When people think of poker games in a general sense, Texas Hold’em is probably the first version of the game that pops into their heads – whether they know it or not. That’s mainly because it’s the most popular form of poker at the moment and is the game found in most blockbuster movies and online casinos.
However, don’t be fooled into thinking that it is the only type of poker. In fact, there are many different variations played around the world. At the Phone Casino, a no deposit mobile casino, we have a variety of video and live poker games.
In this blog, we’re going to take a look at the three main types of poker, as well as the top poker variants that you can play in our casino, alongside our slots that have free spins without a deposit.
The three main types of poker games
If you’re usually on our site for mobile slots with no deposit, you might not know about the different types of poker games you can play. There are three main classifications of poker that most of the different variants will fall under:
Draw Poker
In this type of poker game, players are dealt cards that are hidden from their opponents and they try to improve their hands by replacing certain cards as the game progresses. Five card draw poker is an example of this.
Stud Poker
Players in stud poker get dealt a combination of hidden and exposed cards in their hands. So players do have a little information on what opponents’ hands could consist of. Seven card stud is an example of this type of game.
Community Card Poker
Community card poker is the most popular form of poker and is excellent for beginner players to learn more about the game. Players use hidden cards combined with face-up community cards to form their best hands. Omaha and Texas Hold’em are two examples of this.
Most popular poker variants
You probably know that we have the best online slots at The Phone Casino, but to put a cherry on top, we’ve got some great poker variations available too. Here are just a few of the top games and a quick overview of how to play them.
Texas Hold’em
Texas Hold’em is definitely the most popular poker variant out there and it’s perfect for those looking to learn poker. It’s a community card game and can be found at almost any casino.
The two players to the dealer’s left will have to put forward bets of a predetermined size; these are called the blinds. The first player to the left is the small blind and the next player is the big blind. Each player is then dealt two face-down cards known as hole cards.
Starting with the player on the left of the big blind, each player can then call, raise or fold in the first round. The remaining players will go through to the next round when the dealer puts down three “flop” cards face-up on the table. These are the first of the game’s community cards and any player can use them to improve their hand.
After the next round, another community card, the “turn” or “fourth street”, is dealt and another round of betting will follow. Then the last community card – the “river” or “fifth street” is shown.
There is then a final betting round and the remaining players must show their cards. The players should have used a combination of their original two-card hand and the community cards to form the best five-card hand. The best hand wins and takes the pot.
Omaha Hi
Omaha Hi is almost as popular as Texas Hold’em and you might also see it referred to simply as Omaha. The highest hand in this game takes the pot and that’s where the “hi” comes from. More often than not, there will be a pot limit in this game.
This game is almost the exact replica of Texas Hold’em, but there is one big difference: each player is dealt four hole cards in the first round instead of two. This means that players use two hole cards and three of the five community cards to make their best five-card hand. This might seem difficult, but it actually makes it easier to create a good combination because there are more cards.
Seven Card Stud
Stud poker was the most popular variant for many decades before Texas Hold’em took the title. In this version of the game, there are no hole or community cards. Instead, each player receives a hand of which some cards are hidden and some are face up and visible to the other players around the table.
Each player who is dealt into a hand must put forward an ante. They receive two cards that are hidden and one that is face-up. They need to make a small “bring in” bet or a complete bet. The player that has the lowest face-up card will start the game.
Once the first round is done, players still in the game will receive another face-up card. The player with the highest face-up card will act, making a bet of a smaller amount. Then the fifth and sixth streets are up, where players receive two additional face-up cards. The player with the highest combined value of face-up cards acts first and must use the larger bet increments.
Seventh street is when players receive the last of their face-down cards. From the seven cards that they have, they must now make up the best five-card hand. Showdown is then reached and the best five-card hand wins.
Five Card Draw
Five card draw is a quick and relatively straightforward version of poker. It has a big blind and small blind like Texas Hold’em and players are dealt five cards each, which are hidden from other players. Play starts with the person to the left of the big blind and each player can choose to fold, call or raise in the first round.
The remaining players can then draw up to five cards to improve their hands and discard the same number of cards that they draw (before picking up the new cards). There is only one more round of betting before the showdown. The best five-card hand wins the game and takes the pot.
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As you can see, our free daily spins aren’t all you have to look forward to at The Phone Casino. We have a range of poker games and other online casino games to play along with our no deposit slots.
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