Option

An option is a choice given to the player in the big blind or live straddle (third blind) when the action gets to them without anyone raising.

For example, you’re playing in a $1/$2 game, and you’re in the big blind. Three players limp in for $2, and the action gets to you. In a live game, the dealer will turn to you and say the word “option.”

This means that you now have the choice between checking, which will allow you to see the flop without putting any additional money into the pot, and raising, which opens the preflop action once again.

In cash games with straddles, the straddle acts as the third blind before the flop, which means the player in the straddle will be the one with the option (provided there is no raise) instead of the player in the big blind.

‍