LIVE POKER

Many say that you should only play poker if your poker face is on point. Would you flinch if you stepped on a Lego? Would you start bouncing up and down at the prospect of winning a hand with a king-high? If it were up to the late poker guru Stu Ungar, you wouldn't be allowed within viewing distance of a casino.

In a Live Casino, however, you might stand more of a chance. If you have no idea what any of this means, don't visit a poker table! At least, not until you read our guide to poker.

HOW TO PLAY POKER

Poker isn't extremely challenging to grasp, but it is extremely challenging to master. The rules might sound complicated at first, but the more you play, the less you'll start worrying about them. It's all about understanding the game mechanics of the most popular poker game out there, Texas Hold'em. With some practice, you'll be flipping through the world poker news in search of the biggest events to join in no time!

HOW POKER ROUNDS WORK

The goal in poker is to beat your opponents with your hand. If you're having doubts about the game on account of how that sounds, stick around. That poker tournament prize money won't win itself!

Each player is dealt two cards at the start of the game round. This is called the hand and your aim is to beat other players' hands to win the total number of chips that have been wagered, known as the pot. Who decides who's hand wins? Well, a number of rules and factors come into play to decide that.

Once the hands have been dealt, players can place their first bets. In Texas Hold'em, the player next to the dealer can place what is called the small blind, which is half the minimum bet. The following player can then place the big blind, which must be at least the minimum bet.

In both cases, players are free to raise their bet if they think their hand has enough potential to win them the round. Other players would then have to either match their bet or fold, which means abandoning the round. You can use this option at any point in the game if you lose faith in your hand, or if another player bets an amount you aren't comfortable matching.

In poker, game rounds progress once all players have agreed to the round bet. Once the round progresses, players might decide to refrain from betting whatsoever, by checking. When a player checks, they pass their turn without placing a bet, but this cannot be done if a player before them has placed a bet.

HOW TO WIN IN POKER

Now that you know how poker rounds work, it's time to figure out how to win them.

As we mentioned previously, the dealer gives players two cards each. After the bets have been placed, the dealer brings out the flop. The flop refers to the three community cards that the dealer puts on the table once the preliminary bets have been placed. On the flop, players can check, bet, call, fold or raise. However, the first player to act isn't facing any bet; thus, it is possible that everyone checks on the flop. If a bet has been made, the rest of the players can either call, fold or raise.

The dealer will eventually place two more community cards on the table, which will then make up the turn and the river. After the flop concludes, the dealer will place a fourth card (the turn). Once the betting round is over, the dealer adds the fifth and final card — known as the river card — and waits until the final betting round is over.

Each players' goal is to create the best five-card hand from a total of seven: the hand's two cards plus five from the river. Here are the 10 possible card combinations you should look out for, starting from the weakest hand to the best one in the game.

HIGH CARD

Having the lowest rank, this hand is a very unlikely winner since any other combination will topple it. A high card will feature no two cards of the same value, no five-card sequence and not all cards will be from the same suit.

If two players battle it out with high cards, the highest-ranking card from the hand will win. If both players have the same highest-value card, the next best card will be the deciding factor.

PAIR

This is when you have two cards of the same value and three kickers. As always in poker, higher-ranking cards will topple lower-ranking ones, so a pair of tens will win over two threes.

TWO PAIR

As the name implies, this hand features two pairs — two cards of one value, and another two cards with another value. For example, two jacks and two threes.

THREE OF A KIND

This hand features three cards of the same value, for example, three fours.

STRAIGHT

In this hand, there will be five sequential cards. For example, this hand could feature cards ten, jack, queen, king and an ace. They don't have to be of the same suit.

FLUSH

This hand features five cards of the same suit. They don't have to be in sequential order.

FULL HOUSE

A full house will see three cards of the same value and another two cards of another value. Think of it as having a three of a kind and a pair in the same hand.

FOUR OF A KIND

This hand will feature four cards of the same value. For example, four jacks will make up four of a kind.

STRAIGHT FLUSH

If you manage to line up five sequential cards of the same suit, congratulations! You have the second-best hand in the game. A straight flush can look something like this: a four, five, six, seven and eight of diamonds.

ROYAL FLUSH

This hand doesn't come around all too often, but when it does, expect some fireworks. This hand will feature a 10, jack, queen, king and ace of the same suit. You can't lose with this hand. At most, you'll tie if another player shows another royal flush. This is the king of poker hands, and any time it pops up is an event in and of itself.

DIFFERENCE BETWEEN POKER AND LIVE POKER

Don't run off to your nearest casino to join a poker table just yet! You might not only prefer other variants of poker, but you might enjoy playing at home instead. In fact, the very idea of such comfort eventually gave birth to online casinos, and later Live Casinos. Before you dabble in live poker or join one of the many poker tournaments, it would be a good idea to try out online poker first.

In online poker, the dealer is fully automated to distribute hands and collect chips, so if you want to have one less witness to your atrocious hands, this is your thing. Online poker has many different variants to play, which is why it's the perfect playground to toy with to grasp different mechanics and learn more ways to play.

