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| T |
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Abbreviation for a 10, usually found only in written text about cards.
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| Tab Card |
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A credit account available in some clubs to favored customers (generally those on whom a credit check has been run), to which a player can charge chips to play on. This is a convenient means for a player to get around the difficulty of carrying large amounts of cash on his person. The tab card is usually kept track of on a ledger card with transactions initialed by the player or a house official or both. The cashier is usually responsible for keeping the records straight. In most clubs, a player is supposed to leave a check for the amount charged at the end of a playing session if he does not cash in as much as he charged. Frequently a player with charging privileges does so against a blank, signed check. If he loses, he fills out the check for the proper amount; if he wins, the blank check remains attached to his tab card, to be used the next time. When such a player calls for chips at the table, he usually fills out a charge slip, called a ticket, for the amount requested.
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| Table |
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1) A poker table. 2) Any surface on which players play poker (such as a kitchen table). 3) A complete poker game, players and all. "Seat open on table four." 4) Figuratively, the players in a particular game. "The table took a break." 5) The board, that is, the up cards of all players.
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| Table Captain |
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A humorous name for the player who takes it upon himself to arbitrate in all matters requiring decisions, settle all disputes, and interpret all rules. Such a role is generally only required in a private game, because most card room games are dealt by house dealers; even where they are not, usually a floor person is available to make decisions. Nonetheless, someone often takes it upon himself to arbitrate every decision even in a card room, and the other players call him the table captain.
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| Table Cards |
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1) Community cards. 2) Spread one's cards on the table (as opposed to discarding them or holding them in one's hand off the table) at showdown time for all to see; usually rendered table one's [your, my, etc.] cards. Some clubs require the winning hand to be tabled. Some sometimes rule that if a hand is tabled and then thrown away and the pot inadvertently awarded to a lesser hand, and it is discovered later that the best hand was actually tabled, that the pot should be awarded to that hand even if it is no longer technically live.
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| Table Change |
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If you're playing at a public card room, and you'd like to play at a table other than the one you're currently at, you can ask the floor for a table change. Different card rooms handle this differently, but typically you'll be moved as soon as an opening develops, and a player from the seating list will be moved into your seat.
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| Table Charge |
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A portion of each pot taken by the house, for the purpose of paying expenses and making a profit. Also, rake.
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| Table Cop |
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A player who calls with the intention of keeping other players honest (e.g., to snap off bluffs) is said to be playing table cop. Also a player who makes an effort to point out violations (significant and otherwise) of casino rules (e.g., reminding other players to act in turn, which is properly the responsibility of the dealer).
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| Table Fee |
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An amount of money collected either on the button or every half hour by the card room. This is another way for the house to make its money.
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| Table Holdout |
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A holdout machine, a spring or clip attached to the underside of a table to hold one or more cards until the thief who put them there can retrieve them for reintroduction into the game for cheating purposes.
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| Table Stakes |
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1) Table stakes is simply the (nearly universal) rule that a player may only wager money they have on the table at the beginning of a hand. Usually it also implies that money may not be removed from the table at any time (exceptions are made for tipping), although money may be added to one's stacks between hands. A player who goes all-in at a table stakes game may not continue to bet, and is eligible only for the main pot. 2) Sometimes "table stakes" also implies no-limit play.
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| Table Talk |
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Any discussion at the table of the hand currently underway, especially by players not involved in the pot, and especially any talk that might affect play. Depending on the nature of the discussion, table talk is often considered somewhere between rude and an act of war. The most common example of table talk to be avoided is announcing what cards you've folded.
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| Tahoe |
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A variant of pineapple in which players do not discard any of their three down cards. At the showdown, players can use none, one, or two of their down cards (but not three) to form their best five-card hand in combination with the five community cards. When played high-low split, a different set of cards can be used for each direction, but no more than two for either direction. Also called lazy pineapple.
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| Tahoe Pineapple |
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A variant of pineapple in which players do not discard any of their three down cards. At the showdown, players can use none, one, or two of their down cards (but not three) to form their best five-card hand in combination with the five community cards. When played high-low split, a different set of cards can be used for each direction, but no more than two for either direction. Also called lazy pineapple.
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| Tahoe Split |
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A poker game, seven-card stud high-low split, with an 8 qualifier for low.
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| Take a Shot |
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1) Use an angle (Any technically legal but ethically dubious way to increase your expectation at a game; a trick.).2) Look for a chance to play. "I'd sure like to take a shot in that game." 3) Make a cheating move. "He has to get a little booze in him before he takes a shot."
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| Take Care of |
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Toke, that is, tip the dealer, often implying with a good tip. If you win a big pot, you want to take care of the dealer
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| Take it in the Middle |
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Sit down at the precise moment it is your turn to put in the middle blind. Some clubs do not let a new player (new to the particular game) be dealt in until it is his turn to put in a blind, supposedly to prevent his getting any "free" hands. Some clubs permit a player to receive his first hand, if he is too late to get the big blind, in the middle position. In such case, the player must in the next three hands still put in an amount equal to how much he would put in if he sat through all three blinds. This requires putting in the dealer's blind when the deal is one position to his left, so that the dealer does not end up having to put too much in. Also, when the player takes it in the middle, the player to his left puts in an amount equal to that of what the middle blind ordinarily is. To take the middle blind is also called come in in the middle.
