Poker game

Abstract

A shared-card poker game provides each player with two faced-down personal cards and one-faced up personal card. Rounds of betting are conducted, and shared community cards are dealt faced-up in front of the players. To determine the winner of a hand, each player creates the best 5-card poker hand using three of the available community cards and two of his personal cards. Then the 5-card hands are compared, and the 5-card hand of highest rank is declared the winner.

Description

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The field of the invention relates to a game of poker played with a deck of playing cards.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Poker has surged in popularity in recent years, and particularly the form of poker called Texas Hold'em. Other, less popular forms of the game have also seen a rise in popularity. Such games include Stud, Stud Hi/Lo, Omaha Hold'em, and Omaha Hi/Lo.

Texas Hold'em

In Texas Hold'em (usually called simply “Hold'em”), the player to the immediate left of the player designated as the dealer places a forced bet known as the “small blind,” and the player to the immediate left of the small blind places a forced bet known as the “big blind.” The big blind is larger than the small blind and is typically twice the size thereof. These blinds are posted by the designated players as a substitute for antes by all players and are used to initiate the betting action.

Referring to FIG. 1, the game play of Hold'em is as follows:

• 1. Each player is dealt two cards faced down, called their “hole cards.”
• 2. A round of betting ensues, beginning with the player immediately to the left of the big blind, who is said to be “under the gun.”
• 3. Three community cards, called “the flop,” are placed face up in front of the players.
• 4. Another round of betting ensues beginning with the player to the immediate left of the dealer.
• 5. A fourth community card, called “the turn” or “fourth street,” is placed face up.
• 6. Another round of betting ensues just as after the flop.
• 7. A fifth community card, called “the river” or “fifth street,” is placed faced up.
• 8. The last round of betting ensues just as after the flop.

After the last round of betting, those players still in the hand (i.e. those players who have not folded) compare their holdings in what is called “the showdown.” The players utilize any 5-card combination of the community cards and their two hole cards to create their best possible poker hand. The best hand wins all of the previously placed bets, which have been placed together on the table in a pile known as “the pot.” In the case of a tie, the pot is split amongst those players tying for the best hand.

There are various betting structures, the most common of which is “No Limit,” which allows a player to bet any arbitrary amount above and including a minimum amount (usually the big blind) up to the amount of the player's stake at the table. Other forms of Hold'em include “Pot Limit,” where the maximum bet is the size of the pot, and “Limit” or “Fixed Limit” where there is a rigid betting structure and the size of the bets are predetermined.

Stud and Stud Hi/Lo

In Stud, each player first antes a small amount into the pot.

Referring to FIG. 2, the game play of Stud is as follows:

• 1. Each player is dealt three cards—two faced down, and one faced up.
• 2. The player having the smallest card face up is then forced to commence the action by placing either a “bring-in” bet or a standard bet, wherein the standard bet is larger than the bring-in bet. A round of betting then ensues as the other players decide to call, fold, or raise.
• 3. Each player then receives another card face up, sometimes called “fourth street.”
• 4. A round of betting then commences with the player having the highest-ranking faced-up cards.
• 5. Each player then receives another card face up, sometimes called “fifth street.”
• 6. A round of betting then commences with the player having the highest-ranking faced-up cards.
• 7. Each player then receives another card face up, sometimes called “sixth street.”
• 8. A round of betting then commences with the player having the highest-ranking faced-up cards.
• 9. Each player receives a seventh card faced down, known as “the river” or “seventh street.”
• 10. Another round of betting ensues as previously, and the players remaining in the hand show-down their hands to determine the winner.

In conventional Stud, the player with the highest 5-card poker hand out of his seven cards wins the pot. In the case of a tie, the players tying for the highest hand split the pot.