If you've spent enough of your time on online poker but still don't feel like throwing on some jeans to try real poker, how about live poker? The beauty of a Live Casino is that players get to enjoy the same comfort and world-famous games they get while playing at an online casino, but with an added element of immersion. In live poker, for example, a real dealer conducts the play of the game by distributing the cards and adding commentary.

Apart from that, Evolution’s ground-breaking live casino games feature some of the best streaming services in the industry. This means that you'll manage to absorb all the elements of a real casino while in the comfort of your own home. Visit and have a look at HotSlots' Live Casino portfolio to see what top-quality live poker games await you!

Also, you'll be happy to know that Evolution's live poker games can be played on your mobile device as well. Most prominent gaming providers are constantly trying to touch up their games to run flawlessly on mobile devices to keep a linearly excellent service across all possible platforms.

OTHER POKER GAMES

What we mentioned earlier are the basics of Texas Hold’em — one of the most basic poker games out there that will give you the foundation of other poker variants. We'll now have a look at live poker variants that you can try if you want to really expand your horizons. Having a look at the latest poker news and biggest events is a good way to familiarise yourself with other poker variants and unique gameplay rules, even if just as a spectator.

THREE-CARD DRAW

This variant is one of the most straightforward live poker games you'll ever play. Here's how the action unfolds.

Before the round begins, you'll have to place an initial bet called the ante. If you don't place this bet, you won't be allowed to join the round and play. This bet amount will vary between casino tables. Another optional bet you can place is called the Pair Plus. This bonus bet is triggered if your hand contains any pair whatsoever.

Should you decide to place the ante and play the round, you'll be dealt three cards which you are free to look at. In three-card poker, you'll only be playing the dealer. This means that your primary objective is to beat the dealer's hand and win the total bet.

If you don't like your hand, tough luck. You can opt to forfeit and lose your ante. If you like your hand and want to keep the play going, place another bet. Once this is done, the dealer will reveal their cards.

How will you know who wins? The standard poker combinations apply here, but instead of five cards, you'll only have three cards to strike a winning combination.

An interesting feature in three-card poker is that the player's hand and the dealer's hand can be combined to make a five-card poker hand. This is possible if both the hands can produce three of a kind, straight, flush, full house, four of a kind, royal or straight flush. If a player places the 6 Card Bonus wager, this bonus bet with great odds will be paid should any of these combinations happen.

Land-based three-card poker features more side bets, including the Prime, where all your cards are the same colour, and a progressive jackpot bet. We'll expand on the latter bonus bet soon.

FIVE-CARD DRAW

This poker variant is very similar to the Three-card draw. As the name suggests, there are five cards dealt in this variant, with four rounds to declare the winner. In the live version of this poker variant, you'll play against the dealer alone.

The first betting round features ante bets. After that, the draw happens and you'll receive five cards. If you don't like your hand, you can ask the dealer to replace a number of your cards. This number may vary from one variant to another, but it usually stands at a maximum of three. This is entirely optional and you can decline to have any of your cards replaced if you wish.

Then comes the second and final betting round. This is the last opportunity to forfeit your hand, so it's really important to make sure that your hand is one worth competing with if you want to bet.

Finally, the showdown happens. This is when the dealer will show their hand and compare it to the player's. Whoever has the better hand wins.

LIVE CARIBBEAN STUD POKER

If you've heard of Evolution, you know that they constantly deliver top-quality live casino games. Live Caribbean Stud Poker is one of their creations, where the excitement lies in the first card reveal of the dealer's hand, the 5+1 Bonus bet and the exclusive progressive jackpot side bet.

The game starts off with the ante bet and the two optional bets above. Five player cards are then dealt face up while all but one of the dealer's cards are dealt face down. The player decides whether to bet again and play the round, or fold. If the player bets, their hand will compete with the dealer's.

BONUS BET OPTIONS

Let's have a look at each side bet. The 5+1 Bonus bet sees the five player cards combine with the dealer's face-up card to make a five-card hand. If this hand makes a three of a kind or better, it wins. The progressive jackpot comes with an entry fee of €/$1 or currency equivalent. The share of the jackpot is paid to all players who play the bet when a qualifying player gets a royal flush. If you place this wager, you can also win an additional prize when you get a three of a kind or better.

PLAY LIVE CASINO GAMES AT HotSlots

If you're eyeing a spot at the poker world championship, you'll need some practice. To get that practice, you'll need to play at a serious online casino that offers the best selection of games possible. This is why you have to register an account at HotSlots! Our portfolio of world-class, fantastic casino games will leave you at a loss for words. You'll find the perfect playground for live poker with games like Extreme Texas Hold'em and Caribbean Stud Poker, among many others.

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Is Texas Hold'em getting a bit stale? All the best poker players in the world need a break from poker after a while, which is why you need to register at HotSlots! We have live blackjack, live baccarat and live roulette you can play to shake things up. All you have to do to join is register an account and claim your very own Welcome Bonus through your first deposit! On top of our exclusive Welcome Bonus, look out for other Deposit Bonuses like the Daily Free Spins and No Deposit Free Spins Bonuses.

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