Backdoor
The possibility of making a draw that requires that you catch two more cards. A backdoor draw is usually not strong enough on its own to pull for as the odds against making your hand are high. A backdoor draw is much more valuable when combined with either a made hand such as top pair or a second draw.
Bad Beat
To have a hand that is a large underdog beat a heavily favored hand. It is generally used to imply that the winner of the pot had no business being in the pot at all, and it was through pure luck that he managed to catch the one card in the deck that would win the pot.
Bankroll
- A player’s bankroll is typically the amount of money that the player has available with which to play poker. A proper bankroll should not be mixed with other funds such as living expenses or entertainment funds. A bankroll is also the barometer used to measure success or failure and should guide a player as to when to move up or down in levels. It is possible to play without a separate and designated bankroll assuming that one’s disposable income will in effect function in much the same manner.
- To bankroll a player. This means that a player is using funds to play poker that have been supplied by a backer or investor who in return for providing the money receives a portion of the winnings.
Bet
- The action of putting money or chips into a pot.
- Signifying a player’s turn to act: "It’s your bet."
- The specific amount of a particular betting limit often expressed in terms of small and big bets.
Betting Limits
The specific amount that players may call, bet or raise with depending upon the particular game. If the game is a $2/$4 Fixed Limit game then players may act in increments of $2 for the first two rounds, and then in increments of $4 for the last two rounds. These two different amounts are referred to as the small bet and the big bet. Note that this applies only to Fixed Limit games and not Pot Limit or No Limit games.
Betting Round
A betting round is any point during a hand that players are allowed to bet. A betting round usually begins with cards being dealt and then players subsequently acting. There are a predetermined number of betting rounds for each specific game. For further information on game types and betting rounds please visit our Game Rules.
Big Blind
The big blind is a mandatory live bet that is posted before the start of each hand. It is typically anywhere from one-half of the big bet amount for the table to a full big bet depending on what type of game and limit. The big blind is almost always preceded by a small blind, and they occupy the first two positions to the left of the dealer and move correspondingly in front of the button as it moves around the table. For further information on game types and limits please visit our Game Rules.
Blank
A card that likely does not benefit any player or impact the hand in a meaningful way. An example of a blank would be a 2 dealt as the turn card on a rainbow A-K-J flop.
Blind
A mandatory bet or forced bet which is posted by a player usually in relation to the dealer or dealer button. A blind is often a partial bet in relation to the stakes of the game and is considered a live bet meaning that the player who posted it still may act when the action comes to them.
Bluff
A bet made with a weak or worthless hand which can only win by forcing the other players to fold out of the pot.
Bottom Pair
To make a pair with the lowest card on the flop such as holding 8-9 in your hand with a flop of K-10-9.
Broadway
An Ace-high straight made up of Ace through 10.
Bullets
- A pair of Aces as a player’s hole or pocket cards.
- Chips may be referred to as bullets.
Bump
An older expression meaning to raise a pot or a hand.
Burn
To discard the top card of the deck before each hand and any subsequent cards that are dealt. The card is usually placed on the discard or muck pile. Burning a card is done to protect against the possibility of a stacked deck or the off chance that a player may see the top card before it is dealt and therefore gain an advantage.
Burn Cards
The cards that are discarded during the course of dealing a hand and are placed in the muck or discard pile.
Bust
- To lose all of your money or chips is to go bust. It is often said that a player has busted out of a game or tournament.
- A busted hand is usually one in which a player did not make their straight or flush draws.
Button
A white plastic disk that moves around the table clockwise in games such as Holdem and Omaha and is used to signify the theoretical dealer position. A player can be said to be "on the button" meaning that they are in the dealer position and last to act.
Buy
This term is used to signify that a player is attempting to win a hand by overbetting the pot and thus "buying" it. Often this is a bluff or a bet with a marginal holding. Players may also be said to "buy the button." This is the attempt to knock out players acting behind them by making a large raise so as to become the last player to act in future betting rounds.
Buy-in
The amount of money that is required to sit down at a cash game table or the amount of money required to buy into a tournament. In a cash game there is often a specified minimum buy-in amount that a player must have to sit down.
