Every Binding Action, Showdown Priority, Side Pot Calculation, And Cardroom Procedure Governed By The Poker Tournament Directors Association (TDA) And Robert's Rules Of Poker (RROP). Built For Players, Dealers, And Tournament Floor Supervisors Seeking Instant, Unambiguous Rulings.
| # | Official Rule & Floor Topic | Category | TDA / RROP Authority | Core Floor Ruling Summary |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Showdown Order: Who Shows First On The River | Showdown & Pot Award | TDA Rule 16 & Rule 17 / RROP Section 3 | At Showdown, The Last Aggressor On The Final Betting Street Must Table All Hole Cards First; If The Final Street Checks Around, Showdown Proceeds Clockwise Starting From The First Active Player Left Of The Dealer Button. |
| 2 | Verbal Declarations & Binding Action In Poker | Betting & Action | TDA Rule 40 & Rule 42 / RROP Section 14 | Verbal Declarations In Turn Are 100% Binding And Take Precedence Over Physical Chip Movements When A Clear Contradiction Occurs, Provided The Declaration Was Made In Turn. |
| 3 | String Bets & The Single Oversized Chip Rule | Betting & Action | TDA Rule 41 & Rule 45 / RROP Section 14 | Throwing A Single Oversized Chip Into The Pot Facing A Bet Without Saying "Raise" Is Always Ruled A Call; Moving Multiple Trips Of Chips Forward Without A Prior Verbal Declaration Is A Prohibited String Bet. |
| 4 | The Odd Chip Rule In Split & Multi-Board Pots | Showdown & Pot Award | TDA Rule 20 / RROP Section 3 Rule 10 | When A Split Pot Cannot Be Divided Evenly Using The Smallest Denomination Chip In Play, The Indivisible Odd Chip Is Awarded By Game Type: Worst Position Left Of The Button In Flop Games, High Card By Suit In Stud, And High Hand In Hi-Lo. |
| 5 | Side Pot Construction & All-In Protection Rules | Showdown & Pot Award | TDA Rule 16, Rule 19 & Rule 49 / RROP Section 3 | Under Table Stakes Rules, An All-In Player Can Only Win From Each Opponent An Amount Equal To Their Own Total Chip Commitment, With Excess Bets Segregated Into Sequential Side Pots. |
| 6 | Misdeals, Boxed Cards & Flashed Card Rules | Tournament TDA | TDA Rule 34, Rule 35 & Rule 36 / RROP Section 4 | Exposing Either Of The First Two Cards Dealt (Small Blind Or Big Blind First Card) Or Exposing Two Total Cards During The Deal Causes An Immediate Misdeal; A Single Exposed Later Hole Card Is Replaced After The Deal. |
| 7 | Dead Hands, Fouled Decks & Unprotected Hands | Tournament TDA | TDA Rule 36, Rule 63 & Rule 65 / RROP Section 3 | Players Are Strictly Responsible For Protecting Their Own Hole Cards; An Unprotected Hand Swept Into The Muck By The Dealer Or Contacted By A Discarded Hand Is Dead Unless Identifiable Beyond Doubt. |
| 8 | Minimum Raise & Incomplete All-In Reopen Rules | Betting & Action | TDA Rule 43 & Rule 47 / RROP Section 14 | A Legal Minimum Raise Must Equal At Least The Size Of The Largest Previous Bet Or Raise Increment On The Current Street; An All-In Wager Of Less Than A Full Raise Does Not Reopen Betting For Players Who Have Already Acted. |
| 9 | Live Poker Straddle Rules: UTG, Button & Mississippi | Cash Game Procedures | RROP Section 5 / Live Cardroom House Rules | A Straddle Is A Voluntary Blind Raise Posted Before Hole Cards Are Dealt (Typically 2x The Big Blind) That Purchases Last Action Preflop And Sets The Effective Third Blind For Minimum Raise Calculations. |
| 10 | Big Blind Ante (BBA) Placement & Short-Stack Ante Rules | Tournament TDA | TDA Rule 19 & Recommended Procedure RP-13 | In Big Blind Ante (BBA) Tournaments, The Single Player In The Big Blind Posts Both The Big Blind And The Entire Table Ante; When All-In With Fewer Chips Than Both, The Big Blind Is Satisfied First under TDA Rules. |