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| Take it or Leave it |
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A form of five-card stud, found only in home games, a high-low game in which, after each player has been dealt one down card, each player gets a choice, in order, on each succeeding card. When each player has one down card, there is a betting round. The dealer then offers a card off the deck to the first player. If the player wants that card, he keeps it. If he does not want it, he immediately gets the next card off the deck, and the first card is offered to the second player, who has the same options. He can take the card, or immediately get the next card off the deck, in which case that card is offered to the third player, and so on. This continues until everyone has one up card, at which point there is a second round of betting. Any card that goes all the way around the table without stopping at anyone, including the dealer, becomes dead. After the betting has been equalized, the operation starts all over, with a card being offered in turn to each player. After each time of each player having the same number of upwards another round of betting comes. After each player has four upwards, each player has the opportunity of replacing an upward with an upward, or the down card with another down card (the twist), followed again, of course, by another round of betting, and then a declaration, and then the determination of the two winners. This game is sometimes called take it or leave it, shove 'em along, or push. It is also sometimes called pass the trash, although that name is more often reserved for Anaconda.
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| Take the Lead |
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1) Bet or raise, generally when passed to, or sometimes in an aggressive fashion. 2) Make the first voluntary bet in any round.
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| Take the Middle Blind |
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Sit down at the precise moment it is your turn to put in the middle blind. Some clubs do not let a new player (new to the particular game) be dealt in until it is his turn to put in a blind, supposedly to prevent his getting any "free" hands. Some clubs permit a player to receive his first hand, if he is too late to get the big blind, in the middle position. In such case, the player must in the next three hands still put in an amount equal to how much he would put in if he sat through all three blinds. This requires putting in the dealer's blind when the deal is one position to his left, so that the dealer does not end up having to put too much in. Also, when the player takes it in the middle, the player to his left puts in an amount equal to that of what the middle blind ordinarily is. To take the middle blind is also called come in in the middle.
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| Take the Odds |
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1) To wager less money on a proposition than you hope to win. 2) In no-limit games, to wager all of one's money in one bet.
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| Take the Worst of it |
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Fighting the odds; usually preceded by take the or have the; a situation in which a wager has an unfavorable return. Opposite of best of it.
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| Takeout |
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The minimum buy-in required for a particular game.
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| Talking Chips |
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Winnings. That is, winners can afford to waste time gabbing, while the losers want to concentrate on playing. "He's got talking chips" means he's winning. Also called lobbying chips, walking chips.
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| Tall Pot |
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A large pot waiting to be won by someone; a large stack of chips in the center of the table, caused by excessive betting, that will look nice added to the stack of whoever wins it.
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| Talon |
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The un-dealt portion of the cards, sometimes also called the deck, stock, or stub.
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| Tap |
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Go all in, that is, bet all one's chips. Usually called tap off.
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| Tap Off |
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Bet all your chips, or all the other guy's.
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| Tap Someone |
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In a no-limit game, bet all the other guy's chips. "I'll tap you" means I'm betting all you've got on the table, and you must either fold or put all your chips in the pot.
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| Tap you. |
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In a no-limit game, this means, "I bet all your chips."
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| Tap-Off |
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A bet of all your chips, or all the other guy's; usually followed by bet
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| Tapioca. |
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1) "I'm tapping off," that is, betting all my chips. 2) Broke.
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| Tapoff |
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A bet of all your chips, or all the other guy's
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| Tapped Out |
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Out of money. Can refer to a player running out of money in the course of a hand, thus still active for the main pot; or can refer to a player who has lost his bankroll and can no longer play.
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| Tc |
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Tournament chips, usually found only in written text about cards. "We started with 1000TC."
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| Telegraph |
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1) A wire or string used by thieves to signal each other. For example, one thief may see the holdings of the player next to him, and signal his partner across the table, who is in the hand, by pulling on a wire underneath the table that runs from him to his partner, using some sort of prearranged code. 2) Cheat by sending prearranged signals, say by finger positions similar to the "signing" used by the hearing impaired, or by certain code words and phrases embedded within seemingly ordinary conversation. Sometimes called working the telegraph. 3) Give away one's holdings, by an obvious tell, such as, for example, a betting pattern or the inability to keep from grinning when holding good cards
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| Telephone |
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A form of poker found only in home games, a widow game in which each player receives five cards face down, as does a central area of the table, followed by a round of betting, and then the dealer turns up each central card, one at a time, each followed by another round of betting. At the showdown, each player uses the best five cards among his five and those of the widow, and the lowest card in the player's hand is wild. The game is similar to Cincinnati, the difference being that in the latter the lowest card in the widow is wild, as well as any card of equal rank in a player's hand.
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| Tell |
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Any personal mannerisms that reveal the quality of one's hand. E.g., constantly looking at one's hole cards is often a tell of a poor hand. (Some players, knowing this, will at times check their hole cards when they have a great hand and don't need to look.). You might unconsciously play with your chips every time you bluff. Or you might notice that another player blinks a lot whenever he has a strong hand.
