Poker Antes Definition
4/9/2022 admin
Ante
Used primarily in Stud games, antes are used as a way to seed the pot. Antes and blinds function differently, but both have the common purpose of seeding the pot prior to the initial dealing of the hand. In most ring games, blinds are used in flop and draw games, while antes are commonly used in stud games.
Let’s take a moment to describe the difference between blind and antes. Blinds are used instead of antes for virtually all flop and draw games, however there are situations in these games (especially in tournaments) where antes may be used in addition to blinds. Blinds are forced (mandatory) bets made before the cards are dealt. Blind positions and amounts are inflexible and are determined by the rules of the game and/or the house rules. They are usually posted to the immediate left of the dealer button, and are sometimes posted on the button as well. Technically, if stipulated by the rules, blinds could be posted from anywhere.
A blind is really a blind call (or partial call). This means that when you post a blind prior to the initial deal, the amount you have posted is credited toward the amount required to call, after the initial deal. So blinds seed the pot prior to the initial deal, and receive credit towards a call afterwards. This is not the case with antes. It is required that antes be posted prior to the initial deal, by every player who wishes to be dealt in. This money is used to seed the pot, but that is it. Players receive no future credit for paying their antes.
In addition to their role of seeding the pot in Stud cash games, antes are often used in addition to blinds, in the later stages of non-stud tournaments. Typically, in the early rounds of these tournaments, antes are not used. They are introduced in the later stages, with the purpose of tweaking the action. Let me explain.
Tournaments are, among other things, an exercise in maximizing profit while moderating risk. If you are reckless and assume too much risk in tournament play, you will not have much success in the long run. However, if you are too conservative, and don’t take enough risks, you will not maximize profit, and may have a very hard time acquiring chips. This means that players will try to find the right level of risk in the middle ground, by sometimes taking risk when it is appropriate and sometimes backing off.
One major factor affecting the correct level of risk you should assume is the amount of time you have to find a highly advantageous spot. This is dictated by the cost per round (in blinds and/or antes) and its ratio to the size of your stack. For example, a player whose stack size is 25 times the cost per round will have substantially more time to make a hand than a player with only 5 times the cost per round. Obviously, the player with only 5 times the cost per round has much less time to find a good spot, and therefore must assume more risk to be effective. So the cost per round, and its proportional relationship to your stack size, has a profound effect on your incentive to take risk. This brings us to the main reason antes are often added in addition to blinds in the later stages of non-stud tournaments.
In the early stages of these tournaments, there are only blinds. Players can calculate their cost per round by simply adding up their blind commitments. These commitments start out relatively small compared to the amount of starting chips. Since the cost per round is small compared to stack size at this point, there is little incentive to take unnecessary risk. The incentive here is to play tight and wait for a dominant situation where you can increase stack size without a lot of risk. This dynamic holds as long as the cost per round does not threaten your stack. It can also make for not much action from the field in the later rounds of the tournament. Additionally, as the money positions approach, play gets even tighter Antes are used as a way to loosen things up.
Consider the impact of introducing antes in addition to blinds in the later rounds of a non-stud tournament. Prior to the addition of antes, cost per round was calculated by adding up your blind commitments, which would typically be paid in two installments (small blind and big blind). When the antes are added, the costs per round increase significantly. All players must now pay the two installments, plus an additional ante on every hand. This means that not only is your stack eroded more quickly and more frequently, but there is also more money in every pot before the flop. This increases the incentive to take risk in two major ways. First, your stack is being eroded faster, leaving you less time to find a dominant spot. This makes building your stack a more pressing task. Second, including antes now makes every pot larger, and a bigger reward justifies taking on more risk. It becomes correct to “go for” more pots.
So antes can be used in the later stages of non-stud tournaments to “correct” a natural bottleneck in the action. They incentivize more aggressive play over tight play. Players are aware of this and consciously change their style of play once the antes have been added. This is called “switching gears.”
