Cut (cards)

The aim of this is to reduce the possibility of cheating, for example, by knowing the top or bottom card.

The practice of cutting is primarily a method of reducing the likelihood of someone cheating by manipulating the order of cards to gain an advantage.

[2][3][4][5] Alternatively the shuffled pack is often fanned, face down, on the table, with players drawing and revealing one card at random.

The dealer then completes the cut by placing the original bottom portion of the deck on top of this lifted group of cards.

[6] Once the cut is complete, the dealer picks up the deck, straightens or "squares" it, and deals the cards.

The command to "cut the cards", followed by someone literally chopping the deck in half with an axe, is a gag that has been used many times in popular media, going back to at least the vaudeville days.