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| Tender Hand |
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A hand a player is wary or afraid of betting, one that is a favorite on the pot, but vulnerable to a raise, such as, after the draw, a rough 8 in lowball or two medium pairs in high draw.
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| Tennessee |
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1) In low poker, a hand topped by a 10.2) A form of poker found only in home games, a widow game in which each player receives five cards face down, and then the dealer turns up a card from the deck, one at a time, each followed by another round of betting, until five are in the center. At the showdown, each player uses the best five cards among his five and those of the widow. The game is often played high-low split. The game is nearly identical to Cincinnati, except in the latter the five widow cards are dealt face down at once, and then turned up one at a time
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| Tension |
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1) In low poker, a hand topped by a 10. Should probably be spelled "'ten-SHUN," because it imitates the military command "Attention!" 2) Two or more 10s.
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| Terce |
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Three cards to a straight flush. Also called tierce.
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| Terce Major |
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The three top cards to an ace-high straight flush, that is, A-K-Q in the same suit. Also called tierce major.
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| Texas Holdem |
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Texas Hold'em (or just "hold'em") is a poker game in which each player gets two pocket cards, while five community cards are dealt face-up on the table. The strength of a player's hand is the best hand that can be made with these seven cards. There is a round of betting after the pocket cards are dealt, after the first three community cards (the flop), after the fourth, or turn card, and after the final, or river card.
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| Texas Tech |
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A form of poker, a cross between draw and stud. Each player starts with three cards; there is a round of betting; each player receives another card; another round of betting; each player receives a fifth card; another round of betting; then each player draws cards as in draw poker; then each player exposes one card; another round of betting; further cards are exposed, each followed by a round of betting, until each player has but one card face down. The game is played high-low split, and, prior to the showdown, there is a chip declaration. This game has eight rounds of betting, or nine if there is a bet after the declare, and is generally played only in home games. It is sometimes called Double-barreled shotgun or Wild Annie.
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| The Book |
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"The book" is a mythical set of instructions supposedly containing the poker wisdom of the ages. A player speaks of "playing by the book," by which he means he is playing a hand the way he thinks it is supposed to be played; such players usually think "playing by the book" is equivalent to playing tight. Actually, there is no book.
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| There |
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1) Having made a hand; used among thieves, in particular players who cheat by signaling each other the contents of the hands of opponents. "He's there," a seemingly innocent remark, might be an announcement by one such scammer to his partner that the person they're trying to beat (and whose hand the former caught a glimpse of) has made his hand or has a hand better than the one of the second scammer. 2) Making the hand, or catching the required card. "How come it's never there?" is an oft-heard remark by a self-pitying player who thinks he never makes a hand when it counts.
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| There is Work Down. |
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The remark by one thief to another that the game in which they are has crooked cards, in the form of, for example, a marked deck.
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| Thief |
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A cheat, usually a mechanic (card manipulator) or scammer.
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| Third Base |
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The position to the right of the house dealer in a poker game or at a blackjack table
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| Third Hand |
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The player three positions to the left of the dealer, usually the first to bet in a blind and straddle game and many three-blind games.
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| Third Man Walking Rule |
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In a public card room, once two people have gotten up from a game (and left their chips, so that they remain part of the game) for whatever reason, the next person to get up is given a button by the house dealer and informed that he must return before his next blind or he will be picked up. This rule helps to keep games full, keeps them from breaking up, and yet still allows the third player time enough to make a quick restroom trip or take a smoke break.
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| Third Nuts |
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In hold 'em, having the third-best possible hand for the situation, or, the actual third-best hand in such a situation. For example, if four spades (not including the ace, king, or queen) and no pairs are on the board, the nuts would be an ace-high flush, second nuts a king-high flush, while the third nuts would be a queen-high flush.
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| Third Pair |
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In hold 'em, forming a pair that consists of one of your hole cards matching the third-highest card on the board.
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| Third Person Walking Rule |
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In a public card room, once two people have gotten up from a game (and left their chips, so that they remain part of the game) for whatever reason, the next person to get up is given a button by the house dealer and informed that he must return before his next blind or he will be picked up. This rule helps to keep games full, keeps them from breaking up, and yet still allows the third player time enough to make a quick restroom trip or take a smoke break.
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| Third Street |
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In Stud games, the first round of betting on the first three cards.
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| Three |
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A hand that needs three cards. ; usually preceded by the. "Check to the three."
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| Three Deuces |
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Apart from the hand you would expect, three 2s plus two other unrelated cards, draw players sometimes refer to the specific two-pair hand A-A-K-K-Q as three deuces, probably because the hand is very close to that.
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| Three Flush |
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Three cards of the same suit, requiring two more to make a flush.
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| Three Pluck One |
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A cheating scheme with three thieves working together against one victim.
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| Three-Bet |
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Raise a raise, that is put in the third bet; often followed by the name of a person. "He opened, I raised, and he three-bet me." "I opened, Sue raised, and Willie three-bet the pot."
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| Three-Blind Traveling Blind Game |
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A traveling blind game with three mandatory blinds: dealer blind, put in by the dealer, middle blind, put in by the player to the left of the dealer, and big blind, put in by the player two positions to the left of the dealer. For example, in a 5-5-10 no-limit lowball game, the dealer puts a $5 chip in the pot before receiving his cards, the next player puts in a $5 chip, and the big blind puts in two $5 chips. This makes the minimum bet $20; this also starts the pot off with $20 for anyone who opens to shoot at.
