C - Poker Terms
Call - To match the bet or raise in order to continue with the hand. See also actions.
Call the Clock - In live games when a player takes too long then you can call the clock. This then gives your opponent a limited amount of time to act. If he fails to act then he will be auto folded. Also put the clock.
Calling Station - A player that calls way too much. See also playing styles.
Cap -
1. In limit poker games, there is usually a maximum number of raises allowed in any round. Usually, it is four bets per round of betting.
2. In cap limit games the cap is the maximum that can be wagered in that hand before the player is classed as all-in. See also betting limit.
Cap Game - In cap limit games players can only wager upto the cap in any one hand. When a player reaches the cap he is classed as all-in. See also betting limit.
Cards Speak - This means verbal statements about one's hand do not count, the cards do. For example, a player declares he has a pair of jacks but shows a flush, the flush counts not the pair.
Case Card - The only one card in the deck that will win. For example, the only way I can win is to catch the case jack.
Cash Game - This is the typical poker game where players buyin for cash and can cash-out or rebuy whenever they choose. Also live game or ring game.
Cash Plays - An announcement in a live casino, usually by a dealer, that a player requested to buy chips and can bet the cash he has on the table whilst he receives his chips. In some card rooms, $100 bills may remain on the table and be used instead of chips.
Catch - To receive receive a card needed to complete a draw. For example, mananging to catch an ace on the river.
Catch Up - To successfully complete a draw or improve your hand. To catch up completely is to make the best hand but to catch up a bit is to make second best. For example, "a player with two pair let me catch up a bit by letting me hit an ace on the turn but I court up completely when I backdoored a flush".
Catch Perfect - To catch the only two possible cards that will complete a hand and win the pot. For example hitting a runner-runner straight flush.
Caught Speeding - Slang for getting caught bluffing.
C-bet - A bet made after the first round of betting by the player who took the lead in the prevous round. For example, in Holdem a player raises with AJ and the big-blind calls. He them misses the flop completely and the big-blind checks, so he make a continuation bet and takes down the pot. Also continuation bet. See also probe bet.
Center Pot - The main pot when more one players are all in.
Chase - To call to try an hit a draw. Usually means to call without the correct pot-odds but not always.
Check -
1. To bet nothing. See also actions.
2. A casino chip.
Check Out - To fold, in turn, even though there is no bet facing the player. This is sometimes against the rules or frowned apon.
Check-raise - To first check, then to raise after a player has bet. This is often done with big hands to trap a player. Also sandbag. See also actions.
Chip - A token used to bet with. They are worth real money in a cash game or as currency to play with in a tournament.
Chip Declare - In high-low split games, a method of indicating the pot or pots in which a player will compete for. Rather than saying "high", "low", or "both", he can say "zero chips" (meaning low), "one chip" (meaning high) or "two chips" (meaning both).
Chip Dumping - A form of cheating that sometimes happens in tournaments. It usually involes betting a large amount of your stack and then folding to the player or players you are colluding with.
Chip Leader - The player currently holding the most chips in a cash game or tournament.
Chip Race - A chip race is an event that sometimes takes place in a tournament when lower value chips are not needed. Each player will receive an equal value in higher chips. When this is not possible the deck is cut to decide who gets a higher value chip.
Chip Up -
1. To exchange lower value chips for higher higher value chips.
2. To steadily accumulate chips, typically by winning small pots with minimal risk or blind stealing.
Chop -
1. To split a pot because of a tie or in a split-pot game, such as high-low.
2. To play a game for a short period of time and then cash out. Often means playing aggressive and leaving before players have had time to adjust to your play. Also hit and run.
3. A request by a player to change a larger value chip into smaller ones. Sometimes done when a player decides to make a toke or tip.
4. An agreement made by all players in a tournament to split the remainding prize pool. When this happens it is usualy when there are two to three players left in a multi-table tournament and there is a huge jump between the amount of money players will receive for first, second and third.
5. The amount of money the casino takes from each pot. This is typically 5% of called bets and raises. Also juice, rake, vig or vigorish.
6. To chop the blinds. See below:
Chopping the Blinds - When everyone folds to return the blinds to the players who posted them. This has to be agreed at the start of the game because the big blind would normaly get a walk (win the small-blind).
Closed -
1. The betting is closed when no further raises can take place. Normally, the betting is closed when everyone has checked or everyone has called or folded to the last bet or raise but the betting is still said to be closed if a player has gone all-in for less than the minimum raise (raised all-in by less than the previous raise) because noone who has already called can come over the top.