In Stud Hi/Lo, the pot is split between the player(s) having the highest hand and the player(s) having the lowest hand. A player may utilize different 5-card combinations for each of his high and low hands. However, there are usually conditions as to what qualifies as a low hand. Typically, a player must have five different cards of rank 8 or lower (with Aces considered to be low) to have a qualifying low hand. Also, with low hands, straights and flushes are usually disregarded. If there is no qualifying low hand, then the player with the highest hand wins the entire pot.

Unlike Hold'em, both forms of Stud are almost exclusively played with a fixed betting structure.

Omaha Hold'em and Omaha Hi/Lo

Omaha Hold'em (usually called simply “Omaha”) is played in exactly the same manner as Hold'em except for two important differences: (1) in Omaha, each player is dealt four cards face down, rather than only two as in Hold'em; and (2) in Omaha, each player must use exactly two of his hole cards and three of the community cards to make his poker hand. This process is illustrated in FIG. 3.

While Omaha is less popular than Hold'em, it is a preferred game amongst many players because it is a “high action” game, and the pots are generally much larger on average than Hold'em pots. Omaha is generally played with a pot-limit betting structure; however, it may sometimes be played with a fixed betting structure.

Omaha Hi/Lo is a form of Omaha that is akin to Stud Hi/Lo in that the pot is split amongst the highest and the lowest hands, where the “8 or better” is the typical constraint for a qualifying low hand. A player may utilize different hole and community cards to make each of his high and low hands, however, he may only use exactly two of his hole cards and three of the community cards to make each hand. Omaha Hi/Lo is generally played with either a fixed limit or pot limit betting structure, although it is sometimes played with a no limit structure.

Super Hold'em

Super Hold'em, shown in FIG. 4, is another form of poker similar to Hold'em, albeit seldom-played. It is identical to Hold'em, except that each player receives three cards face down instead of two. The game play is identical to Hold'em, but provides players with much stronger hands on average due to the extra card.

U.S. Pat. No. 6,651,983

U.S. Pat. No. 6,651,983, which is herein incorporated by reference, discloses another form of poker that is identical to Hold'em, except that instead of a river community card, each player receives a concealed river card. This would seem to allow a player to hold a more deceptive hand since more cards are concealed and would also create more uncertainty after the river because the players would not realistically know exactly what the best possible hand is. For example, any two suited community cards that have 3 gaps or less would create the possibility of a player holding a straight flush. In addition, any player after the river could be holding four-of-a-kind. In this form of poker, as well as Super Hold'em, it is very hard to know “where you're at” on the river since each player has three concealed cards, all of which may be utilized in the making of a 5-card poker hand.

Hold'em, Stud, Stud Hi/Lo, Omaha, and Omaha Hi/Lo are by far the most popular poker games today. Each form of poker exhibits unique nuances and characteristics that lend it to certain strategies. Their rules foster certain styles of play and attract those types of players. For example, Omaha and Omaha Hi/Lo are “high action” games that usually have large pots and very large bets “on the come” (i.e. hands that are not made but would be helped by a large number of cards to come). Stud and especially Texas Hold'em place a high importance on the strength of starting hands and lend them to a patient but aggressive style of play. However, No Limit Texas Hold'em allows a player to bluff more easily than Stud or Fixed Limit Hold'em because the player can place a very large bet in order to “scare” other players out of the hand. Hold'em is also driven by mathematical odds, because it is relatively easy for player to calculate the odds of successfully drawing out on another player or of having another player successfully draw out on him. In Omaha and Stud, it is much more difficult to ascertain the mathematical odds in any given situation, and therefore, these games do not rely on pure math as much.

A major disadvantage of Hold'em and both forms of Omaha is that a player receives no additional concrete information of an opponent's hand. Unlike Stud, where several of an opponent's personal cards are exposed, all of an opponent's personal cards are concealed. The community cards and a player's personal cards provide negative information—that is, information as to what cards an opponent does not hold. Of a possible fifty-two cards, a player only receives definite information of up to seven or nine of such cards (i.e. the two or four personal cards plus up to five community cards). This lack of information makes Hold'em and Omaha very difficult forms of poker and places a heavy emphasis on a player's ability to “read” his opponents.

