Wanna learn how to play Texas hold’em poker! You’ve come to the right place! The below listed information will help better educate you about the game of Texas hold’em poker as well as direct you to some of the best places online to play a game of Texas Hold’em poker. Enjoy our explanation of the game as well as our shortlist of recommended places to play!
Texas Hold’em Poker Defined
There are two face down cards (called hole cards or pocket cards) for each player and five face-up community cards. The player who makes the best five-card poker hand with any combination of their two face down cards and the five community cards wins the hand and the pot. There are no ante in Texas Holdem Poker. In lieu of an “ante”, a forced wager called “blinds” are used. Before the cards are dealt, the player to the left of the dealer posts a wager called the small blind, which is usually equal to half of the minimum bet. The person to the left of the small blind posts the big blind, which is equal to the minimum bet. The dealer deals two clockwise rounds giving each player a single card down during each round. (Notice that the big blind and the small blind do not get to look at their cards before wagering, thus the term “blind”). Betting begins with the first player to the left of the big blind. Each player may call (equal the bet that has been placed), raise (increase the original wager) or Fold (remove themselves from the hand in which they don’t place anymore bets nor do they qualify to win the current pot). If any player raises, each person thereafter, will have the same opportunity to fold, call, or raise.
After the first round of betting is complete, the flop (three community cards) is dealt. The community cards are common to all the players participating in the hand. These cards are dealt face up in the middle of the table. Betting will begin with the first player to the dealers left. The player now has the option to check. By checking, the player indicates interest in the pot without placing a Bet. If any player Bets, each player clockwise may either fold, call, or raise. If anyone raises a bet, each person thereafter will have the same opportunity to fold, call, or raise.
After the betting is complete, the fourth community card is dealt face up to the center of the table, this is known as the turn. The third wagering round begins and proceeds as per the second round. In limit games, the minimum bet doubles in the last two rounds of betting. After betting is complete, the fifth community card is dealt face up to the center of the table, this is known as the river. The fourth betting round is as per the second and third rounds. After the final round of betting, comes the showdown. The showdown is where all existing players show their cards and a winner is deemed. Five cards deriving from the players hole cards and the community cards are to be used for determining the winning hand. If any time during play no one calls a bet, the bettor wins and does not have to show his hand. Some players show their hand, but we advise against this as it clues other in to poker tells.
There are three kinds of Holdem games. In Limit Holdem games, bets and raises are set at a fixed amount. Each round of betting is capped at a maximum number of raises. In No Limit Holdem, the maximum bet is determined by the number of chips you have in front of you. Players can Bet and Raise by any amount, and at any time, a player can go “all-in” by pushing all their poker chips towards the center of the table. Remaining players may call this Bet but cannot raise. Pot Limit Holdem is similar to No Limit, except that the maximum bet is determined by the number of chips currently in the pot.
We also recommend that you read up on poker odds, poker terms, and check out our assortment of poker articles to help better your understanding of the game of holdem poker.
