How Many Types Of Poker Are There
Another sub-type of poker is all kind of games containing multiple types in one game. Those games include H.O.R.S.E, 8 game poker (H.O.R.S.E + Omaha, NL Holdem, 2-7 low-ball) and many more. There are many other games, but those are the common games. RULES FOR COMPUTING LOW HAND (stud hi/low and Omaha hi/low).
I help you categorize your opponents into their respective player types based on stats and tendencies. I also give some easy-to-use exploits against each.
Listen to this podcast episode #289:
There are a plethora of different version of poker. Some of these are very well known and played all over the world, while some are far less common. Naturally, it’s the more popular ones that are typically offered on online poker sites. These games are also generally the ones played in land based casinos and poker. Played in the World Series of Poker, Texas Hold ‘Em is easily the most popular.
You MUST Understand Player Types
“The money available to a player winning long term comes from other players’ willingness to put money into the pot with bad hands that a perfect player would not play.”
– Ed Miller in his incredible book, The Course
This is exactly why we must understand player types and assign each of our opponents to one of them.
When you’re profiling your opponents, you’re looking for weaknesses. When you see those weaknesses, you know exactly how to play against them to earn their chips. You can also selectively target the weakest players who are most likely to give you their chips.
“Attack weakness, avoid strength.”
– Ed Miller in his incredible book, The Course
You’re looking to play more hands versus weak players and avoid hands versus strong players. Battling good players can kill your profits. We’re all playing this game, at least in part, to make money. Since it’s easier to make money versus the weak, that is who you MUST go after. The key to going after them is to understand and spot each of the weak players around the table.
You must become an active observer when you’re not involved in the hand:
- If a player just open-raised from the Hijack, and it’s the first hand he’s played in 3 orbits, he’s likely a tight player who only plays the best hands.
- Maybe another player makes her 4th limp in a row… she’s likely a Fish.
- Now a different player 3bets then triple-barrels down the streets with J8s after flopping TP. Wow! You found a loose and aggressive player.
Because you’re paying attention, you’re able to categorize each of these players and now you can use some basic exploits against each.
The 4 Common Poker Player Types
We use two different tendencies to put players into one of the 4 player types.
Tight versus Loose
A tight player plays few hands (VPIP < 20%), and a loose player plays a lot of hands (VPIP > 20%). 20% VPIP is just the cutoff percentage. Of course, players can be ultra-tight at 5% or ultra-loose at 95%.
Passive versus Aggressive
A passive player doesn’t raise preflop that often (PFR < 15%) and an aggressive player raises a lot (PFR > 15%). Again, 15% is just the cutoff with the ultra-passive player having a PFR of 1% and the mega-aggressive player at 45%.
Loose-Passive
LOOSE = Plays lots of hands; PASSIVE = prefer making checks and call; they love to see flops; they stay in way too long with weak hands and draws; #1 targets at the table; if they raise post-flop, WATCH OUT!
AKA: Fish or Calling Stations
Common VPIP/PFR Stats: 22/6, 28/5, 45/9 (Mention video in show notes detailing VPIP & PFR)
Color Coding: Green
Characteristic #1: Passively plays very wide & weak ranges. Not positionally aware.
Exploit: Play ranges that dominate theirs and isolate them (as limpers or in the blinds) whenever +EV.
Characteristics #2: Generally losing players.
Exploit: Target them and play as many hands as possible in +EV spots!
Loose-Aggressive
LOOSE = Plays lots of hands, AGGRESSIVE = prefers bets and raises; can be a high variance loser; they use the power of position yet they might not be that positionally aware when it comes to starting hands; capable of spewing chips in bad bluffing spots.
What Are All The Different Types Of Poker
AKA: LAG, Donk or Maniac
Common VPIP/PFR Stats: 24/18, 36/24, 55/35
Color Coding: Orange
Characteristic #1: Too much aggression with weak ranges. Open-raises, iso-raises and calls too much preflop.
Exploit: Play with hands at the top of their range, and strive for IP play.
Characteristic #2: Constantly applies pressure.
Exploit: ALWAYS gauge how well the board interacts with their range. Be willing to call wider with 2nd and 3rd pair when they can be bluffing worse.
Tight-Passive
TIGHT = Plays mostly strong hands, PASSIVE = prefer checks and calls (but sometimes they’re aggressive with few calling hands); quick to fold post-flop; beware their bets and raises.
AKA: TP, Rock or Nit
Common VPIP/PFR Stats: 11/9, 11/2, 7/3
Color Coding: Red
Characteristic #1: Strong hand selection & positionally aware. Folds too often preflop and raises only strong hands.
Exploit: Play a wider but still strong range when IP. Call their raises with hands that play well post-flop and can crack big hands (good playability).