Usage: Ante-Up, Steal the Antes, Blinds and Antes
Previous Poker Term: Angle
Next Poker Term: Backdoor(redirected from antes)
Also found in: Dictionary, Thesaurus, Medical, Legal, Encyclopedia.
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An ante (pronounced 'AN-tee') is a small forced bet made by all players in a poker game, prior to the initial deal. This is different than a blind, which does not apply to all players. The word ante comes from the Latin 'ante' meaning 'before'. The bet is being done before the deal, hence the name. Posted on September 7, 2013 by Poker Dictionary An amount asked of players at the start of a betting round regardless of whether they are taking part in that round or not. Some poker tournaments have antes in the later stages to speed up the progress of the tournament, and you can also find cash games with antes, but not all games require antes.
– A small amount of money used to seed the pot. Often used in the late stages of tournament play, or in ring games where blinds are not present.Used primarily in Stud games, antes are used as a way to seed the pot. Antes and blinds function differently, but both have the common purpose of seeding the pot prior to the initial dealing of the hand. In most ring games, blinds are used in flop and draw games, while antes are commonly used in stud games.
Let’s take a moment to describe the difference between blind and antes. Blinds are used instead of antes for virtually all flop and draw games, however there are situations in these games (especially in tournaments) where antes may be used in addition to blinds. Blinds are forced (mandatory) bets made before the cards are dealt. Blind positions and amounts are inflexible and are determined by the rules of the game and/or the house rules. They are usually posted to the immediate left of the dealer button, and are sometimes posted on the button as well. Technically, if stipulated by the rules, blinds could be posted from anywhere.
A blind is really a blind call (or partial call). This means that when you post a blind prior to the initial deal, the amount you have posted is credited toward the amount required to call, after the initial deal. So blinds seed the pot prior to the initial deal, and receive credit towards a call afterwards. This is not the case with antes. It is required that antes be posted prior to the initial deal, by every player who wishes to be dealt in. This money is used to seed the pot, but that is it. Players receive no future credit for paying their antes.
In addition to their role of seeding the pot in Stud cash games, antes are often used in addition to blinds, in the later stages of non-stud tournaments. Typically, in the early rounds of these tournaments, antes are not used. They are introduced in the later stages, with the purpose of tweaking the action. Let me explain.
Tournaments are, among other things, an exercise in maximizing profit while moderating risk. If you are reckless and assume too much risk in tournament play, you will not have much success in the long run. However, if you are too conservative, and don’t take enough risks, you will not maximize profit, and may have a very hard time acquiring chips. This means that players will try to find the right level of risk in the middle ground, by sometimes taking risk when it is appropriate and sometimes backing off.
One major factor affecting the correct level of risk you should assume is the amount of time you have to find a highly advantageous spot. This is dictated by the cost per round (in blinds and/or antes) and its ratio to the size of your stack. For example, a player whose stack size is 25 times the cost per round will have substantially more time to make a hand than a player with only 5 times the cost per round. Obviously, the player with only 5 times the cost per round has much less time to find a good spot, and therefore must assume more risk to be effective. So the cost per round, and its proportional relationship to your stack size, has a profound effect on your incentive to take risk. This brings us to the main reason antes are often added in addition to blinds in the later stages of non-stud tournaments.
In the early stages of these tournaments, there are only blinds. Players can calculate their cost per round by simply adding up their blind commitments. These commitments start out relatively small compared to the amount of starting chips. Since the cost per round is small compared to stack size at this point, there is little incentive to take unnecessary risk. The incentive here is to play tight and wait for a dominant situation where you can increase stack size without a lot of risk. This dynamic holds as long as the cost per round does not threaten your stack. It can also make for not much action from the field in the later rounds of the tournament. Additionally, as the money positions approach, play gets even tighter Antes are used as a way to loosen things up.
