Poker Antes and Blinds

Poker Antes

This is the forced bet posted by all the players before the cards deal. You can not find any forced bets in online slots as in order to win at slots machines you have to place the bet any time you want and of the amount you wish. Poker antes are often equal to the size of the min bet in the poker game or smaller. Poker antes are posted in order to form the original pot and initiate other gamblers to stay longer in the hand and contribute more to the pot. Poker antes are usually applied in the stud and draw poker variations and are almost never applied in the poker games with the blind bets. Though, the usage of both types of bets is also possible in some poker tournaments.

Poker antes  are common for poker games in which the dealer changes every turn. This simplifies a lot the betting still can be a bit unfair if some gamblers have just joined the play or missed the turn to deal. Such gamblers sometimes must make post (read below).

Blind bets

This is the obligatory bet placed by some of the gamblers before the cards deal. It is also the kind of stimulus to stay in the hand and compete for the pot. In most of poker versions there are traditionally two blind bets: small and big. Small blind is made by the very first poker player at the dealer’s left and is usually the half of the big blind amount. Big blind is posted by the second player to the dealer’s left and big blind is equal to the lowest betting size determined by the betting rules. Such two-blind structure is standard for Texas Hold’em poker games though it is may be used in Omaha poker games. Three-blind betting structure is also possible. In this case the first blind bet is posted by dealer.

Bring-ins

Along with poker antes and blinds, this is also the forced bet posted before the gamblers act but after the cards are dealt. This bet is usually made by the poker player who holds the highest or lowest rank of the card given to every player face up. Bring-in is used to open the betting in the poker games with the ante bets rather than the blind bets. For example, in stud poker Bring-in is assigned for the player that has the lowest face-up card in the first round of betting. The size of the bring-in is the same as the minimum betting size however in some fixed-limit and some spread-limit poker variations it is usually the half of this amount.

Post

In some poker variations the new player that enters the online casino game in action is to post that means to make bet equal to the big blind bet or the minimum betting amount. The player that missed to make the blind for some reasons (was away from the seat) also must post when he/she returns to the game. The same in case poker antes are not used in the game. The players who anyway will happen to make the big blind are not required to post.