| 11 | One Player To A Hand & Show One Show All Rules | Tournament TDA | TDA Rule 68, Rule 69 & Rule 70 / RROP Section 15 | Players Must Play Every Hand Independently Without Outside Advice, May Never Reveal Live Or Folded Hole Cards While Action Remains Pending, And Showing Cards To One Player Requires Showing The Entire Table. |
| 12 | Substantial Action & The TDA First-Card Rule | Tournament TDA | TDA Rule 32 & Rule 36 / RROP Section 4 | A Hand Officially Begins When The First Riffle Of The Shuffle Starts Or The First Card Leaves The Deck; Once Substantial Action Occurs (2 Actions With Chips Or 3 Total Actions), A Misdeal Cannot Be Called. |
| 13 | Tournament Chip Race & Color-Up Procedures | Tournament TDA | TDA Rule 23 / RROP Tournament Rule 15 | When Small-Denomination Chips Are Removed During A Color-Up Break, Odd Remainder Chips Are Raced Off Using One Face-Up Card Per Odd Chip Starting At Seat 1; A PlayerCan Win At Most One Chip And Can Never Be Raced Out Of The Tournament. |
| 14 | Tournament Table Balancing & Breaking Order Rules | Tournament TDA | TDA Rule 11 / RROP Tournament Section | In Flop Tournaments, Table Balancing Moves The Player Who Will Be Next To Post The Big Blind From The Fullest Table To The Worst Position (Closest To The Big Blind) At The Shortest Table. |
| 15 | Hand-For-Hand Money Bubble Procedures | Tournament TDA | TDA Rule 18 & Rule 59 / RROP Tournament Section | On The Money Bubble, All Tables Deal One Synchronized Hand At A Time And Wait For Every Table To Finish; Players Eliminated On The Same Synchronized Hand At Different Tables Split The Tied Payouts Regardless Of Starting Stack Size. |
| 16 | Tournament Shot Clocks, Calling The Clock & Time Banks | Tournament TDA | TDA Rule 58 / Recommended Procedure RP-14 | Once Reasonable Thinking Time Has Passed, Any Player At The Table May Call The Clock, Giving The Acting Player 25 Seconds Plus A 5-Second Verbal Countdown Before Their Hand Is Declared Dead (Or Checked If Facing No Bet). |
| 17 | Missed Blinds, Posting Dead & Buying The Button | Cash Game Procedures | RROP Section 5 / Live Cardroom Procedures | In Live Cash Games, A Returning Player Who Missed Their Blinds Must Either Wait For The Big Blind Seat, Post Both Blinds (Big Blind Live + Small Blind Dead), Or Buy The Button By Posting Both Blinds From The Cutoff Seat. |
| 18 | Run It Twice (RIT) & Cash Game All-In Agreements | Cash Game Procedures | RROP Section 16 / Private Club & Cardroom Rules | Run It Twice (RIT) Allows All Players Remaining In An All-In Cash Game Pot To Agree Before The Next Card Is Dealt To Deal Two Separate Board Runouts, Splitting The Total Pot 50/50 Between Both Boards Without Changing Expected Value (EV). |
| 19 | Single & Double-Board Bomb Pot Rules | Variant Specific | Live Cardroom & Club Arena Bomb Pot Standard | In A Bomb Pot, Every Seated Player Posts An Agreed Ante (Typically 2BB To 5BB) With Zero Preflop Betting And Deals Straight To The Flop (Or Two Simultaneous Flops), With Half The Pot Awarded To Each Board. |
| 20 | Full Kill & Half-Kill Pot Rules In Limit & Omaha | Variant Specific | RROP Section 11: Kill Pots | A Kill Button Triggers An Automatic Blind And Betting Limit Escalation (1.5x For Half-Kill Or 2x For Full Kill) On The Following Hand Whenever A Player Wins Two Consecutive Pots Or Scoops A Qualifying Pot Size. |
| 21 | Rabbit Hunting Rules In Live & Online Poker | Cash Game Procedures | TDA Rule 69B / Live Cardroom Etiquette | Rabbit Hunting - Dealing Out Remaining Unseen Community Cards After A Hand Ends Without A Showdown - Is Strictly Prohibited In All TDA Tournaments And Most Live Cardrooms Unless Explicitly Enabled As An Online Feature. |
| 22 | Check-Raising & Binding Out-Of-Turn Action Rules | Betting & Action | TDA Rule 53 / RROP Section 3 & Section 14 | Check-Raising Is 100% Legal In All Standard Poker Formats; Under TDA Rule 53, Any Action Taken Out Of Turn Is Binding If The Action To That Player Does Not Change Before Their Real Turn Arrives. |