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| Three-Card Hop |
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Remarkable draw; usually part of the phrase, two-card hop or three-card hop. "I thought I had a lock on the pot with a pat 7, but he made a three-card hop on me" means another pat hand just got beat by a three-card draw. Also called cathop.
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| Three-Card Monte |
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1) Any card game played with three cards, particularly poker. 2) A con game involving three cards and slSeven-of-hand, and that has nothing to do with poker.
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| Three-for-Two |
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In lowball, a proposition that one player will call the bet or raise and draw three cards if the raiser agrees to draw two.
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| Three-Thirty-Three |
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A stud game (sort of), played only in home games, in which each player is dealt a down card, followed by a round of betting, and then one or more cards face up. Aces have a value of 1 or 11, face cards a value of , and all other cards have face value. This is a split-pot game, with the object being to end up with a total closest to 3 or 33. On each round, players can either receive a further up card, or refuse further cards. After any round in which no player takes a card, the players declare which "way" they are going (3 or 33, sometimes called high or low), and there is a showdown. (Sometimes there is one more round of betting before the showdown.) In some versions, once a player refuses up cards a certain number of times (say, three), that player can no longer request further cards. The purpose of this rule is that when a player is in a "lock" (cannot lose) situation, that is, when he is the only one going low, and there are more than one player going high and who have quit asking for up cards, the player with the lock can prolong the betting by drawing cards to a point at which he cannot hit without destroying his lock. In some games, being on one side or the other of 3 or 33 (when no one has exactly that total) wins over the other side. For example, in some games, 2 loses to 3, while in others, the reverse is true. The best hand is three aces, so that the hand simultaneously adds up to 3 and 33. This is a virtual lock scoop hand, but one that can be beat, so a player must be somewhat careful at declare time in a game in which the rules dictate that a player who declares for both ways must clearly win both ways (that is, cannot tie for either). While this is not really a poker game, it is very popular in some home games (because it has many of the elements of poker, including bluffing), though less common than seven-twenty-seven.
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| Three-Toed Pete |
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Any poker game played with three cards. Also called three-card Poker.
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| Threes |
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In high, Three of a kind.
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| Threshold of Pain |
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A point of losing beyond which it no longer hurts to lose any more. For example, for one player it might feel very bad to lose $900, and even worse $1000, but no worse to lose $3000 than $1000. Consequently, it is very dangerous for that player to get stuck $1000, because he has crossed his threshold of pain and it will not be very hard for him to end up losing $3000. Unfortunately, the $2000 difference will hurt very much the next day
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| Throw |
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1) Discard. (Throw one or more cards from your hand.) "What card did you throw?" 2) Put chips in a pot; usually followed by chips.
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| Throw a Party |
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Lose heavily, generally caused by playing much too liberally. The implication is that the party is being thrown for the other players.
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| Throw Off |
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1) Gamble away; sometimes followed by something. If someone asks you to throw off something, he wants you to gamble it up, that is, play looser. 2) Discard (In a draw game, a card that was thrown away by a player, to be replaced by another card. ).
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| Throwing a Party |
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When several loose or amateur players are making significant monetary contributions to the pot.
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| Ticket |
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1) A card. In a draw game, a player might say to the dealer, "Give me a ticket." 2) Charge slip, which a player fills out and gets chips, which are charged against a tab card. In a card room in which such are used, a player might yell, after going broke, "Bring me a hundred on a ticket."
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| Tickets |
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Cards. In a draw game, when the dealer asks, "Tickets?", he wants to know how many cards you are drawing. If you say to the winner of the pot, "Nice tickets," you are complimenting him on the quality of his hand. (This is sometimes said facetiously about a very poor hand.)
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| Tickle |
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Raise. "I'll give it a tickle."
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| Tied on |
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Unable to throw a hand away. "Too much money in the pot; you got me locked on." Also, locked on. "Too much money in the pot; you got me tied on."
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| Tiempo. |
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1) The verbal request by a house employee for the players to pay their time. 2) A request by a player for more time to consider his cards.
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| Tierce |
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Three cards to a straight flush. Also called terce.
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| Tierce Major |
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The three top cards to an ace-high straight flush, that is, A-K-Q in the same suit. Also called terce major.
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| Tiger |
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A nonstandard hand sometimes given value in a private or home game, five cards 3 to 9 with no pair (in some circles, 3 to 8 with no pair), ranks above a big dog, and below a big tiger. Also called little cat. Sometimes the term refers to any of the hands big cat, big tiger, little cat, or little tiger.
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| Tight |
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Playing tight simply means playing fewer hands and folding them earlier. In essence, tight with your cash. A tight table is a table dominated by tight players. Tightness is frequently described as a good thing, and especially at low levels of play can be a big advantage over players who will always pay you off. Many good players recommend a tight aggressive strategy.
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| Tight Game |
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A game with a small number of players in most pots.
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| Tight Play |
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Pertaining to the play of a tight player.
