All-in poker – rules and strategy

The expression ‘going all-in’ refers to the action of fully committing to something in particular. For example, Team A spent big money on the transfer market this year; that team is definitely going all-in for the championship title.

In the context of poker, going all-in holds a very similar meaning. In this post, we’ll explore what going all-in means, the rules when going all-in, what happens to the main pot when multiple players go all-in and when is the best way to do so.

Whether you’re a player who is no stranger to the all-in practice or a new player who wants to harness a new force in poker, stick around and read up on what moving all-in is all about.

WHAT DOES MOVING ‘ALL-IN’ MEAN IN POKER?

The all-in move in poker refers to the act of committing all your chips in the current pot. This is considered an extremely risky move since you will lose all of your chips if your hand gets beaten by some other player.

Also known as ‘pushing’ or ‘shoving’, going all-in can be done during any betting round, but it is usually done during the late stages of the game, mostly during showdown.

In any case, seeing as going all-in is considered a bet, the all-in player can have their bet called by other players at the poker table. In this case, the best hand will win the total pot; however, this can get somewhat complicated when the other players have more chips left than what the all-in player has bet. We will go into much more detail regarding this situation later on.

If a player goes all-in and everybody else folds, the all-in player will be rewarded with the whole pot. In fact, this is the ideal scenario for the all-in bet.

ALL-IN POKER RULES

There aren’t that many rules when it comes to going all-in, especially if you’re not playing poker as a cash game. When real chips, are involved, things always seem to get more complicated.

Without further ado, let’s have a look at what you’ll need to keep in mind when investing your entire stack of chips in the pot.

WHAT HAPPENS IN POT-LIMIT GAMES?

Here’s a good question: what happens if I bet all my chips, but they’re not enough for a full raise?

That depends on whether the ‘full bet’ rule or the ‘half bet’ rule is active. Here’s a quick breakdown of the two:

• In No-Limit games (that is, cash games with a no-limit betting structure), the full bet rule is usually active. This means that if the amount of an all-in is less than the minimum bet or the full amount of the previous raise, it is then considered a raise and the betting is closed.
• You’ll often find the half bet rule in a Fixed-limit game. This rule states that if the all-in amount is over half the minimum bet, it is considered a raise and the betting is open.

The best way to explain the above is by considering an example.

Let’s say that Player A bets €100 in the pot and Player B decides to go all-in with €110. Seeing as the additional €10 is not enough to be considered a full raise, the subsequent player (Player C) can still raise. This is because the all-in from Player B is not considered a raise, which means that the action of raising can still be done, despite Player B’s additional chips. Player A would then be able to call or raise the bet made by Player C.

On the flip side, if Player C calls, Player A will not be able to re-raise, since that would mean re-raising their own original bet. At this point, Player A can call the additional €10 and contest the side pot of €90 (contributed by the call from Player C).

SIDE POT CREATION

In a game between two players, things couldn’t be easier to settle. If a player doesn’t have enough chips to match the all-in bet, they will put as many chips as they can and only be eligible to win an amount proportional to that.

If we’re talking about three or more players, then we’ll have to knuckle down better on the exact layout of the pot.

• All the active players who want to partake in the pot must bet as much as the smallest amount of chips was bet. Stacks contributed here will go to the main pot.
• The player with the shortest stack is then required to match the remaining bets from players with a big stack. These chips are then placed into a side pot between said players.

HOW TO GO ALL-IN POKER?

You’ve got a superb full house and you’re very confident that you can beat the remaining players at the table. As a measure to put your strong hand to good use, you decide to go all-in with the hope that every player calls. If not, they can fold and pose no challenge whatsoever.

Keep in mind that going all-in is just like placing a bet, only that you won’t have any stack of chips left.

In a land-based casino, going all-in happens when a player pushes entire stack of chips towards the middle of the table for the dealer to count. This move is dramatised depending on the size of the stack.

Going all-in with a short stack isn’t very dramatic, but going all-in with a bigger stack? That will definitely turn a few heads and make any players left at the table quite uneasy, especially if they don’t have a strong hand to compete with.

WHAT HAPPENS WHEN YOU GO ALL-IN IN POKER?

Now that you’ve went all-in with your full house (as per the previous example), here are the possible outcomes. Players can decide to:

• fold – which would mean that they will abandon the betting round and forfeit the chips they have invested in the pot thus far. If you really think that you have better cards than your opponents, this isn’t the most desirable outcome since you’ll be hoping for your bet to be called for a big pot.
• call your bet – which would mean matching your bet. This is the most ideal scenario, as long as you have a monster hand and are not bluffing or semi-bluffing, to begin with. If we’re talking about the showdown and all the other players have acted, there will be no further action. The hands will be compared to identify the best hand in the round.
• raise – this is the least favourable outcome possible. Firstly, a player can only raise an all-in wager if they have more chips than you do. If this happens and another player calls their bet, a side pot will be created. Secondly, a raise against an all-in means that the player who raised believes that their hand is truly the winning hand. If not, why would they invest such a stack in the pot?

If you win, congratulations! Granted that enough players called your all-in, you will enjoy the entirety of the main pot. If you lose, you’ll have to to see whether you can make a buy-in and top up your balance, since you’ll have lost your entire stack. Should buy-ins be forbidden, you’ll have to see yourself off the table and out of the game.

WHAT IS A SIDE POT?