| 23 | Table Stakes, Chip Visibility & Going South Rules | Cash Game Procedures | TDA Rule 25 / RROP Section 3: Table Stakes | All Chips On The Table Must Remain Clearly Visible With Highest-Denomination Chips In Front Or On Top; Removing Chips From Play ("Going South" Or "Ratholing") Or Adding Chips Mid-Hand Is Strictly Prohibited. |
| 24 | Final Table Redraw & Official ICM Chop Agreements | Tournament TDA | TDA Rule 12 & Rule 24 / RROP Tournament Section | Tournaments Perform A Complete Random Seat And Button Redraw When Reaching The Final Table; Official Final Table Prize Pool Chops Require 100% Unanimous Player Agreement Under Floor Supervision. |
| 25 | Tournament Late Registration, Rebuys & Re-Entry Rules | Tournament TDA | TDA Rule 8, Rule 9 & Rule 10 / RROP Tournament Section | Late Registrants And Re-Entries Receive A Full Starting Stack And Are Seated Randomly Like New Players; Once The Late Registration Clock Expires, Any Player Already In Line Or Eliminated Before The Bell Has Final Eligibility. |
| 26 | Knockout Bounty & Mystery Bounty Token Custody Rules | Tournament TDA | TDA Recommended Procedure RP-16 / Bounty Custody Rules | A Player Wins An Opponent's Bounty Token Only By Winning The Exact Pot (Main Or Exterior Side Pot) That Eliminates That Player's Final Tournament Chip; Tied Eliminating Hands Split Bounties Equally. |
| 27 | Pot-Limit Maximum Bet Calculation & Pre-Counting Rules | Variant Specific | TDA Rule 43 & Rule 51 / RROP Section 14: Pot-Limit | In Pot-Limit Games (PLO), Any Player In Turn May Ask The Dealer For An Exact Pot Count; The Maximum Pot Raise Equals 3 Times The Facing Bet Plus All Other Chips In The Center Pot And Previous Trail Bets. |
| 28 | Hi-Lo Split 8-Or-Better Qualifier & Counterfeit Rules | Variant Specific | RROP Section 9 & Section 10: High-Low Split Games | In 8-Or-Better Hi-Lo Games (PLO8 And Stud8), The Low Hand Requires Five Unpaired Cards Ranked 8 Or Lower (With Aces Low And Straights/Flushes Ignored For Low); If No Hand Qualifies For Low, The High Hand Scoops 100% Of The Pot. |
| 29 | Short Deck (6+ Hold'em) Button Blind & Flush Ranking Rules | Variant Specific | Short Deck 6+ Tournament & Cash Game Standard | Short Deck (6+ Hold'em) Removes All 2s, 3s, 4s, And 5s To Play With A 36-Card Deck Where Aces Play Both High And As A 5 (Making A-6-7-8-9 The Low Straight) And A Flush Beats A Full House. |
| 30 | Disputed Pots, Floor Rulings & Camera Review Rules | Showdown & Pot Award | TDA Rule 1, Rule 12 & Rule 22 / RROP Section 1 | Cards Speak For Themselves Once Properly Tabled Face Up, And Any Right To Dispute A Pot Calculation Or Hand Reading Ends The Instant The Next Hand Officially Begins. |
At Showdown, The Last Aggressor On The Final Betting Street Must Table All Hole Cards First; If The Final Street Checks Around, Showdown Proceeds Clockwise Starting From The First Active Player Left Of The Dealer Button.
When A Split Pot Cannot Be Divided Evenly Using The Smallest Denomination Chip In Play, The Indivisible Odd Chip Is Awarded By Game Type: Worst Position Left Of The Button In Flop Games, High Card By Suit In Stud, And High Hand In Hi-Lo.
Under Table Stakes Rules, An All-In Player Can Only Win From Each Opponent An Amount Equal To Their Own Total Chip Commitment, With Excess Bets Segregated Into Sequential Side Pots.
Cards Speak For Themselves Once Properly Tabled Face Up, And Any Right To Dispute A Pot Calculation Or Hand Reading Ends The Instant The Next Hand Officially Begins.
Verbal Declarations In Turn Are 100% Binding And Take Precedence Over Physical Chip Movements When A Clear Contradiction Occurs, Provided The Declaration Was Made In Turn.