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| Tight Player |
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One who plays tight, that is, bets only when holding a strong hand
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| Tilt |
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To play wildly or recklessly. Good players are often tempted to do things they know are bad ideas when they get frustrated, angry, or upset for any reason. They go "on tilt." Typical tilt play is much too loose and often very aggressive, because a player on tilt wants very badly to win a pot, and is not rational enough to wait for cards that are worth playing or situations that are worth attacking.
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| Timber |
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The discards; used cards out of play. "Push the deadwood. It's my turn to deal." Sometimes called deadwood.
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| Time |
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1) A request by a player to suspend play while he decides what he's going to do. Simply, "Time please!" If a player doesn't request time and there is a substantial amount of action behind him, the dealer may rule that the player has folded. 2) An amount of money collected either on the button or every half hour by the card room. This is another way for the house to make its money.
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| Time Buy-in |
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A game in which the house makes its money by charging time (as opposed to a rake game).
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| Time Charge |
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If the house doesn't drop from the pot but instead collects money from each player periodically, this is called a time charge, or a seat charge, and you're said to be "paying time" to play.
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| Time Collection |
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An amount of money collected either on the button or every half hour by the card room. This is another way for the house to make its money.
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| Time Collector |
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A card-room employee who circulates throughout the club either picking up time from each player or getting it from the house dealer (who has previously collected from each player).
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| Time Cut |
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The fee charged in a time game.
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| Time Game |
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A game in which the house makes its money by charging time (as opposed to a rake game).
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| Tip |
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Gambling term for "toke", as in "Tip the cocktail waitress". Comes from the term "Token of appreciation". A small amount of money (typically $.50 or $1.00) is given to the dealer by the winner of a pot. Quite often, tokes represent the great majority of a dealer's income.
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| Tip the Duke |
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1) Give away one's holdings, by one's actions or some other tell. 2) Cheat by signaling to an accomplice the value of a down card or of the holdings of another player.
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| Tip the Hand |
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1) Give away one's holdings, by one's actions or some other tell. 2) Cheat by signaling to an accomplice the value of a down card or of the holdings of another player.
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| Tip the Mitt |
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1) Give away one's holdings, by one's actions or some other tell. 2) Cheat by signaling to an accomplice the value of a down card or of the holdings of another player.
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| To go |
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The current betting level (amount it takes to enter the pot), as in "$20 to go" meaning every player must contribute $20 (total) or drop. A $10 raise would then make the pot "$30 to go".
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| Toad in the Hole |
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A form of spit in the ocean, in which one card is dealt face-up in the center, which rank is then wild in anyone's hand, but which card is not part of anyone's hand. Also called pig in the poke, wild widow..
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| Toc |
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Tournament of Champions, one of the two main tournaments recognizable only by their initials. (The other is the WSOP.)
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| Toilet Flush |
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Missed flush draw, that is, in a draw game having drawn one card to a flush and ended up with the same thing, four cards to a flush and nothing else. "I've got a flush." "Oh yeah? Well I've got a toilet flush
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| Toke |
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Gambling term for "tip", as in "Toke the cocktail waitress". Comes from the term "Token of appreciation". A small amount of money (typically $.50 or $1.00) is given to the dealer by the winner of a pot. Quite often, tokes represent the great majority of a dealer's income.
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| Tom |
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Poor, bad, unfavorable. "Don't get in there; it's a Tom game." Opposite of George.
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| Tommer |
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A bad situation or player. "Lost your last hundred, huh? That's a real tommer!"
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| Tonk |
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In lowball, 50 points (sometimes 49); from the game of that name. This is an unplayable hand, and "criers" like to demonstrate their saltiness by showing all the poor hands, so they don't miss the opportunity of saying, "Tonk," and showing their 50-point hands.
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| Tool |
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Any mechanical cheating device. Also called work.
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| Top Card |
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1) In lowball, the highest card in a hand; in high, the highest card in a flush or straight. 2) The first card off the deck.
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| Top Kicker |
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When two or more players have identical hands at the showdown, the situation in which the pot is won by the player with the highest side card.
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| Top Pair |
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In flop games, having a hole card that matches the highest card on the board.
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| Top Stock |
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A small packet of prearranged cards placed on top of the deck prior to dealing (sometimes arranged by a slSeven-of-hand maneuver such as a false shuffle), such that specific hands go to predetermined players, usually a good hand to the "sucker" and a better hand to the thief or his confederate.
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| Top Two Pair |
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In flop games, having hole cards that make the highest possible two pair hand.
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| Top-Card Draw |
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A method of determining, at the start of a new game, who deals the first hand. Each player draws a card from the deck, which is often fanned face down on the table, and the holder of the highest card deals; often suits are used to break ties (in bridge order); sometimes ties are broken by the winner being the first person to draw that tying card. To participate in this is to draw for deal.
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| Topped Out |
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Pertaining to the situation in which a hand is beaten by one only slightly better. Also called edged, edged out, or shaved.
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| Tough |
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Solid, that is, conservative, not likely to get out of line; difficult to beat; good; said of someone's play or a player.
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| Tough Money |
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Money for living expenses, and not to be used for gambling.
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| Tough Player |
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A very good or successful poker player, often a professional.
