Tournament Strategies
After receiving pocket cards, you are immediately faced with a choice: play your cards and either raise or call the blinds, or fold.
Practice Matters
royal flush
royal flush A straight flush of the top five cards of any suit. This is generally the highest possible hand. run it twice, running it twice A gentleman's agreement (which isn't allowed in some casinos) where the players (usually two or three) agree to draw each remaining card to come in two different occasions instead of just once after all parties have gone all-in (two flops, turns and river for example for a total of 10 community cards in 2 sets of 5). You may run twice the flop, turn and river or just the turn and river or only the river. Cards are usually not run retroactively unless the players expressly request so (which is rare). The winner of one "run" gets half the pot while the winner of the second "run" gets the other half. Running it twice is done to minimize bad beats and reduce bankroll swings. Running it twice is a form of insurance.
runner-runner
runner-runner A hand made by hitting two consecutive cards on the turn and river. Also "backdoor". Compare to "bad beat" and "suck out". rush A prolonged winning streak. A player who has won several big pots recently is said to be on a rush. Also "heater". S[edit]sandbag See Slow play (poker).