When a online poker game has several players with varying amounts of chips, more than one side pot can develop. For instance, a player may bet out 1,000 chips, and is called by a player with 700 chips, who is now all-in. Another player calls and matches the 1,000 bet, and is now also all-in.

If another player behind the 1,000 all-in caller may decide to push in more chips in an attempt to isolate the all-ins. The big stack bets out 3,000 – 700 of which go into the main pot. The 3,000 bet will put the original 1,000 bettor all-in too. Now that player has to make a decision to put all his poker chips at risk. If that player folds, he has no claim to any pot and is out of the action, leaving behind the the side pot with two eligible contenders, and the main pot for three players.

However, if the player calls the 3,000, then a second side pot is set up between the two big stacks, who are eligible to win all three pots. There are now three pots on the table: * The main pot with 700 x 4 bettors = 2,800 chips * The first side pot of 300 x 3 eligible bettors = 900 chips * The second side pot of 2,000 chips x 2 eligible bettors = 4,000 chips The side pots are awarded first. Whoever wins the second side pot of 4,000 knocks the losing hand out of the action for the other two pots.

Next, the hands are compared for the first side pot. The two poker players in for the original 1,000 bet are eligible for this pot; the 700 all-in caller is not. Whoever wins this pot knocks out the losing hand, and is now only in contention with the 700 all-in caller for the main pot of 2,800 (700 from all four bettors). The better hand wins the main pot.

This entry was posted on Monday, February 2nd, 2009 at 11:19 am and is filed under Cheats + Games, The Funny Farm, Web Of Gambling. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.