Consider the impact of introducing antes in addition to blinds in the later rounds of a non-stud tournament. Prior to the addition of antes, cost per round was calculated by adding up your blind commitments, which would typically be paid in two installments (small blind and big blind). When the antes are added, the costs per round increase significantly. All players must now pay the two installments, plus an additional ante on every hand. This means that not only is your stack eroded more quickly and more frequently, but there is also more money in every pot before the flop. This increases the incentive to take risk in two major ways. First, your stack is being eroded faster, leaving you less time to find a dominant spot. This makes building your stack a more pressing task. Second, including antes now makes every pot larger, and a bigger reward justifies taking on more risk. It becomes correct to “go for” more pots.
So antes can be used in the later stages of non-stud tournaments to “correct” a natural bottleneck in the action. They incentivize more aggressive play over tight play. Players are aware of this and consciously change their style of play once the antes have been added. This is called “switching gears.”
Usage: Ante-Up, Steal the Antes, Blinds and Antes
Previous Poker Term: Angle
Next Poker Term: Backdoor(redirected from antes)
Also found in: Dictionary, Thesaurus, Medical, Legal, Encyclopedia.
ante in
1. To pay the necessary fee to enter into some competitive activity, especially a card game (usually poker). A less common variant of 'ante up.' I like to play poker with my buddies, but I don't like having to ante in each time when I know I'm going to lose.Everyone ante in so we can start playing already!
2. To pay the money one owes for something. I can't believe we have to ante in $250 for this trip.The company said it was no longer willing to ante in such a large sum for returns that were ultimately not guaranteed.
ante up
1. Said as an imperative at the start of a round of poker when each player contributes money to the total that the winner will receive. Ante up, so we can start playing.
2. To pay money for something, often begrudgingly. I can't believe we have to ante up $25 a piece just to see a movie.You lost the bet, so ante up!
3. To fund a particular project or goal. So many donors anted up for our fundraiser that we can repair the school's heating system and the gymnasium.
penny ante
Poker Ante Definition
Having little or no significance or worth. They seem to think this penny ante increase to the minimum wage is some kind of massive victory that will change everyone's lives for the better.My wife always comes back from our vacations with a bag full of penny ante trinkets that get thrown out a year later.
raise the ante
To increase the level of something, often one related to money. I'm going to raise the ante and threaten them a little so that they finally pay up.Sellers have raised the ante in this area so much that first-time buyers can no longer afford it.
up the ante
1. To raise the stakes in a betting game. I didn't planning on betting so much until Jason upped the ante on us.
2. To increase the level of something, often one related to money. I'm just going to threaten them a little and up the ante so that they finally pay up.Sellers have upped the ante in this area so much that first-time buyers can no longer afford it.
Farlex Dictionary of Idioms. © 2015 Farlex, Inc, all rights reserved.
up the ante
and raise the ante1.Fig. to raise the opening stakes in a betting game. Pete upped the ante on that the poker game to $100 per hand.Don't up the ante any more. You're betting far too much money already.
2.Fig. to increase a price. (Fig. on {2}.) Sensing how keen the people looking at the house were, Jerry upped the ante another $5,000.'Don't try to up the ante on us,' said the man, 'We know what the asking price is.'
McGraw-Hill Dictionary of American Idioms and Phrasal Verbs. © 2002 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.
ante up
Pay what is due, contribute; by extension, do one's share. For example, The trustees were asked to ante up $10,000 each for the new scholarship, or Tired of watching Joe sit around while they cleaned up, the roommates told him to ante up or move out . This expression comes from poker and other betting games, where to ante signifies making a bet or contribution to the pot before the cards are dealt. It was being used more loosely by the mid-1800s. Also see raise the ante.
raise the ante
Increase the price or cost of something, as in We'd hoped to invest in some land, but they've raised the ante and now we can't afford it . This term alludes to the ante or stakes of gambling. [Slang; late 1800s]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer. Copyright © 2003, 1997 by The Christine Ammer 1992 Trust. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
up the ante
1. In an argument or contest, if you up the ante, you increase the demands that you are making or the risks that you are taking. Note: In card games such as poker, the ante is the amount of money which each player must place on the table before the game begins. The secretary of state last night upped the ante by refusing to accept the election results.Whenever they reached their goal, they upped the ante, setting increasingly complex challenges for themselves. Note: You can also say that you raise the ante. These judges have raised the ante by challenging the authority of the Chief Justice.
