Glossary of Poker Terms - L

L

lag

A "loose aggressive" style of play in which a player plays a lot of starting hands and makes many small raises in hopes of out-playing his opponents.

last to act

A player is last to act if all players between the player and the button have folded.

laydown

A tough choice to fold a good hand in anticipation of superior opposition.

lead

The player who makes the last bet or raise in a round of betting is said to have the lead at the start of the next round. Can also be used as a verb meaning to bet out into the pot, "to lead into the pot."

level

Used in tournament play to refer to the size of the blinds that are periodically increased. For example, in the first level the small blind / big blind may be $50 / $100, in the second level the blinds may be $100 / $200.

leg-up, leg-up button

The button used to signify who has won the previous hand in a kill game. Winning a pot in a "2 consecutive pots" kill game with the leg-up button in front of you, results in a kill.

light

A hand that is not likely to be best. Usually used as an action descriptor; "call light", "3-bet light". See semi-bluff.

limit

1. The minimum or maximum amount of a bet.
2. See fixed limit.

limp, limp in

To enter a pot by simply calling the bet to them instead of raising, called so because a player with a marginal hand may be willing to pay the minimum to see more cards, but would likely fold if the bet increased further.

limp-reraise

A reraise from a player that previously limped in the same betting round. I decided to limp-reraise with my pocket eights to isolate the all-in player. Also backraise.

live bet

A bet posted by a player under conditions that give him the option to raise even if no other player raises first; typically because it was posted as a blind or straddle, or to enter a new game.

live cards

In stud poker games, cards that will improve your hand that have not been seen among anyone's upcards, and are therefore presumably still available. In games such as Texas hold 'em, a player's hand is said to contain "live" cards if matching either of them on the board would give that player the lead over his opponent. Typically refers to a hand that is weak, but not dominated.

live hand

A hand still eligible to win the pot; one with the correct number of cards that has not been mucked or otherwise invalidated.

live game

A game with a lot of action, usually including many unskilled players, especially maniacs. See also live poker, below.

live poker

A retronym for poker played with at a table with cards, as opposed to video poker or online poker.

lock up

To "lock up" a seat in a cash game means to place a poker chip, player's card, or other personal effect on the table in front of the seat, to signify that the seat is occupied even though the player may not be present.

loose

To play more - and thus weaker - hands than the average for the game or for the player normally. See loose/tight play. Compare to "tight", "aggressive", "passive".

low

1. The lowest card by rank.
2. The low half of the pot in a high-low split.