There are some basic poker etiquette that any player, whether playing in a home game or in a poker room, should know and follow. No matter what kind of poker game you are playing, these basic rules of poker etiquette ensure that the game is fair and runs smoothly.
Don’t jump the gun
While you may be particularly excited about getting a good hand and can’t wait to go for a raise, you must wait until it is your turn to act before you make a move. This should also be true for folding. If you act first, you give the other players information they wouldn’t have gotten before they made their decision, and can confuse the other participants about the order of action.
Don’t talk about your cards while the hand is still in play
Once you fold, it becomes a temptation to discuss what might have happened if you had stayed in the hand. But if the hand is not over, your leaks may give them information they can use. For example, if you hold 72 and the flop is 7-7-2, if you inadvertently leak that you could have gotten the gourd, then everyone at the table knows that it is highly unlikely that any of the players in the hand got the gourd, and makes it difficult for players to pretend that they got 72.
Don’t show your cards until the showdown
Always make sure you are not showing or inadvertently exposing your cards when you throw them to the waste pile. If other players know what cards you discarded, they get information that could change their next play. There is no reason to show or expose your cards before the showdown unless you are all-in in a one-shot situation.
Don’t throw your chips around
You will see two bad habits in many movies that are considered taboo in real life. The first bad habit is when a player bets into the middle of the pot and throws his chips everywhere, making it difficult for others to see how much he has bet. The proper way to poker betting is to stack your chips in a neat stack or stacks in front of you and push them to the center of the table.
Don’t make a series of poker betting
The second bad habit is the string bet, which is a situation where you say, “I’ll call you for 500 …… and raise you for 1000! You must state directly whether you are calling or raising – once you say “call”, you can only call. If you are going to raise, say you are raising and report the raise immediately. This rule is especially important in the tournament circuit.
Don’t be rough and don’t be mean
Even if you are losing in a row, you have no right to curse other players or be mean to the dealer. This will only cause you to fail to win the pot and make friends. Some words may cause a player to lose his temper out of irritation, but it is more likely that these words will get you into trouble or make the situation worse. You have no reason to be mean to the dealer. If you think there is something wrong with the dealer, take it up with the card superintendent.
For one person, for all
If you win a hand before showdown and don’t want to show your cards anyway, you can’t just show your cards to the one player next to you, if you do, you have to show the bottom card to the whole table. After all, why should the lucky player next to you be the only one who knows what cards you’re holding?
Be sure to keep your focus
If you’re playing a hand, don’t let everyone remind you that it’s your turn to act – always keep your eye on the action at the table to keep the hand running smoothly. In every poker room I’ve played in, talking on your cell phone during a hand is forbidden and can result in you being denied the right to play that hand. Texting, browsing websites or playing on a tablet at the table is usually allowed, but it is usually not recommended if these actions interfere with your concentration and prevent you from keeping up with the game.
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