands, draws, outs, and the shapes a board can take.
- Ranges and reads (15)Thinking about every hand a player could hold, and the labels for how people play.
- The maths (16)Equity, pot odds, expected value and the other numbers behind a decision.
- Tournaments (16)Stacks in big blinds, antes, push or fold, prize money and bounties.
- Live games (6)Card-room words: the straddle, bigger raises, set-mining, the drop and the time charge.
- PokerIQ’s own words (14)What the badges, labels and buttons in PokerIQ mean.
Written by PokerIQ’s poker strategy lead in our own words. For how PokerIQ works out its figures, see the methodology.