In Stud, up to four of every player's cards are exposed, so a player is given ample information as to the strength of opponents' hands. However, in the case of multiway pots, it may be difficult for one to keep track of all of the exposed cards. A player with acute memory skills who can keep track of what cards he has seen has an advantage in Stud. To many, keeping track of a dozen or more cards may be information overload and a difficult task. Despite this advantage of receiving more information on opponents' hands, Stud is generally disfavored because it cannot be feasibly played with a no-limit or pot-limit structure. With a fixed limit, or even spread limit structure, coupled with many exposed cards, it is difficult to bluff in Stud very often. It is near impossible to “buy” a pot on the river on a pure bluff like one can in no limit or pot limit games.

Omaha and Omaha Hi/Lo suffer from the drawback that the winning hands are usually the best (or very near) possible hands. Especially in multiway pots, it is extremely common for at least one player to have the “nuts,” or the best possible hand given the 5 community cards. In the case of Hi/Lo, the best possible low hand, if possible, is almost always held by at least one player when there is a showdown. Therefore, to win a showdown, a player usually has to make a very strong hand. However, the pot limit and no limit forms of these games provide many bluffing opportunities and do allow a player to “buy” a pot without having the best hand. In sum, each game fosters different styles and strategies that make the games unique in their own right.

All of the existing forms of shared-card poker are described at www.pokernews.com/poker-variants/shared-card-poker.html, which is herein incorporated by reference. As can be seen, all of the conventional forms of shared-card poker deal cards faced-down to each player. Then, each player creates a poker hand using his faced-down cards and a number of shared community cards. However, none of the prior art forms of shared-card poker deal both faced-down and faced-up cards to each player. As such, a player does not receive any concrete information as to his opponents' cards. The present invention differs from such prior art forms of poker in that each player receives at least one faced-up card in addition to a plurality of faced-down cards in order to provide players with concrete information regarding opponents' cards. This variation of the conventional methods of playing poker produces a poker game that is unique and has an interesting game play.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 illustrates the conventional form of poker known as Texas Hold'em.

FIG. 2 illustrates the conventional form of poker known as Stud.

FIG. 3 illustrates the conventional form of poker known as Omaha.

FIG. 4 illustrates the conventional form of poker known as Super Hold'em.

FIG. 5 illustrates the game of poker according to the present invention.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFFERED EMBODIMENTS

FIG. 5 illustrates the flow of the game according to the present invention. In the first embodiment, the small and big blinds are posted by consecutive players to the left of the dealer, just as in Hold'em.

• 1. Each player is initially dealt three cards—two faced down and one faced up—just as in Stud.
• 2. A round of betting ensues. The betting is carried out in the same manner as in Hold'em or Omaha, with the player under the gun commencing the betting. The under-the-gun player and each subsequent player have the option of folding, calling the current bet, or raising the current bet. If the big blind's bet is only called, and no player raises the big blind, then the big-blind player has the option of either checking and proceeding to the flop or raising, just as in Hold'em.
• 3. A flop of three community cards is dealt.
• 4. A round of betting ensues, just as in Hold'em or Omaha, beginning with the player to the immediate left of the dealer (or to the left of the player designated as the dealer).
• 5. The turn is dealt faced up alongside the flop
• 6. A round of betting ensues, just as after the flop.
• 7. The river is dealt faced up.
• 8. A round of betting ensues, just as after the flop.

Then the players remaining in the hand show down their hands. Pursuant to Omaha, each player must utilize exactly two of his personal cards and three of the community cards in making his poker hand. The winner is the player whose poker hand ranks the highest, and the pot is split in the case of a tie.

As can be seen, the form of poker according to the present invention combines advantageous features of the various prior art forms of poker in a unique way. The starting hands are dealt in the same manner as in Stud. Then, the game play proceeds in the same manner as Hold'em, and the showdown is reminiscent of Omaha, wherein a player utilizes exactly two of his hole cards and three of the community cards to make his 5-card poker hand.

