In poker, “blinds” are forced bets that players are required to put into the pot before the cards are dealt. Blinds are a fundamental part of many poker variants and serve to initiate the action and build the pot. The two most common types of blinds are the small blind and the big blind.
What are blinds in poker?
Here’s how blinds work in poker:
- Small Blind (SB): The player sitting to the left of the dealer button (or the actual dealer if there is no dedicated dealer button) is responsible for posting the small blind. The small blind is usually half the minimum bet for that hand. For example, if the minimum bet is $2, the small blind would be $1.
- Big Blind (BB): The player sitting to the left of the small blind is responsible for posting the big blind. The big blind is typically equal to the minimum bet for that hand. Using the same example, if the minimum bet is $2, the big blind would also be $2.
- Blind Order: The positions of the small blind and big blind rotate clockwise after each hand, so each player has an opportunity to post these forced bets. The dealer button, which also rotates clockwise, designates the positions of the blinds for each hand.
- Initial Betting Round: After the small blind and big blind are posted, each player is dealt their hole cards (two cards in Texas Hold’em and Omaha). The player to the left of the big blind starts the first round of betting.
- Options for Players: Players have several options when facing the blinds. They can fold (discard their hand and forfeit the current pot), call (match the big blind), or raise (increase the bet size beyond the big blind). The small blind and big blind players already have money in the pot, so they can check (pass their option to the next player) if no one has raised before them.
- Blinds vs. Antes: While blinds are used in games like Texas Hold’em and Omaha, some other poker variants use antes instead of blinds. Antes are small forced bets that all players contribute to the pot before the hole cards are dealt.
Blinds serve multiple purposes in poker, including initiating the action, creating an initial pot, and encouraging players to participate in the hand. The positions of the small blind and big blind also determine the order of betting for the first round, which can influence the strategy and dynamics of the game.