As we’ve mentioned above, a single pot might not cut it if three players or more want to participate in a hand where one of them goes all-in. Consequently, a side pot must be created — one which is completely separate from the main pot.

It is important to keep in mind that only players who have contributed to a side pot can win the stack in said side pot. For example, if a player goes all in (A), another player (B) calls, whereas two players can only call half the all-in wager, the side pot will only be contested between the first two players (A and B). The other two players will contest the main pot.

HOW TO CALCULATE SIDE POT?

If you’ve just start playing poker games, we wouldn’t advise you to worry about how the side pot is calculated. In online poker, side pots are calculated automatically, whereas in land-based poker, the dealer will take care of everything. If, on the other hand, you’ve been participating in many poker games and poker tournaments and want to learn how to calculate side pots yourself, then listen up.

Let’s consider an example where three players playing Texas hold’em are at showdown. Player A goes all-in with a stack of €1,000. Player B goes all-in, but with a stack of just €500. Player C also goes all-in, but with just €120.

The main pot will consist of short stacks, that is, €120. This stack will be extracted from all players. Apart from that, a side pot will be created between Player A and B, who have bigger stacks than Player C.

Therefore, the side pot will be created using Player A and B’s remaining stack. In this case, Player B has already extracted €120 from their stack, leaving €380 (500-120) to go to the side pot.

As you can see, the size of the side pot depends on how many chips players have. Although Player A went all-in with €1,000, they could not extract that amount of money from the rest of the players, who only had €500 (Player B) and €120 (Player C).

WHEN TO GO ALL-IN POKER?

Investing all the money you have in a pot is as risky as it sounds, which is why the only player who should do that is the one who is the most confident in their hand. With that said, here are some situations which may require you to inflate the table stakes and go all-in.

WHEN MAKING A 5-BET

In the context of an online poker cash game, a 5-bet (referring to the thire re-raise in a betting round, usually preflop) is said to warrant an all-in. For example, let’s say that you’re wielding a 100 big blind stack. The button opens for €5 and, you, occupying the small blind, raise to €20. If the button re-raises, your ideal play would be going all-in — granted that you deem yours the stronger hand.

4-BETTING AGAINST A SIZEABLE 3-BET

Facing a large 3-bet is no easy task, and it is known to happen in live poker cash games. In this scenario, let’s say that the button opens for €10 and your big blind 3-bet would be around €40. In this case, the button should go all-in when faced with your 20-big-blind 3-bet.

PRESSURING SHORT STACKS IN A POKER TOURNAMENT

If you’re sitting on a big stack during the late stages of a poker tournament, you’re considered at an advantage. Players with a short stack will be looking to see out bigger stacks and claim the goods for themselves.

With your big stack, you can choose to go all-in against shorter stacks, thus, forcing them to either fold or call. With fewer options at hand, your all-in wager may well end up called by some short stacks. You can do this with wide ranges, too, although this is riskier and it can end up in a dynamic shift that you could well do without during a tournament.

WHEN SHOULD SHOVES BE CALLED?

Before looking to answer that question, let’s outline what a shove is. In the context of poker, ‘shoving’ refers to the act of going all-in. This term is usually used in No-Limit hold’em or other poker games without a limit betting structure.

Whether one player should call a shove depends on multiple factors:

• the stage of the game or tournament
• the number of big blinds it would take to call
• the hand range of the opponent
• the hand range of the player
• the behaviour of your opponent

The above factors render it hard for us to provide you with a definite answer of whether a shove should be called or not. The best way to answer this is by considering your opponents’ behaviour throughout the game. Is it in line with how they’ve always acted? Could they be bluffing, or do they have a superb poker hand?

WHEN NOT TO GO ALL-IN

The all-in poker move is one of the riskiest moves you can make in any of the cash games out there. In that light, it’s fundamental to never go all-in if the situation doesn’t call for it. Here are certain situations that should never warrant a shove.

WHEN YOU HAVE A POOR HAND

If you have an inkling that yours is the second-best hand at the table, you should generally avoid going all-in. Semi-bluffing a shove is almost as risky, except for the fact that the chances of hitting in later streets can help you win. Nevertheless, we do not recommend going all-in with a hopeful hand or a draw.

DURING EARLY BETTING ROUNDS

Anything can happen in later streets. You might lose the same hand that you’re confident with preflop to a poker hand made after the flop. Going all-in preflop is rarely the way how a hand should be played. In games that use community cards like Texas hold’em, the community cards dealt after the flop can make or break your hopes of going all-in.

WHEN SHOULD YOU CONSIDER GOING ALL-IN

The way you use the all-in poker move depends on how you play poker, among many other factors. The way how a hand is played will differ from one player to the other, but there are situations in which going all-in can win the pot. Here are some of the ‘safest’ ways to go all-in, even though it will largely depend on your hand.

WHEN IN THE LATE STAGES

In most poker games, going all-in at showdown is the most opportune moment to do so, since players will have already invested too much to fold, whereas others might be interested in calling and going in for a chance to win.

WHEN THERE IS DEAD MONEY

Betting when it seems that other players aren’t likely to place any bets can net you quite a few big blinds to use in more pots. Nevertheless, make sure that you have a made hand (at the very least, pairs) when going all-in here.

SUMMARY

Going all-in is the ultimate move to win big stacks, but whether this will be a success or failure depends on multiple factors. Above, we’ve used more than one example to discuss the ramifications of an all-in move in poker games, which is why it is ultimately up to you to decide how to act when playing in those circumstances.