This form of poker provides each player with the benefit of receiving extra information about his opponents' hands but does not provide the “information overload” problems that Stud may produce. In addition, it is still possible to ascertain the mathematical odds of a given play, although not as easily as in Hold'em or as difficult as in Omaha or Stud.

The best starting hands for this invention are similar to the strong starting hands of Stud. However, whereas rolled-up trips (i.e. three-of-a-kind) is a very powerful starting hand in Stud, it is much weaker in the instant form of poker because the player may utilize only two of his three personal cards to make his 5-card poker hand.

The instant form of poker also provides numerous other advantages over the conventional forms of poker. The relative strength of made hands will be higher than those in Hold'em due to the extra personal card, however, they will not be so high as those in Omaha where players are dealt four personal cards. Thus, the present invention contemplates a “happy medium” between Hold'em and Omaha, while providing the extra benefit derived from Stud of having extra initial information regarding an opponent's holding. Numerous other advantages will also be apparent to those skilled in the art.

The second embodiment differs from the first embodiment in that, rather than having a small and big blind commence the action as in Hold'em, each player is forced to ante-up as in Stud. After the antes are placed into the pot, each player is dealt three cards—two faced down and one faced up—just as in the first embodiment. Then, the player with the smallest faced-up card is required to either bring-in or bet. Betting for the round then continues just as in Stud. However, the betting structure may also be pot limit or no-limit with the bring-in bet equaling the size of the minimum bet.

After the flop the player with the highest (or, alternatively, the lowest) face-up card commences the betting. The same player commences the betting for each round of betting after the turn and river. After the last round of betting, the players remaining show down in the same manner as the first embodiment.

Thus, the player with the highest up card has his advantage offset by having to commence each round of betting after the flop, turn, and river. This application of the Stud first-to-bet principle to a Hold'em-type game with community cards makes for a very interesting and unique game play

Both embodiments may also be played “Hi/Lo” style as described above, wherein the pot is split amongst the high and low hands. As described previously, there may be conditions as to what qualifies as a low hand, such as the common “8 or better” constraint. The preferred method of playing this game is with a pot limit betting structure, however, it may also be played with a fixed-limit, no-limit, or spread-limit betting structure without departing from the spirit of the invention.

Various other modifications and additions to the first and second embodiments may be made without departing from the spirit of the invention. For example, wild cards may be designated, or joker card(s) may be added to the deck as wild cards. The game may be played “live” with actual cards, or it may be played on an electronic system. It may be played among a plurality of players stationed at individual computers that are connected via electronic communication lines such as the Internet, a LAN, or the like. The present invention may also be adapted to be played by a single player at an electronic machine, or a “video poker” machine. Or, as in the game of Crazy Pineapple, each player may be forced to discard a personal card before the flop.

In addition, the “Omaha” constraint may be removed, and a player may create his 5-card poker hand from any of his three personal cards and the five community cards, or alternatively, a player may be forced to utilize only one or two of his personal cards (but not all three) in making his 5-card poker hand. Also, a player may receive a different number of faced-up and faced-down cards so long as he receives a combination thereof. Also, the invention may be played “low” style wherein the lowest hand, rather then the highest hand wins—e.g. Ace-to-five or deuce-to-seven style. Other obvious modifications will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention.

Claims

1. A game of poker, comprising:

a first player;

a second player;

a collection of bets and/or antes;

a first set of playing cards dealt to the first player, wherein at least one playing card of the first set of playing cards is dealt faced down and at least one playing card of the first set of playing cards is dealt faced up;

a second set of playing cards dealt to the second player, wherein at least one playing card of the second set of playing cards is dealt faced down and at least one playing card of the second set of playing cards is dealt faced up;

a plurality of community playing cards placed face up; and

a comparison of a first five-card poker hand, corresponding to the first player, to a second five-card poker hand, corresponding to the second player,

wherein the first poker hand is a combination of playing cards contained in the first set of playing cards and playing cards contained in the plurality of community playing cards, and

wherein the second poker hand is a combination of playing cards contained in the second set of playing cards and playing cards contained in the plurality of community playing cards.

