Definition of Marked Cards

What does the term "marked cards" mean in the world of poker? What is the definition of the term "marked cards"?

"Marking cards" occurs when a person tries to physically alter cards in an attempt to gain an edge on their opponent. "Marking cards", as you can imagine, only occurs in casinos (quite rare) and home games (more frequent).

Let's take a look at an example of "marking cards":

You are playing in a home game. You were invited to this game by an acquaintance, and you don't personally know any of the other players.

You are having a particularly bad night, having dropped a number of buy-ins over just a short period of time. After a while, you notice that some of the cards have very small folds on their corners. This leads you to believe that some (or all) of your opponents have been "marking cards" in order to gain an edge. You stand up from the table and announce that you are heading home as you are tired. You never return to the game.

Your opponents, for instance, could have marked any Ace or King that was in the deck. So, if you were holding either an Ace or King in your hand, your opponent would know whether or not you had one in your hand. This would obviously provide your opponent with crucial information that would help give him an edge.

Casinos are quite vigilant about finding marked cards - they rely on both dealers and players to quickly identify any cards that might be marked and remove the marked decks from the game.

Marking cards is a form of cheating, and if you are found to be marking cards, you will almost certainly be banned from the casino.

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