About CardLore
Last reviewed · CardLore editorial
CardLore is a reference site about card games. It exists because the rules of most card games are written either as a dense legal summary or as a strategy lecture aimed at people who already play, and neither is much use to somebody who has just been handed thirteen cards and asked to bid.
Every page here answers the same questions in the same order: what you are trying to do, how a hand is played from the first card to the last, which rules catch people out, and what the words mean.
What this site covers
- Poker variants — Texas Hold’em, Pot-Limit Omaha, Seven-Card Stud and Five-Card Draw.
- Classic card games — Hearts, Spades and Gin Rummy.
- One house game — blackjack, included because it is the card game most readers meet first in a casino.
- Shared table topics — hand rankings, betting, position, odds, etiquette and bankroll.
- A Card Game Glossary defining every term used across the site.
What this site does not do
CardLore does not operate, host, advertise or recommend any form of play for money. There are no affiliate links to card rooms, no bonus offers, no reviews of gambling operators and no systems for sale. If a page describes money, it is describing how a bet works mechanically, not suggesting you place one.
Nor does the site publish strategy charts, solver output or betting advice. The nearest it comes is explaining the arithmetic behind a decision, in Pot Odds and Outs, because that arithmetic is part of understanding the rules rather than a method for winning.
Who it is written for
Three readers in particular. The first has been invited to a game this weekend and does not want to be the person who holds everything up. The second plays regularly but has never been certain whether a flush beats a full house, or what happens when two players make the same hand. The third is settling an argument about a rule.
For all three, the pages are written to be read in full once and then used as reference afterwards, which is why every guide has the same section order and an index at the top.
Corrections
Card rules vary by room and by household, and a page that states one version as universal is wrong even when the version it gives is common. If something here does not match the way the game is dealt where you play, that is worth knowing — see How We Write These Guides for how pages are checked and corrected.
Common questions
Is CardLore a gambling site?
No. It explains rules. It does not take bets, host games, sell systems or carry advertising for operators.
Can I use these pages to settle a rules argument?
For the core rules, yes. Where a rule commonly varies, the page says so rather than pretending there is one answer, which is usually the honest resolution to the argument.
Will more games be added?
The intention is depth before breadth: the existing guides are extended and corrected before new games are added.