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| Tough Spot |
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1) A difficult game to beat, particularly one in which it is hard to tell when others are bluffing. 2) A game in which it is difficult to bluff, as a limit game with small stakes. 3) A situation in which it is hard to tell what other active players are holding because not enough information has been revealed, either because of being first to bet, because other players may have checked good hands, or some other strategic reason. 4) A tough player, or the position occupied by same. "Watch out for seat four; that's a tough spot.
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| Toughy |
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A tough player (A very good or successful poker player, often a professional.).
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| Tourist |
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Someone who does not live in Las Vegas (and is presumed to be at a disadvantage in the poker games), as contrasted to a local (who "lives" in the poker games, and who supposes that the only purpose in life for tourists is to supply him with a living).
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| Tournament |
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The general idea behind poker tournaments is that a bunch of poker players sit down with the same number of chips, and eventually only one player has any chips left at the end. In order to ensure that the event will finish in reasonable time, tournaments institute a schedule by which the blinds and/or antes increase. Tournaments are usually played with chips that have no value outside of the tournament. The winner of a tournament (the last player to bust out) as well as several of the other top finishers are typically awarded prize money according to some predetermined schedule.
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| Tournament Circuit |
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The yearly cycle of major poker tournaments, including, of course, the World Series of Poker and the Tournament of Champions, but also including others such as the National Championship of Poker at Hollywood Park Casino in Inglewood, California, and the Festival of Poker in London's Victoria Casino. Also called tournament trail.
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| Tournament of Champions |
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A prestigious tournament on the tournament trail, first held in August, 1999, at the Orleans in Las Vegas, in which only winners of major tournaments are eligible to compete. Sometimes rendered as the acronym TOC.
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| Tournament Trail |
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The yearly cycle of major poker tournaments, including, of course, the World Series of Poker and the Tournament of Champions, but also including others such as the National Championship of Poker at Hollywood Park Casino in Inglewood, California, and the Festival of Poker in London's Victoria Casino. Also called tournament circuit.
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| Tra6eling Blind Game |
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A game with mandatory blinds, dependent on position, rather than on who won the last pot, or how many times a particular player has or has not blinded.
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| Trade |
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Receive a twist (In stud, played in a home game, an extra card that a player can "buy" after all the cards that constitute a hand have been dealt.).
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| Trail |
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Come in light, that is, call a bet when several others have already called, usually to get money odds on a straight or flush draw (in high), or to try a long shot cheaply, as a cat hop or short pair draw in high draw, a multiple-card draw in lowball, or an inside straight draw in hold 'em or seven stud, or substandard starting cards in either of the latter games.
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| Trap |
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1) The state of being stuck; usually preceded by the. "I was stuck a hunnert, but I got out of the trap." 2) The setting up of a situation in which one player can catch or trap another3) To check initially, then raise a bet made later on in the same betting round. Frequently a sign of strength, but may be a bluff. 4) Catch one or more players when you have a good hand by playing in such a way as to conceal your holdings: checking or under betting a good hand, or playing a hand in such a way as not to let opponents know you have a strong hand, thus inducing them either to try a bluff, or bet a weak hand they might otherwise just show down without betting. 5) Money is trapped in the pot if it faces the imminent danger of becoming dead money. Typically you're trapped if after putting some money in the pot you're faced with the proposition of calling a raise in order to continue, especially an uncomfortably large raise. 6) A player is also said to be trapped if caught calling (e.g. on a draw) between two other players who keep raising and re-raising each other.
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| Trapper |
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One who plays a hand in the way described under trap. After this happens (and sometimes happens unsuccessfully, as all the players just show down their hands without betting, and the first player reveals that he passed a "monster"), someone is sure to say, "Not all trappers wear fur hats."
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| Trash |
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1) Poor or worthless cards. 2) To discard a hand; also the discard pile in which all cards are dead.
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| Traveling Blind |
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A mandatory blind, dependent on position, as described under traveling blind game. Examples are under-the-gun blind, open blind, and so on.
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| Tray |
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A box, or tray, that has indentations to neatly hold chips in (often five) stacks.
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| Treedlededee. |
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"Three cards, please." This is heard at the time of the draw in a draw poker game.
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| Trele-Header |
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The third pot of three in which the first two have not been played, either because of no player having had openers in a game with opening requirements, or because of two successive misdeals.
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| Trey |
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1) 3 (the card). 2) Divide a deck into thirds prior to shuffling. (This is an old, obsolete term.)
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| Treys Full |
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A full house consisting of three 3s and another pair.
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| Treys Over |
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1) Two pair, 3s and deuces. 2) A full house consisting of three 3s and another pair.
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| Trick |
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Poor player; from pimp slang.
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| Trim |
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Trim the sides of cards, to make them thinner so as to be easily detected by a thief.
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| Trimming Shears |
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Special heavy scissors for cutting the edges of cards in any of several ways for cheating. These produce various kinds of strippers, such as belly strippers, end strippers, low belly strippers, and high belly strippers.
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| Trims |
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A deck marked by shaving the edges of some cards such that a thief can tell by feel the values of certain cards.
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| Trip Up |
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Three of a kind. In Hold'em the term SET is used when two of the three cards are hole cards.