Characteristic #2: Doesn’t often fold to 3bets and 3bet = the nuts.
Exploit: 3bet and 4bet with the best hands to get value from his tight range.
Tight-Aggressive
TIGHT = Plays mostly strong hands, AGGRESSIVE = prefers bets and raises; can be winning regs; multi-tabler; quick to fold most marginal spots post-flop and when OOP.
AKA: TAG, ABC or Reg
Common VPIP/PFR Stats: 12/10, 18/13
Color Coding: Yellow
Characteristic #1: Plays multiple-tables, so they’re selective, patient and they choose the best starting hands (small & value intensive range).
Exploit: Play strong hands against them, but speculative hands can crack their strong ranges.
Characteristic #2: Quick to fold weaker pairs and draws because they see little value in these hands.
Exploit: Bet and raise to earn post-flop pots, make sure your size hits their “pain threshold” so often at 2/3 pot or more.
Here’s my challenge to you for this episode: While you’re playing your next session, set a timer to go off every 10 minutes. When it does, pick a table and think about each player there and describe all you know about them – player types, weaknesses, how to exploit, etc. This will train you to profile your opponents and it’s a great way to test that you’re paying attention.
Now it’s your turn to take action and Scooby-dooby-doo something positive for your poker game.
Support the Show
Tunisianking, Dayne Dice, Nathan Yamuder, Richard Cheason and Rosemont Tony picked up PokerTracker 4 (get it here to support the show), the best poker tracking software. I love it and use it everyday! In appreciation, I sent each of them a copy of my Smart HUD for PT4. With an ever-growing database of hands to study and all the helpful features, PT4 is the go-to software for serious poker players.
Mark Fleming, Lois Thomas, Stephan Eck, Murry T., Massimo Gramegna, Stephen Diesner and Ole Engkrok bought the Smart HUD with a 1.5 hour webinar for PokerTracker 4. It’s the best online poker HUD in the business with every critical stat in the HUD and the 7 custom popups. This is what every online player needs to maximally exploit opponents.
The Poker Study Boot Camp Course was purchased by some seriously kaizen-minded poker peeps: Ram, Zeljko Arnautovic, Drew Dumpert, and Triumphnk. Thank you all so much. You’ve got your work cut out for you with this 29-day course, so good luck!
- Smart Poker Study Audiobook Excerpts - March 4, 2021
- I Am Your Poker Coach - February 16, 2021
- Counting Outs and Making Profitable Calls - February 4, 2021
The majority of you reading this will have at least one memory of relatives playing a card game on a party, a New Year’s Eve, or any other celebratory occasion.
But just like every family likes to play a different game so do the professional gamblers, and this is why casinos offer plenty variations of each game.
One of those is poker, and in this article, we will try to get all the different types of poker explained.
Texas Hold’em isn’t the only game at your disposal so learning some of the other ones will help you get a bigger freedom of choice next time you want to gamble on some poker.
The Basic Rules Remain The Same
That is correct. In the majority of the well-known Poker variations, the basic rules will remain just the same.
One of those, for example, is that there will always be a dealer to shuffle and give out the cards.
Another one is the possible combinations you can get.
These are the possible card combinations (ranked from weakest to strongest):
- High Card = when no one has at least a single pair then the person/s with the strongest card wins. Cards in order of descending power are A, K, Q, J, 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, and 1.
- One pair = have a combination of two same numbers like two 7’s, two 3’s and so on.
- Two pairs = have two same combinations like both two 5’s and 6’s.
- Three of a kind = have a combination of three same numbers like three 9’s.
- Straight = have five numbers in a row like 3-4-5-6-7 or anything of that sort.
- Flush = have five numbers of the same figure, NOT colour, like an A-4-5-8-9 all of which are clubs, hearts, spades, or diamonds.
- Full house = have three of a kind and another pair like 5-5-5-6-6.
- Four of a kind = have a combination of four same numbers like four Qs.
- Straight Flush = When you have a straight which is a flush at the same time like 5-6-7-8-9 all of them being of the same figure.
- Royal Flush = the most powerful possible hand you can have in Texas Hold’em which is a straight flush of 10-J-Q-K-A. In some Poker variations, the figure of a Royal Flush can beat another.
In some specific variations, there are a few other possible combinations, but they aren’t worth mentioning because you will most likely never encounter one of them, especially in a physical or online casino.
Now regarding the moves, they will always be the same.
Call, raise, bet, fold, check, and all-in.
The rules are always the same as they are the basis of the game. If they would change then, any variation should be called something other than Poker.
For more details, read our guide to The Basic Poker Rules.
Six Types Of Poker Explained
Before we move on to the lesser known ones we would like to take a look at the all-time favourite.
1. Texas Hold’em Poker
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cnm_V7A-G6c
Since a very long time ago, this was, and still is the most popular variation of the game. You can find it both in online and physical casinos.