2. A game of poker according to claim 1, wherein the first poker hand consists of two playing cards from the first set of playing cards and three playing cards from the plurality of community playing cards.

3. A game of poker according to claim 1, wherein the first and second set of playing cards each consist of two playing cards faced down and one playing card faced up.

4. A game of poker according to claim 1, wherein the plurality of community playing cards consists of five playing cards.

5. A game of poker according to claim 1, wherein the collection of bets and/or antes is collected via a plurality of rounds of betting in accordance with a predetermined betting structure.

6. A game of poker according to claim 5, wherein the betting structure is pot limit.

7. A game of poker according to claim 5, wherein the betting structure is no limit.

8. A game of poker according to claim 5, wherein the betting structure is fixed limit.

9. A game of poker according to claim 1, further comprising a determination of whether the first poker hand is higher ranking than the second poker hand.

10. A game of poker according to claim 9, wherein the determination of whether the first poker hand is better than the second poker hand further comprises:

in the case that the first poker hand is higher ranking than the second poker hand, an awarding of the collection of bets and/or antes to the first player;

in the case that the first poker hand is lower ranking than the second poker hand, an awarding of the collection of bets and/or antes to the second player; and

in the case that the first poker hand is equal to the second poker hand, an awarding of substantially equal portions of the collection of bets and/or antes to the first and second players.

11. A method of playing a game of poker, comprising the steps of dealing a first set of playing cards to a first player, wherein at least one playing card of the first set of playing cards is dealt faced down and at least one playing card of the first set of playing cards is dealt faced up;

dealing a second set of playing cards to a second player, wherein at least one playing card of the second set of playing cards is dealt faced down and at least one playing card of the second set of playing cards is dealt faced up;

collecting bets and/or antes;

dealing a plurality of community playing cards placed face up; and

comparing a first five-card poker hand, corresponding to the first player, to a second five-card poker hand, corresponding to the second player,

wherein the first poker hand is a combination of playing cards contained in the first set of playing cards and playing cards contained in the plurality of community playing cards, and

wherein the second poker hand is a combination of playing cards contained in the second set of playing cards and playing cards contained in the plurality of community playing cards.

12. A method of playing a game of poker according to claim 11, wherein the first poker hand consists of two playing cards from the first set of playing cards and three playing cards from the plurality of community playing cards.

13. A method of playing a game of poker according to claim 11, wherein the first and second set of playing cards each consist of two playing cards faced down and one playing card faced up.

14. A method of playing a game of poker according to claim 11, wherein the plurality of community playing cards consists of five playing cards.

15. A method of playing a game of poker according to claim 11, wherein the collecting of bets and/or antes comprises:

conducting a plurality of rounds of betting in accordance with a predetermined betting structure.

16. A method of playing a game of poker according to claim 15, wherein the betting structure is pot limit.

17. A method of playing a game of poker according to claim 15, wherein the betting structure is no limit.

18. A method of playing a game of poker according to claim 15, wherein the betting structure is fixed limit.

19. A method of playing a game of poker according to claim 1, further comprising the step of:

determining whether the first poker hand is higher ranking than the second poker hand.

20. A method of playing a game of poker according to claim 19, wherein the determining step further comprises:

in the case that the first poker hand is higher ranking than the second poker hand, awarding the collection of bets and/or antes to the first player;

in the case that the first poker hand is lower ranking than the second poker hand, awarding the collection of bets and/or antes to the second player; and

in the case that the first poker hand is equal to the second poker hand, awarding substantially equal portions of the collection of bets and/or antes to the first and second players.