2. If you are gambling or investing money in something and you up the ante, you increase the amount of money you are offering. Note: In card games such as poker, the ante is the amount of money which each player must place on the table before the game begins. Its network television division upped the ante by paying an estimated $2 million a year for an overall deal. Note: You can also say that you raise the ante. My defeat came when I was unable to persuade my backer to raise the ante.
Collins COBUILD Idioms Dictionary, 3rd ed. © HarperCollins Publishers 2012
up (or raise) the ante
increase what is at stake or under discussion, especially in a conflict or dispute.Ante comes from Latin, in which it means ‘before’. As an English noun it was originally (in the early 19th century) a term in poker and similar gambling games, meaning ‘a stake put up by a player before drawing cards’.
1998New Scientist This report ups the ante on the pace at which these cases need to be identified and treated.
Farlex Partner Idioms Dictionary © Farlex 2017
raise/up the ˈante
increase the level of something, especially demands or sums of money: His ex-wife has upped the ante in her alimony suit against him.The ante is the amount of money that players bet in a card game such as poker.
Farlex Partner Idioms Dictionary © Farlex 2017
ante up
v.1. To put some amount into the pool at the beginning of a round in poker or a similar card game: Everyone should ante up $1 to start the game. It may be your last dollar, but you'll have to ante it up! We must ante up before the cards are dealt.
2. To provide some funds or capital: The fundraisers anted up $10,000 for the charity.
3. To pay some amount of money, often reluctantly: Travelers are forced to ante up $5 for a candy bar at the airport. Can you imagine having to ante money up to use the restroom?
The American Heritage® Dictionary of Phrasal Verbs. Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
ante
(ˈænti)1. n. an amount of money that must be contributed before playing certain card games such as poker. (see also penny-ante.) That’s a pretty high ante. Forget it!
2. n. the charge or cost. What’s the ante for a used 1985 four-door?
penny-ante
mod. trivial; cheap. (see also ante.) I’m sick of this penny-ante stuff. Let’s get serious.
McGraw-Hill's Dictionary of American Slang and Colloquial Expressions Copyright © 2006 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.
ante up, to
To pay what is due, to contribute one’s share. This phrase comes from poker and other gambling games, where to ante means making a contribution to the pot before the cards are dealt. It was used more loosely starting in the mid-nineteenth century. On June 17, 2010, a New York Times editorial bore the headline, “BP Begins to Ante Up,” meaning British Petroleum, the company responsible for the enormous Gulf of Mexico oil spill, was beginning to offer retribution. Also see raise the ante.
penny-ante game, a
Poker Antes Definition En
A low-level enterprise. This term comes from poker, where ante, Latin for “before,” signifies the chips placed on the table before betting begins. In a penny-ante game, a chip is worth only one cent, or a penny, the lowest possible stake. Like many other poker terms, by the mid-1800s this one was transferred to unrelated enterprises to signify “small-time” or “unimportant.” Thus, the Negro Digest (August 1946) stated, “Compared to the man Bilbo, 63-year-old John Ruskin is strictly penny ante and colorless,” and M. Maguire in Scratchproof (1976), “I’m not a penny-ante hood.”
raise the ante, to
Also, to up the ante. To increase the price or cost of something in order to achieve a better result. Dating from the late 1800s, the term alludes to the stakes of gambling, where the ante means the stake each player must put into the pool. It has long been used figuratively, as in “They are raising the ante in what it takes to become a certified analyst.”
Poker Antes Definition Dictionary
The Dictionary of Clichés by Christine Ammer Copyright © 2013 by Christine Ammer
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