It is played both on an amateur and professional level and almost everyone who has spent some time of his life gambling has played it.
The rules are simple. At least two players are needed to start the game.
The dealer gives two cards to each of the individuals on the table, and after that, the first bets (big and small blind) are automatically bet just so that there can be a starting pot for the round to begin.
The first three cards are put down (flop), and after each of the following two betting stages, another card is put down. In appearing order, these are the turn and the river.
All these cards are of course face-up for everyone to see and thus use to get the strongest possible combination so that they can win the round.
After all of the bets have been settled, the phase of the showdown kicks in. Everyone still in play reveals his hand, and the person(s) with the best one wins the pot.
Read our guide to Bitcoin Texas Hold´em.
2. Omaha
You must have come across this particular variation if you have ever played in a casino, physical or online.
Even though it is the second most widely played Poker variation in the world, many professional gamblers believe that it is way more difficult than Texas Hold’em.
Who can blame them? If you want to find out why we are with them, then keep reading.
On Omaha, players are dealt four cards, to begin with rather than two. Immediately, this means that to beat your opponents you must get a hand way better than what you would think is good if playing Texas Hold’em.
A three of a kind or a two pair are now considered kind of bad hands.
If you were playing another type of poker, you would love to get an AK opening hand. But this is Omaha.
Something like that could mean the end of the hand for you. Unless you got another couple of K’s or A’s down, then you would be in a lot of trouble.
It is advised trying to get a straight or a full house rather than a flush or three of a kind. A four of a kind or Royal Flush, even though it is a difficult hand to get, would be amazing.
Starting out with a 7 and a nine on Texas Hold’em would be bad. But if you got a 6-7-9-10 on Omaha then you would have a very big chance of hitting an 8 that would result in a Straight.
According to professional poker players, Omaha looks easier than the majority of other popular Poker variations, but it actually may as well be the most difficult one to master.
3. Seven Card Stud
Before Texas Hold’em made it to the top of the Poker ladder, the leader was the Seven Card Stud.
Things here are different, and the only thing that stays the same is how strong each combination is.
Before you can even join the game, you have to place an ante which means to buy-in the current round.
Don’t confuse that with the small/big blinds as these are placed after the round starts. The players are dealt two face down and one face-up cards to begin with.
The person with the lowest card (the one facing up) will have to bring it in. This is to place the initial bet just so that the game can start.
If two or more people have the same number, then things are determined by the suit which is easy to remember as it is based on the alphabet. Clubs, Diamonds, Hearts, Spades. See?
The first letter of each suit is increasing in alphabetical order.
After that moving to the left of the player the other ones have to decide whether to fold, call, or raise. There aren’t any cards being dealt down for all. Everything is for each player’s personal hand.
The dealer burns a card and gives another face-up card to each player. The same thing goes on and on until the last round where the 7th and also last card is dealt which this time will be face down.
The only thing a player who has been in play up to that stage is to make up the best possible 5-card combination out of his total 7 cards. The strongest one wins.
Since things here are different, the first three cards you are dealt will have better or worse chances of winning based on the other face-up cards on the table.
4. Video Poker
Since our website is all about poker, we had to include its digital form even though it technically isn’t a proper variation of the game.
How Many Different Types Of Poker Are There
In most Video Poker games, the player is dealt five face-up cards; you can choose how many to keep and how many you want to give up for another card. After doing so, you will have the final hand.
Based on how good it is you can get a multiplier on your bet.
One of the most popular titles is the Jacks or Better where you can win only if you have at least a pair of Jacks. In the same nature, 9’s or Better, 10’s or Better, and so on determine the basic logic of the game.
5. Razz
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OplVkFwxuZM
In Razz instead of trying to get the best possible and strongest combination, you will need to do the exact opposite.
Get the weakest one that is.
6. Five Card Draw
How Many Types Of Poker Games Are There
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IfDYiAXYgsQ
Considered to be the easiest poker variation and the one most beginners learn when they start gambling.
Just like with Video Poker, players will be dealt five cards which in this case will be face down. Each player can discard cards and draw new ones for the deck.
After that another round of betting kicks in.
When all the bets have been settled the hands are revealed, and the player with the best hand wins. Small and big blinds are featured in Five Card Draw as well.
Overall
After having the top 6 of the different types of poker explained to you, starting out your gambling career must be easy. But these are just the basics.
If you want to become better regularly then make sure to check out our website every day for fresh posts and guides. The amount of useful information we can give you is infinite.
Now that you know which poker variations you can find on the internet, pick a good online casino and start winning.
You can also read our Introduction To Poker For Beginners.
If you want to know about Online Gaming in New Jersey legislature updates then feel free to read our brand new article.