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| Triple Ante |
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In double-limit draw (high, with an ante), pertaining to the situation following two passed pots (that is, unopened pots;), at which point the pot contains three antes from each player, and the limits double (once only) until a pot is played.
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| Triple Jackpot |
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A period of time in a card room that has progressive jackpots for getting certain hands beat (for example, aces full in a hold 'em game) during which the posted payouts are tripled. Usually triple jackpot times are at times that otherwise have lower attendance than others, with such promotions being to increase patronage.
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| Triple Through |
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Triple a small stack by beating two others, generally those with larger stack; sometimes part of the phrase triple a stack through. "Big John and Bubbles each had about $10,000 in chips, and they were both hot and stuck. Sally came in with $100, tripled it through them twice, and took the $900 to the window."
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| Triple-Draw Lowball |
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A form of ace-to-five with three draws, instead of the usual one in ordinary lowball, and thus having four betting rounds, usually played pot limit.
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| Triplets |
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Three of a kind. Often called trips.
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| Trips |
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Three of a kind; shortened from triplets.
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| Trips Eight |
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1) A form of draw poker found only in home games, a split-pot (high-low) game with qualifiers of three of a kind for high and an 8 for low (see 8-or-better). 2) A form of stud poker with the same qualifiers, often played with one or more twists at the end.
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| Trombones |
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1) In lowball, a 7-6 hand; comes from the song "76 Trombones." 2) In high, two pair, 7s and 6s. 3) In hold 'em, a 7 and 6 as one's first two cards.
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| Tulsa |
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A variant of hold 'em, usually played only in private games, in which the community cards are turned face up one at a time, thus adding two more rounds of betting.
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| Tuna |
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Live one; a rich loser; any loser or poor player.
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| Turkey |
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Live one; a rich loser; any loser or poor player.
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| Turn |
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1) The fourth of five community cards in flop games (e.g. hold'em and omaha). Sometimes called fourth street. 2) With respect to a particular player, the point at which the action is on him, that is, the time when a player is faced with the choice of folding, calling, or raising. "Whose turn is it?" 3) Sometimes (rarely, these days) the term is used by Texans and others from the Southwest with the same meaning as flop.
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| Turn a Draw |
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In hold 'em, make a five-card (that is, complete) hand, generally a straight or flush, on the turn card.
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| Turn a Pair |
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In hold 'em, pair one of one's hole cards on the turn card.
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| Turn Card |
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1) In hold 'em-type games, the second card of the flop (that is, the fourth card dealt to the center). Following this card is the second round of betting. This card is sometimes (rarely) called sixth street. 2) In seven-card stud, the fourth card dealt to each player. Following this card is the second round of betting
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| Turn One. |
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When everyone passes in a hold 'em game, the last player may say this to the dealer indicating that he, too, does not wish to bet.
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| Turn Out |
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Teach someone how to cheat. "He should be good; he was turned out by One-Eyed Charlie." Probably comes from the world of prostitution, where the process of starting a beginner on the tortuous road of sin, usually by a pimp, is called the same thing.
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| Twiggy |
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In hold 'em, 2-9 as one's first two cards. Probably comes from this erstwhile ultra skinny model's measurements
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| Twin Beds |
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A form of poker found only in home games, a widow game in which each player receives five cards face down, and 10 cards are arranged face down in the center of the table, in two rows of five each, at which point there is a betting round, and then the dealer turns up each central card, one at a time, usually alternating one from each row, each followed by another round of betting. At the showdown, each player uses the best five cards among his five and five from one row (only) of the widow. The game is often played high-low split
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| Twist |
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In stud, played in a home game, an extra card that a player can "buy" after all the cards that constitute a hand have been dealt. This card is generally a replacement for one of the player's existing cards, usually with an up card being replaced by an up card, and a down card being replaced by a down card, and often with the player having to pay for the card, that is, put extra chips in the pot, such chips not constituting a bet, because that "bet" does not have to be matched by other players. "We're playing five-card stud, high-low, with a twist." Also called discard, optional card, pitch, replacement, substitution.
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| Two |
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A hand that needs two cards; usually preceded by the. "Check to the two."
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| Two Bets. |
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Usually means, "I raise," in the sense that when a player says this, it's his turn to call one bet, but by putting in two, he is indicating a raise. The phrase is most common in limit games, but is also heard in no-limit and pot-limit games to indicate a raise exactly equal in size to the preceding bet.
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| Two Bits |
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$25 or a $25 chip. More commonly called quarter.
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| Two Flush |
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Two cards of the same suit, requiring three more to make a flush.
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| Two in Pan." |
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In draw (or lowball), an announcement that you have A-2-3 or J-Q-K of spades (which are worth a collection of two in panguingue). Usually the announcer shows the cards in question and then throws the hand away.
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| Two of Three |
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This is a pot building game. It plays just like Seven Card Stud except that in order to win the game you must have two out of the three of the following: lowest spade in the hole, highest spade in the hole, and best poker hand. You cannot use the same card for highest and lowest spade. If no one has this combination then the game is reset and starts over. This can go for a while and if you fold then you are out of the game! If you are dealt the deuce and ace of spades in the whole then you are guaranteed taking the pot, so bet heavy.