2. A closed poker game is a game where all players hole cards are kept hidden from the other opponents. For example, Holdem and draw poker are closed games but Stud is an open game because some of a player's hole cards are face-up
Coffee Housing - Verbally missleading a player about the strength of your hand. For example a player holding a set might say "lets gamble", implying only a moderate to weak holding or a draw. A player may even hit a flush and say "I have a flush so I raise", of course knowing that noone will believe him and will probably think he is bluffing. In the UK coffee housing is considered bad etiquette but not in the USA. Also speech play.
Coin Flip - A situation where two players have gone all-in and the odds of winning are roughly 50-50. This is usually overcards against a pocket pair but can also be a hand like ace-rag (just one overcard) against a suited connector. Also race.
Cold Call - To call a bet and a raise or two raises in one go. See also flat call or overcall.
Cold Deck -
2. A hand so stong that it justifies playing a huge pot (usually your whole stack) only to walk into an even bigger hand. For example, in Holdem you have KK and the flop comes AK4. A player goes all-in here you are correct to call. If your opponent has AA you are just unlucky, it was a cold deck and you did nothing wrong. Also cooler.
2. A deck that has been rigged so that a player or players cannot win.
Collusion - A form of cheating that involves two or more players sharing their hole cards and working together.
Color Change - To exchange small value chips for larger ones or vice-versa.
Color Up - To exchange small value chips for higher ones.
Combo, Combination Game - A table where multiple forms of poker are played in rotation. See also horse.
Come Bet - To bet or raise with a drawing hand. Sometimes a good semi-bluff but can also be building the pot just for the sake of gambling and potentially winning more. See also on the come.
Community Card - A card on the board that any player can use. See also flop, turn, river or rules.
Complete Hand - A hand that is usually strong enough to win with without improving. Also made hand.
Completion -
1. To raise the bring-in in a Stud game to the normal bet size. For example, in a $4/$8 Stud game with a $2 bring-in, completing is raising to $4 and can be done by either the player making the bring-in or a player acting after.
2. In limit games if a player bets or raises all-in for less than the minimum then raising to the minimum is called completion. This depends on the house rules as it is not always allowed.
Connectors - Two or more cards of consecutive ranks in a players hole cards. This term is sometimes used to also class hands of close to consecutive ranks. Such as; one-gapper, two-gapper and three-gapper.
Continuation Bet - A bet made after the first round of betting by the player who took the lead in the prevous round. For example, in Holdem a player raises with AJ and the big-blind calls. He them misses the flop completely and the big-blind checks, so he make a continuation bet and takes down the pot. Also c-bet. See also probe bet.
Cooler - A hand so stong that it justifies playing a huge pot (usually your whole stack) only to walk into an even bigger hand. For example, in Holdem you have KK and the flop comes AK4. A player goes all-in here you are correct to call. If your opponent has AA you are just unlucky, it was a cold deck and you did nothing wrong. Also cold deck.
Countdown - The act of counting the cards the cards that remain in the deck after all cards have been dealt to ensure that a complete deck is being used.
Counterfeit - When a hand that once had value loses its value because of a card or cards that land on the board. For example, you have 75 on a board of A75K your two-pair is counterfieted if a K or A lands on the river. See also duplicate.
Cow - A player with whom you are sharing the buy-in of a tournament with, with the intent to split the prize money if either of you win. To go cow is to make this arrangement.
Cripple -
1. If you lose a huge pot and are left short stacked then your stack is crippled.
2. If you hit an absolute monster but the board is such that there is not much anyone could have to pay you off with then you have crippled the deck. For example, you have AK and the flop comes AAA.
Crying Call - To call believing you probably do not have the best hand. This is usually a call out of desperation but can also be a pot odds call.
Cut -
1. To cut the deck is to seperate the deck into two piles and put one on top of the other. This is often done to ensure a fair deal by the player in the cutoff seat.
2. To cut cards is to deal a card to each player involved in the cut and the player with the highest card wins the cut. If two or more players hold the same card then it goes on suit according to the bidge order. The deck is cut when starting a poker game to see who deals first and when deciding the winner of a chip race.
Cut Card - A card that goes to the bottom of the deck to prevent the bottom card from being exposed. Usually a piece of solid colored plastic.
Cutoff - The seat to the right of the dealer button. In home games this player also cuts the deck to ensure a fair deal. See positions at the table.