usually stiff solid-colored plastic, held against the bottom of the deck during the deal to prevent observation of the bottom card. While rarely used in home games, the cut card is universal in casino play. cutoff The seat immediately to the right of the button. Name derived from its positional strength, obtaining absolute position when the button folds. D dark An action taken before receiving information to which the player would normally be entitled. Compare with blind. dead blind A blind that is not live, in that the player posting it does not have the option to raise if other players just call. Usually involves a small blind posted by a player entering, or returning to, a game (in a position other than the big blind) that is posted in addition to a live blind equal to the big blind. dead button See dead button rule dead hand A player's hand that is not entitled to participate in the deal for some reason, such as having been fouled by touching another player's cards, being found to contain the wrong number of cards, being dealt to a player who did not make the appropriate forced bets, etc. dead man's hand See main article: dead man's hand dead money The amount of money in the pot other than the equal amounts bet by active remaining players in that pot. Examples of dead money include money contributed to the pot by players who have folded, a dead blind posted by a player returning to a game after missing blinds, or an odd chip left in the pot from a previous deal. For example, eight players each ante $1, one player opens for $2, and gets two callers, making the pot total $14. Three players are now in the pot having contributed $3 each, for $9 "live" money; the remaining $5 (representing the antes of the players who folded) is dead money. The amount of dead money in a pot affects the pot odds of plays or rules of thumb that are based on the number of players. The term "dead money" is also used in a derogatory sense to refer to money put in the pot by players who are still legally eligible to win it, but who are unlikely to do so because they are unskilled, increasing the expected return of other players. This can also be applied to the player himself: