Poker Side Pot
Pot
1. The amount of money in the center of the table that stands to be won or lost on any given hand.
2. To wager an amount equal to the pot in a pot limit or no limit poker game.
A poker game is composed of an endless string of “hands.” Each hand is a competition between players, who wager sums of money, called “bets” in an attempt to win a larger sum of money called “the pot.” As a hand progresses, all of the bets go into the pot, making it larger and more desirable. Additional cards come before each round of betting, often changing each player’s probability of winning as well as their incentive to bet. If any player decides to put money into the pot, other players must either follow suit or throw their hands away. Each player acts in turn, and during each turn it is up to that player to make a value judgment about whether or not it is worth it to continue on in the hand. A player must consider how big the pot is, how much it costs to continue on in the hand, and what they expect their chances of winning are. If a player knows these three things with relative certainty, they can figure out whether it mathematically makes sense to continue, based upon the risk-reward scenario. This is called calculating “pot odds.” If the player incorporates likely future events into the scenario, it is called calculating “implied pot odds,” or simply “implied odds” for short.
Ultimately, the goal in a poker game is to win money, not to win every single pot that is possible for you to win. Some players have a hard time making that distinction. There are many times when it is still possible for you to win the pot, but your chances of winning are so slim that it makes the bet too large and not worth calling. If you insist on calling in this spot, because of the law of averages, you will lose a substantial amount of money in the long run. So if you want to be a winning player, you have to decide prudently about whether or not it is worth it to call, and follow suit. This means that you will occasionally throw away a hand that would have ultimately won the pot. While this may feel bad when it happens, it is the correct way, and the only profitable way to play the game.
When a player runs out of money while the hand is in play, they are allowed to go “all in.” This means that they still have a live hand, but they can only win the bets that they can cover. The total amount that the all in player can cover, and therefore win, is called the “main pot.” It is the dealer’s responsibility to steer any additional future betting into a separate pot called a “side pot.” If multiple players go all in for different amounts, there could potentially be several side pots. When this happens it can get confusing who is in for which side pots. It is the dealer’s responsibility to keep all of this straight and to make sure that each pot is awarded to the correct player.
One of the ways that the betting can be structured in a poker game is call “pot limit.” In this variation, players may bet up to the total amount in the pot when it is their turn to act. A slightly different structure variation is called “no limit.” In a no limit game, players may bet up to the total amount of money that they have in front of them when it is their turn to act. In both of these games it is fairly common for players to bet the same amount as is in the pot. This is commonly called “betting the pot,” or “potting it.”
Usage: Pot And Repot, Pot It, Small Pot, Big Pot, Massive Pot
Previous Poker Term: Post
Next Poker Term: Pot LimitSide Pot - An additional pot which is created when one or more players are all in.
Virtually all casino poker games are table stakes games. This means that only cash or chips which are on the table prior to the start of the hand are in play. Some casinos even have specific rules against cash playing on the table and require a conversion to chips. A table stakes game does not allow for chips to be added to a stack while the hand is in play, and it also does not allow for chips to be removed from play (other than a nominal amount for food and sundries), for the entire session.
Since players are limited to the chips they have in front of them when the hand begins, from time to time a player will run out of chips while the hand is in play. When this happens a player is allowed to go “all-in” by placing his remaining chips into the pot. This means that he will still have a live hand, but will be unable to win any money that he cannot cover, which includes all future betting for the remainder of the hand. If a player cannot cover the full amount of the bet that he is facing, or if there is future betting he cannot cover after he is all in, the dealer must create a side pot. A side pot is separate pot which the dealer creates to allow the betting to continue after a player goes all in. The all in player would only be eligible to win the amount he could cover, which is called the main pot, while the players with chips remaining would be eligible to win both the main pot as well as the side pot. The side pot money is sometimes referred to as “money on the outside.”
If multiple players go all in for different amounts during the same hand, it will be necessary for the dealer to create multiple side pots. When this occurs, the dealer must remember which players are in for which pots. This can get confusing, so to help, the side pots are numbered in the order they were created; first side pot, second side pot, and so on. They are also arranged in that order on the table, so that the first side pot is next to the main pot, and the second side pot is next to the first, extending out toward the end of the table, for as many side pots as is necessary. Just as a side pot is sometimes referred to as “money on the outside,” a second side pot is sometimes referred to as “money on the far outside.”
The accurate construction of side pots requires the dealer to do math in his head and come out with the correct answer for the size of each pot. Dealers are human and are prone to error, and as such, if you have a vested interest in the hand, you should watch them construct the side pots carefully and do the math along with them. Depending upon the caliber of the dealer, side pots may be wrong with varying frequency, but mistakes are made often enough for you to be regularly monitoring their construction. In fact, it is a good idea for you to always verify that the amount of money going into the pot is correct at all times, and that the pot is handled properly by the dealer. Dealer error can be costly, and it is often preventable, if you can catch it before the action is complete. Obviously, these are concerns for players who play in a brick and mortar poker room. If you play on the internet, the sites software handles and distributes the chips automatically, virtually eliminating dealer error.
You may hear a common phrase, “All in always wins.” This is a belief that once a player goes all in, something magical happens, and they now have a much higher probability of winning the main pot. This is pure superstition. While going all in can affect whether or not you win the hand, if you play well, in the long run it will hurt you more than it will help you. Indeed, when you go all-in, you will win some pots that you otherwise would not have been able to call on, had you still had chips. But this is more than offset by the bets and the pots you will lose because you are all in and unable to bet you hand. Another way to look at it is to consider chips a resource which good players use to make money. In order to be successful, you need to have access to sufficient resources. That means never going all-in if you can avoid it, so that you can be eligible for every side pot created.
Usage: Third Side Pot, Scooped The Side, Dollars On The Side, Side Pots
Previous Poker Term: Showdown
Comments are closed.Side pots also happen frequently in limit poker, but because the bets are larger in No-Limit, the situation tends to occur a bit more frequently here. Let’s look at an example involving three players, Tom, Dick, and Harry. When the hand starts, Tom has $1,000 in chips, Dick has $400, and Harry has $2,500. The blinds are $5-$10. Main pot 40 (A)+40 (B)+40 (C), side pot has 40 (B)+160 (C). Player B folds, forfeiting side pot of 200 to B. (A does not have an interest in this side pot.) Player A wins at showdown, and gets main pot of 120.
-1. The amount of money in the center of the table that stands to be won or lost on any given hand.
2. To wager an amount equal to the pot in a pot limit or no limit poker game.
A poker game is composed of an endless string of “hands.” Each hand is a competition between players, who wager sums of money, called “bets” in an attempt to win a larger sum of money called “the pot.” As a hand progresses, all of the bets go into the pot, making it larger and more desirable. Additional cards come before each round of betting, often changing each player’s probability of winning as well as their incentive to bet. If any player decides to put money into the pot, other players must either follow suit or throw their hands away. Each player acts in turn, and during each turn it is up to that player to make a value judgment about whether or not it is worth it to continue on in the hand. A player must consider how big the pot is, how much it costs to continue on in the hand, and what they expect their chances of winning are. If a player knows these three things with relative certainty, they can figure out whether it mathematically makes sense to continue, based upon the risk-reward scenario. This is called calculating “pot odds.” If the player incorporates likely future events into the scenario, it is called calculating “implied pot odds,” or simply “implied odds” for short.
Ultimately, the goal in a poker game is to win money, not to win every single pot that is possible for you to win. Some players have a hard time making that distinction. There are many times when it is still possible for you to win the pot, but your chances of winning are so slim that it makes the bet too large and not worth calling. If you insist on calling in this spot, because of the law of averages, you will lose a substantial amount of money in the long run. So if you want to be a winning player, you have to decide prudently about whether or not it is worth it to call, and follow suit. This means that you will occasionally throw away a hand that would have ultimately won the pot. While this may feel bad when it happens, it is the correct way, and the only profitable way to play the game.