Throwing A Single Oversized Chip Into The Pot Facing A Bet Without Saying "Raise" Is Always Ruled A Call; Moving Multiple Trips Of Chips Forward Without A Prior Verbal Declaration Is A Prohibited String Bet.
A Legal Minimum Raise Must Equal At Least The Size Of The Largest Previous Bet Or Raise Increment On The Current Street; An All-In Wager Of Less Than A Full Raise Does Not Reopen Betting For Players Who Have Already Acted.
Check-Raising Is 100% Legal In All Standard Poker Formats; Under TDA Rule 53, Any Action Taken Out Of Turn Is Binding If The Action To That Player Does Not Change Before Their Real Turn Arrives.
Exposing Either Of The First Two Cards Dealt (Small Blind Or Big Blind First Card) Or Exposing Two Total Cards During The Deal Causes An Immediate Misdeal; A Single Exposed Later Hole Card Is Replaced After The Deal.
Players Are Strictly Responsible For Protecting Their Own Hole Cards; An Unprotected Hand Swept Into The Muck By The Dealer Or Contacted By A Discarded Hand Is Dead Unless Identifiable Beyond Doubt.
In Big Blind Ante (BBA) Tournaments, The Single Player In The Big Blind Posts Both The Big Blind And The Entire Table Ante; When All-In With Fewer Chips Than Both, The Big Blind Is Satisfied First under TDA Rules.
Players Must Play Every Hand Independently Without Outside Advice, May Never Reveal Live Or Folded Hole Cards While Action Remains Pending, And Showing Cards To One Player Requires Showing The Entire Table.
A Hand Officially Begins When The First Riffle Of The Shuffle Starts Or The First Card Leaves The Deck; Once Substantial Action Occurs (2 Actions With Chips Or 3 Total Actions), A Misdeal Cannot Be Called.
When Small-Denomination Chips Are Removed During A Color-Up Break, Odd Remainder Chips Are Raced Off Using One Face-Up Card Per Odd Chip Starting At Seat 1; A PlayerCan Win At Most One Chip And Can Never Be Raced Out Of The Tournament.
In Flop Tournaments, Table Balancing Moves The Player Who Will Be Next To Post The Big Blind From The Fullest Table To The Worst Position (Closest To The Big Blind) At The Shortest Table.
On The Money Bubble, All Tables Deal One Synchronized Hand At A Time And Wait For Every Table To Finish; Players Eliminated On The Same Synchronized Hand At Different Tables Split The Tied Payouts Regardless Of Starting Stack Size.
Once Reasonable Thinking Time Has Passed, Any Player At The Table May Call The Clock, Giving The Acting Player 25 Seconds Plus A 5-Second Verbal Countdown Before Their Hand Is Declared Dead (Or Checked If Facing No Bet).
Tournaments Perform A Complete Random Seat And Button Redraw When Reaching The Final Table; Official Final Table Prize Pool Chops Require 100% Unanimous Player Agreement Under Floor Supervision.
Late Registrants And Re-Entries Receive A Full Starting Stack And Are Seated Randomly Like New Players; Once The Late Registration Clock Expires, Any Player Already In Line Or Eliminated Before The Bell Has Final Eligibility.
A Player Wins An Opponent's Bounty Token Only By Winning The Exact Pot (Main Or Exterior Side Pot) That Eliminates That Player's Final Tournament Chip; Tied Eliminating Hands Split Bounties Equally.
A Straddle Is A Voluntary Blind Raise Posted Before Hole Cards Are Dealt (Typically 2x The Big Blind) That Purchases Last Action Preflop And Sets The Effective Third Blind For Minimum Raise Calculations.
In Live Cash Games, A Returning Player Who Missed Their Blinds Must Either Wait For The Big Blind Seat, Post Both Blinds (Big Blind Live + Small Blind Dead), Or Buy The Button By Posting Both Blinds From The Cutoff Seat.
Run It Twice (RIT) Allows All Players Remaining In An All-In Cash Game Pot To Agree Before The Next Card Is Dealt To Deal Two Separate Board Runouts, Splitting The Total Pot 50/50 Between Both Boards Without Changing Expected Value (EV).
Rabbit Hunting - Dealing Out Remaining Unseen Community Cards After A Hand Ends Without A Showdown - Is Strictly Prohibited In All TDA Tournaments And Most Live Cardrooms Unless Explicitly Enabled As An Online Feature.
