Many of the world's most popular poker variants use a system involving a button, small
blind, and big blind.
The blinds 🍐 function as obligatory bets that rotate around the
table, shifting one player clockwise after each hand. The button travels around 🍐 the
table in this same manner, always one position to the right of the small blind.
Some
poker games also include 🍐 antes, another mandatory bet that goes into the pot before
each hand.
Here's a look at how the button, blinds, and 🍐 antes operate in a poker
game.
The Small Blind and Big Blind
The small blind and big blind form the backbone of
🍐 the game in many poker variants. Texas Hold'em and Omaha, the two most popular poker
games in the world, use 🍐 the blinds system, and it's important to know exactly how these
mandatory bets operate.
In games that use blinds, each hand 🍐 begins with the big blind
placed one position to the direct left of the small blind. Players in these positions
🍐 must put in predetermined betting amounts before each hand.
For poker cash games, these
amounts are generally noted in the listing 🍐 for the game. For example, aR$2/$5 cash game
at a live casino means the small blind isR$2, and the big 🍐 blind isR$5.
In Texas Hold'em
and Omaha games, the preflop betting round begins with the player directly to the left
of 🍐 the big blind starting the action. This player (in the position known as "under the
gun")has the opportunity to either 🍐 call the amount of the big blind, raise to a higher
amount, or fold.
The action then moves around the table 🍐 clockwise, with the small blind
and big blind as the last two players to act preflop. All subsequent betting rounds
🍐 require the player in the small blind to start the action. If the small blind is out of
the hand, 🍐 the next live player to the left starts the action.
A call must match the
amount of the big blind. As 🍐 such, high-stakes games have a larger big blind amount than
lower stakes games.
The small blind amount is generally around half 🍐 of the big blind,
but can be larger or smaller. The small blind is always directly to the right of 🍐 the
big blind.
After each hand, the blinds shift one spot clockwise, and a new hand
begins.
The Button
The button is a 🍐 position at the poker table that's always one spot
to the right of the small blind. The button, also known 🍐 as the "dealer button", gets
the advantage of acting last in all postflop betting rounds.
The player in the button
position 🍐 can be identified by a round disk that goes around the table. This disk
sometimes says "button" or "dealer", and 🍐 follows the blinds around the table.
Players
in the button position are said to be "on the button". Other positions at 🍐 the poker
table include the cutoff, one spot to the button's left, and the hijack, one more
position to the 🍐 left.
In all hands using the blinds system, the blinds are positioned
to the left of the button. After each hand, 🍐 the button, small blind, and big blind all
shift one player to the left.
Antes
Antes are mandatory bets that are sometimes 🍐 posted
by all players at the table, or by the big blind player in some formats.
For example,
aR$2/$5 cash game 🍐 with aR$1 ante requires each player at the table to putR$1 in the pot
before each hand. This is in 🍐 addition to the blinds, meaning pots in games that use an
ante start off bigger than games without an ante.
Many 🍐 poker tournaments use a big
blind ante system, where only the player in the big blind posts the ante before 🍐 each
hand. At the World Series of Poker Main Event, for example, a big blind ante is added
to the 🍐 structure from Level 2 through the end of the tournament.
The blinds and antes
for Level 2 are displayed as 100/200/200, 🍐 meaning the small blind is 100 chips, the big
blind is 200, and the big blind ante is 200.
The Blinds: 🍐 Cash Games vs. Tournaments
The
blinds in a cash game stay the same throughout. Sitting down at aR$2/$5 No-Limit
Hold'em cash 🍐 games means the blinds will beR$2 andR$5 for as long as you sit in that
game.
Poker tournaments, however, use a 🍐 system where the blind amounts increase at
regular intervals. In the WSOP Main Event, for example, Level 1 starts with 🍐 the blinds
at 100/200. Each level lasts two hours, and after Level 1 is over, Level 2 is
played.
Level 2 🍐 adds a big blind ante to the structure, and is played at 100/200/200.
Level 3 sees the blinds and antes 🍐 increase to 200/300/300, and the increases continue
every time a new level begins.
Straddles
The straddle is generally only seen in cash
🍐 games. A player putting on a straddle makes a blind bet, before the cards are dealt,
that's at least double 🍐 the big blind amount. The straddle takes the place of the big
blind, as all subsequent players must call or 🍐 raise based on the straddle amount.
For
example, in aR$2/$5 cash game, let's say the under-the-gun player straddles forR$10.
All subsequent 🍐 players must either call theR$10, or raise to a bigger amount, to stay
in the hand.
If the under-the-gun player straddles, 🍐 they no longer act first in the
preflop betting round. The player to the direct left starts the betting round, 🍐 and the
player who straddled is now last to act.
Some poker rooms allow other positions, aside
from the under-the-gun player, 🍐 to straddle. If the button player straddles, for
instance, the under-the-gun player begins the preflop betting round, as per usual.
When
🍐 the action gets to the button player, that player is skipped, and all other players
have a chance to act. 🍐 The button only gets to act after all other players, and in
general, any time a player straddles, they're the 🍐 last to act preflop.
For a more
in-depth look at straddles, check out this primer.
Note: Are you here just to learn 🍐 how
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