When a player runs out of money while the hand is in play, they are allowed to go “all in.” This means that they still have a live hand, but they can only win the bets that they can cover. The total amount that the all in player can cover, and therefore win, is called the “main pot.” It is the dealer’s responsibility to steer any additional future betting into a separate pot called a “side pot.” If multiple players go all in for different amounts, there could potentially be several side pots. When this happens it can get confusing who is in for which side pots. It is the dealer’s responsibility to keep all of this straight and to make sure that each pot is awarded to the correct player.
One of the ways that the betting can be structured in a poker game is call “pot limit.” In this variation, players may bet up to the total amount in the pot when it is their turn to act. A slightly different structure variation is called “no limit.” In a no limit game, players may bet up to the total amount of money that they have in front of them when it is their turn to act. In both of these games it is fairly common for players to bet the same amount as is in the pot. This is commonly called “betting the pot,” or “potting it.”
Usage: Pot And Repot, Pot It, Small Pot, Big Pot, Massive Pot
Previous Poker Term: Post
Next Poker Term: Pot LimitSide Pot - An additional pot which is created when one or more players are all in.
Virtually all casino poker games are table stakes games. This means that only cash or chips which are on the table prior to the start of the hand are in play. Some casinos even have specific rules against cash playing on the table and require a conversion to chips. A table stakes game does not allow for chips to be added to a stack while the hand is in play, and it also does not allow for chips to be removed from play (other than a nominal amount for food and sundries), for the entire session.
Since players are limited to the chips they have in front of them when the hand begins, from time to time a player will run out of chips while the hand is in play. When this happens a player is allowed to go “all-in” by placing his remaining chips into the pot. This means that he will still have a live hand, but will be unable to win any money that he cannot cover, which includes all future betting for the remainder of the hand. If a player cannot cover the full amount of the bet that he is facing, or if there is future betting he cannot cover after he is all in, the dealer must create a side pot. A side pot is separate pot which the dealer creates to allow the betting to continue after a player goes all in. The all in player would only be eligible to win the amount he could cover, which is called the main pot, while the players with chips remaining would be eligible to win both the main pot as well as the side pot. The side pot money is sometimes referred to as “money on the outside.”
If multiple players go all in for different amounts during the same hand, it will be necessary for the dealer to create multiple side pots. When this occurs, the dealer must remember which players are in for which pots. This can get confusing, so to help, the side pots are numbered in the order they were created; first side pot, second side pot, and so on. They are also arranged in that order on the table, so that the first side pot is next to the main pot, and the second side pot is next to the first, extending out toward the end of the table, for as many side pots as is necessary. Just as a side pot is sometimes referred to as “money on the outside,” a second side pot is sometimes referred to as “money on the far outside.”
The accurate construction of side pots requires the dealer to do math in his head and come out with the correct answer for the size of each pot. Dealers are human and are prone to error, and as such, if you have a vested interest in the hand, you should watch them construct the side pots carefully and do the math along with them. Depending upon the caliber of the dealer, side pots may be wrong with varying frequency, but mistakes are made often enough for you to be regularly monitoring their construction. In fact, it is a good idea for you to always verify that the amount of money going into the pot is correct at all times, and that the pot is handled properly by the dealer. Dealer error can be costly, and it is often preventable, if you can catch it before the action is complete. Obviously, these are concerns for players who play in a brick and mortar poker room. If you play on the internet, the sites software handles and distributes the chips automatically, virtually eliminating dealer error.
You may hear a common phrase, “All in always wins.” This is a belief that once a player goes all in, something magical happens, and they now have a much higher probability of winning the main pot. This is pure superstition. While going all in can affect whether or not you win the hand, if you play well, in the long run it will hurt you more than it will help you. Indeed, when you go all-in, you will win some pots that you otherwise would not have been able to call on, had you still had chips. But this is more than offset by the bets and the pots you will lose because you are all in and unable to bet you hand. Another way to look at it is to consider chips a resource which good players use to make money. In order to be successful, you need to have access to sufficient resources. That means never going all-in if you can avoid it, so that you can be eligible for every side pot created.
Usage: Third Side Pot, Scooped The Side, Dollars On The Side, Side Pots
Previous Poker Term: Showdown