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| Two Pair |
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A hand consisting of two cards of one rank, and two cards of another rank (and an unpaired card).
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| Two-Bet |
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Raise, that is put in two bets; usually followed by the name of a person. "I opened and he two-bet me."
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| Two-Bit |
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1) Pertaining to $25, as a two-bit chip. 2) Pertaining to a small-limit game or player.
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| Two-Bit Player |
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A small-limit player; someone who plays only in the smallest games.
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| Two-Card |
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A form of poker, found exclusively in home games, in which each player receives one card face down, followed by a round of betting, another face up, with another round of betting, and then each active player has an optional replacement (as described under twist, but generally without having to pay for the card). The game is played high-low, with both the highest and lowest hand being two aces. Pairs win for high, followed by high-card combinations; that is, A-K ranks just below a pair of deuces. For low, the point total is used, with 2 being best, then 3; 4, next, can be formed in two ways, A-3 or a pair of deuces; and so on
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| Two-Card Hop |
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Remarkable draw; usually part of the phrase, two-card hop or three-card hop. "I thought I had a lock on the pot with a pat 7, but he made a three-card hop on me" means another pat hand just got beat by a three-card draw. Also called cathop.
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| Two-Card Party |
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In lowball, all players (usually implies at least three) draw two cards.
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| Two-for-One |
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An offer by one player to another to play under certain circumstances, usually more favorable to the other player, in exchange for calling a bet. Propositions are found mainly in no-limit lowball games.
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| Two-Gap |
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Describing hold 'em starting cards in which the two cards are three apart in rank.
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| Two-Handed |
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Pertaining to two players playing a game by themselves.
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| Two-Minute Rule |
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A house rule that a player must act on his hand within two minutes, or else give up the hand and have no claim on the pot. This rule is found mainly in no-limit games, and is usually invoked on players who frequently abuse the time limits, that is, when confronted with a large bet, often study the situation for long periods of time. The five-minute rule is similar, though not as common.
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| Two-Three |
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In lowball, an agreement between two players that when the two of them are the only ones to remain in an otherwise unopened pot (which might happen when one has the middle blind and the other the big blind), one will open blind for two bets, and the other will raise to three bets. At this point, the action will be on the first, the one who made the two bets, who can, of course, fold, call, or raise.
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| Two-Twenty-Two |
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A stud game (sort of), played only in home games, in which each player is dealt a down card, followed by a round of betting, and then one or more cards face up. Aces have a value of 1 or 11, face cards a value of , and all other cards have face value. This is a split-pot game, with the object being to end up with a total closest to 2 or 22. On each round, players can either receive a further upcard, or refuse further cards. After any round in which no player takes a card, the players declare which "way" they are going (2 or 22, sometimes called high or low), and there is a showdown. (Sometimes there is one more round of betting before the showdown.) In some versions, once a player refuses up cards a certain number of times (say, three), that player can no longer request further cards. The purpose of this rule is that when a player is in a "lock" (cannot lose) situation, that is, when he is the only one going low, and there are more than one player going high, and who have quit asking for up cards, the player with the lock can prolong the betting by drawing cards to a point at which he cannot hit without destroying his lock. In some games, being on one side or the other of 2 or 22 (when no one has exactly that total) wins over the other side. For example, in some games, 1 loses to 2, while in others, the reverse is true. The best hand is two aces, so that the hand simultaneously adds up to 2 and 22. This is a virtual lock scoop hand, but one that can be beat, so a player must be somewhat careful at declare time in a game in which the rules dictate that a player who declares for both ways must clearly win both ways (that is, cannot tie for either). While this is not really a poker game, it is popular in some home games (because it has many of the elements of poker, including bluffing), though less common than seven-twenty-seven and three-thirty-three.
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| Two-Way Call |
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A hand that wins both ways in any high-low pot.
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| Two-Way Hand |
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1) In draw poker played with the 52-card deck, an open-ended straight; so called because it can be made by two ranks. 2) In draw poker, a hand with two possible ways of drawing, such as four cards to a straight or four to a flush (but not the same for both draws). 3) In lowball, an 8, 9, or 10 (that is, a hand topped by one of those cards) that can be broken under pressure. 9-4-3-2-A is a breaking hand, because you can throw the 9 and draw to a wheel; 9-8-7-3-A is not, because there really is no place to break. 4) In high-low split-pot games with a declare, a hand that can declare (but not necessarily win) both ways. 5) In high-low split-pot games without a declare (that is, those in which cards speak), a hand that wins both ways.
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| Two-Way Joint |
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A crooked gaming establishment. Also called flat joint, flat shop, flat store.
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| Two-Way Straight |
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In draw poker played with the 52-card deck, an open-ended straight; so called because it can be made by two ranks.
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| T\Wo-Two-Three |
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In lowball, an agreement between three players that when they are in the last three positions and that if no one else opens the pot, the first will open for two bets, the second will call, and the third will raise, that is, make it three bets. At this point, the action will be on the first, the one who made the original two bets, who can, of course, fold, call, or raise. These last three positions are normally the three blinds in a three-blind traveling blind game, and this agreement stipulates the dealer put in the three bets, so as not to give him any added positional advantage.
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