Texas Holdem Rules
Taxeas Holdem rules
Lets get to know the basic Texas Holdem rules before learning more complicated issues connected with game strategies and tactics creation. Texas Holdem is the most popular variation of poker nowadays. Texas Holdem rules are very easy and everyone can learn them quickly and easily.
Game objective
The aim of Texas Holdem is to set the best five-card hand possible out of the seven cards each player has got. Each player can see only two cards and the other five cards are the so called community cards, visible for every player. The player whose cards are the best according to the hands’ rank wins the deal.
Game progress
Let’s talk about Texas Holdem rules. The game can be divided into five main stages. First four stages are composed of a dealing round and a bidding round. In the last stage the players who remained in the game compare their cards.
Pre-Flop
Before the dealing the two players on the left of a dealer (market with D letter) bet blind (small blind and big blind). Therefore even before the proper game the Pot already contains some money. It motivates the players to further playing.
Than the dealer gives each player two cards (so called hole or pocket cards) starting from the player on the left. In Texas Holdem only those cards remain covered for other players until the end of the game (visible only for the player who has got them).
Than the bidding round starts. The player on the left of the players who bet blind starts. Than each player successively bids. Accordingly with the strength of their cards the players can:
Raise - raise a bet when the cards are good enough to win,
Call/Bet - enter the game with higher bet,
Check - wait, if nobody has raised a bet earlier,
Fold - pass, when the cards are bad.
Flop
In this round the dealer puts three cards on the table. The cards are visible for each player (so called community cards). Every player considers if those cards can be useful for him to set a valuable hand with the two cards previously received. They analyze also if those cards can at least give a chance to set a high hand of cards in successive rounds.
When the cards are dealt, the bidding round takes place. The players can decide to: pass, enter or raise a bet.
Turn
During this round the forth card is dealt which is visible for everyone. The players analyze their hands again taking under consideration the two cards they have and the three cards at the table or one own card and four at the table.
When the cards are dealt, the bidding round is being started. However, this time the bets are twice higher than in the previous biddings (and a bet can be raised three times in the majority of cases).
River
The last fifth card visible for all players is dealt in the next turn. The players analyze the hands once again taking under consideration their own cards and those at the table which are accessible for everyone.
The next bidding round proceeds as previously.
Showdown
After bidding, all players who remained in the game show their cards. The player with the best hand wins automatically.
Hands ranking
- Royal Flush - highest hand of five succeeding cards of the same suit with Ace as the last one,
- Straight Flush - hand of five succeeding cards of the same suit where the highest card is weaker than Ace,
- Four of Kind - hand of four cards of the same kind,
- Full House - hand of three or two cards of the same kind,
- Flush - hand of five cards of the same suit,
- Straight - hand of five succeeding cards of different suits,
- Three of Kind - hand of three cards of the same kind,
- Two Pairs - two pairs of cards of the same kind,
- One Pair - a pair of cards of the same kind,
- High Card - the highest card.
Other kinds of poker
Although Texas Holdem is the most popular variation of poker now, there are also other kinds of this game:
Omaha - similar to Texas Holdem rules. The difference is that each player receives four cards. You need to compose the winning hand out of two own cards and three cards from the table. Straight and Flush happens most often because of the large number of cards in the game.
Omaha Hi/Lo - is a very popular variation of Omaha poker in which the player with the best hand as well as the one with the worst cards are wining. The Pot is divided between them fifty-fifty (high and low pots). In this kind of poker it is possible that the same player may win both, high and low pot at the same time. It is due to the fact that you can choose different cards to indicate the winner - the ones from the table and the hand
Seven Card Stud - this game is totally different to Texas Holdem rules. There are no community cards. Each player receives seven cards where four of them are visible for everyone and the other three just for the player. The player with the best five card hand wins the game.
And now lets see the winning strategy section...
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