All Chips On The Table Must Remain Clearly Visible With Highest-Denomination Chips In Front Or On Top; Removing Chips From Play ("Going South" Or "Ratholing") Or Adding Chips Mid-Hand Is Strictly Prohibited.
In A Bomb Pot, Every Seated Player Posts An Agreed Ante (Typically 2BB To 5BB) With Zero Preflop Betting And Deals Straight To The Flop (Or Two Simultaneous Flops), With Half The Pot Awarded To Each Board.
A Kill Button Triggers An Automatic Blind And Betting Limit Escalation (1.5x For Half-Kill Or 2x For Full Kill) On The Following Hand Whenever A Player Wins Two Consecutive Pots Or Scoops A Qualifying Pot Size.
In Pot-Limit Games (PLO), Any Player In Turn May Ask The Dealer For An Exact Pot Count; The Maximum Pot Raise Equals 3 Times The Facing Bet Plus All Other Chips In The Center Pot And Previous Trail Bets.
In 8-Or-Better Hi-Lo Games (PLO8 And Stud8), The Low Hand Requires Five Unpaired Cards Ranked 8 Or Lower (With Aces Low And Straights/Flushes Ignored For Low); If No Hand Qualifies For Low, The High Hand Scoops 100% Of The Pot.
Short Deck (6+ Hold'em) Removes All 2s, 3s, 4s, And 5s To Play With A 36-Card Deck Where Aces Play Both High And As A 5 (Making A-6-7-8-9 The Low Straight) And A Flush Beats A Full House.
Floor Rulings Work Hand-In-Hand With Exact Combinatorial Math. Pair These Official Rules With Our Browser-Based Calculators And Hand Ranking Matrices:
The Poker Tournament Directors Association (TDA) Rules Standardize Multi-Table Tournament Play Worldwide (Covering Shot Clocks, Big Blind Antes, Hand-For-Hand Bubbles, And Color-Ups), Whereas Robert's Rules Of Poker (RROP) Serves As The Foundational Rulebook For Live Cash Games, Split-Pot Variants, Kill Pots, And Cardroom Table Stakes Procedures.
Yes. Under Both TDA Rule 40 And Robert's Rules Of Poker, Any Clear Verbal Statement Made In Turn ("Call", "Raise", "All-In", "Fold") Is 100% Binding And Takes Precedence Over Contradictory Physical Chip Movements.
Under The Universal Single Oversized Chip Rule (TDA Rule 44), Silently Tossing A Single Chip Larger Than The Facing Bet Into The Pot Is Always Ruled A Call Unless You Verbally Declare "Raise" Before The Chip Crosses The Betting Line.
On Any Hand That Reaches Showdown After River Betting, The Last Aggressive Player (Who Made The Final Bet Or Raise On The River) Must Table Their Hand First. If The River Checks Around With Zero Betting, Showdown Starts With The First Active Player To The Left Of The Dealer Button.
Journalists, Bloggers, Forum Authors, And Academic Researchers May Freely Cite This Dataset Under Creative Commons CC-BY 4.0 With Canonical Attribution To Smarter.Poker:
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[Official Poker Rules & Tournament TDA Floor Rulings Encyclopedia (30 TDA & RROP Rulings)](https://smarter.poker/rules)
[url=https://smarter.poker/rules]Official Poker Rules & Tournament TDA Floor Rulings Encyclopedia (30 TDA & RROP Rulings)[/url]
{{cite web |title=Official Poker Rules & Tournament TDA Floor Rulings Encyclopedia |url=https://smarter.poker/rules |website=Smarter.Poker |publisher=Smarter Software Inc. |year=2026 |access-date=2026-11-09}}According to Official Poker Rules & Tournament TDA Floor Rulings Encyclopedia published by Smarter.Poker (https://smarter.poker/rules), Authoritative reference to 30 official Robert's Rules of Poker and Poker TDA floor rulings published by Smarter.Poker.
@techreport{official_poker_rules_encyclopedia_2026,
title = {Official Poker Rules & Tournament TDA Floor Rulings Encyclopedia},
author = {{Smarter.Poker Research Division}},
institution = {Smarter.Poker},
year = {2026},
url = {https://smarter.poker/rules}
}Smarter.Poker Is A Free-To-Play Poker Training, Rules Reference, And Social Community Platform. 18+. Club Chips And Diamonds Have No Cash Value.