What are the blinds in poker?

What are the blinds in poker?

You may have played many poker games, but you will be unfamiliar with blinds. In short, the blind in poker is a mandatory bet that will be placed into the pot before any players are dealt cards at the table.

The blinds will be paid each hand, and there will be players who will occupy either the small blind or big blind, and the action will rotate.

At a casino, the dealer will be denoted by a dealer button, and those players sitting to the immediate left of the dealer button will be sat in the big blind, and will place a big bet. In contrast, the small blind position will be on the right of the dealer button and will place a small wager.

A player on the direct left may place a full bet for a particular round, and that will be referred to as the big blind.

To confuse things more, some poker games may also have antes, which are also considered to be mandatory bets. Anyway, in the following sections, we will dissect the blind in poker, assess small blinds, and run through some popular blinds for poker tournaments.

How do blinds work in poker?

Poker blinds are the essence of any poker game. Without them, games would be rather static, or worse still, deadbeat. In some poker games, you can add multiple blinds to proceedings which makes cash games more frenetic.

As mentioned in the previous section, the blinds are mandatory bets, and they must be placed into a pot before a player at the table can kickstart the action.

The betting round will start to the immediate left of the dealer button at the poker table once the cards are dealt. Whether you are playing for fun or in a tournament, the dealer will announce what the current blind amount is, and they will instruct which players need to post them.

So, in a $4 game, for example, the small blind will post half of what is in the pot ($2), while the player directly in the big blind will put in the full amount ($4).

From there, the button shifts around the table, and a player will be forced to post the small blind and big one per orbit, which starts in the preflop betting round.

You will get to play different blind levels once per orbit, just so that each player seated gets to try two positions. It also means that when you enter pots, no player is hindered or given an unfair advantage in a game.

Poker blinds order

A poker game will have many different stages, so let’s run through what you should expect, including subsequent betting rounds.

Starting stack

The starting stack will be the number of chips you will receive when entering poker tournaments. With tournament poker, the average stack size will be roughly between 100 and 200 times the number of big blinds at the beginning of the preflop betting round. In Omaha games, the preflop round begins with the player to the left of the dealer being the first player to start things off.

Blinds start to increase

Poker blinds will generally increase as a tournament wears on, and the action will intensify for cash game players to ensure tournaments reach a natural conclusion.

Big blind

With the big blind, the call must match the amount of this blind level. The player to the left of the big blind will be what is known as “under the gun”. Three options are available here — calling the big blind amount, raising to a higher amount, or choosing to fold. Players will measure their stack for the big blind amount.

Antes

Some tournaments and live games will have antes in play at this point. Blinds and antes run alongside each other, and the size of the ante will usually be around 10-15% of the big blind. Antes are forced bets that take place before the start of each hand is played. Also, each ante for a home game will be of a different length.

Missed Blinds

You could miss the blinds if you leave the table prematurely while occupying the position of the small blind or big blind seat. So, for example, if you skip a round before the blinds get to you, then they will have passed you as the hand starts. Ultimately, nobody gets away with missing blinds in the game.

Whats the difference between Big Blind and Small Blind?

With poker blinds, the small blind will generally be half the betting size of the big blind, although it can be larger or smaller. Unlike the big blind, the small blind position in a cash game is always to the right of the dealer.

How to determine blinds

Whoever is hosting a game will determine the blinds. As is often the case, the big blinds will be twice the size of the small blind, but the host will have the final say on the blind structure and what the table pays.

For example, in some casinos, you can find that some games at casinos will have small blinds and big blinds that pay the same.

Rules of blinds

In any poker game, there are a few basics to consider when it comes to blinds. Firstly, blinds will be listed and big blinds will be twice the size of the small blinds.

A preflop betting round in Texas Hold’Em or Omaha games, will begin when players sitting to the left of the big blind will act first and start play. Those players in the button position will be identified by the round disk that orbits during a game.

Calls should always match the amount of the current big blind amount, and players can act by calling, making a raise, or deciding to fold. Once each hand has been dealt and played, then the blinds will rotate one spot at the table, and a new hand will commence.

Poker blinds chart

Poker tournament blinds

Poker blinds for tournaments work in the same way as the cash games, well, perhaps with a couple of slight differences. Firstly, in tournaments, there are add-ons, where those playing can buy some additional poker chips once the rebuy period ends.

Also, the length of blind periods will vary for a tournament. If you are not sure how poker tournaments work, then check out the house rules of the casino you wish to play at.

Blinds Strategy

To get great results with poker blinds in cash games, here are a few strategy pointers that will be useful:

Understand how to calculate pot odds

Those playing who will feel most comfortable at the table will be able to establish the pot odds for any given game. It is one of the key skills when you play poker, and you can convert pot odds into percentages to make things easier if you aren’t sure about a blind size.

Work out the range of your opponent

Whether you are in the pre flop or the flop, you need to have a clear of what the other players are doing at the table. So, for example, if other players are getting tighter, then you need to act and continue by calling or raising those with a tighter range to make up for the equity disadvantage. A common poker mistake players make from the big blind in cash games is to call a raise with any hand combination containing an ace.

Make stack size adjustments

In a cash game, there may be a player at the table that is more aggressive when they have a short stack size. To confront those at the table that are more combative, you should readjust during a blind, and act accordingly, so you can claim more money from the pot.

How do Blinds Work in Heads Up Games?

For heads up games, the button pays those who are sat in the small blind position. The small blind will play first in the preflop betting round, but last on the later streets or flop rounds. The other player sitting in the big blind position will be putting in the big blind amount on the preflop. Sometimes, this can cause mix-ups, especially as the small blind and big blind will have designated positions for a cash game or tournament.

Ante vs blinds

Like blinds, an ante is a mandatory type of bet. They are essentially an add-on for games, and as mentioned, the sizes of antes will vary (10 to 15%) of the size of the big blind.

How do Antes and Blinds Work in Poker Tournaments?

For poker tournaments, blinds and antes provide an interesting dimension. You can get a big blind ante. In blinds and antes, a player in the big blind position will post the ante before each hand.