Play TEXAS HOLDEM Poker Online & WIN BIG ON FUN88
Texas Holdem, also called Texas Hold'em, is one of the most popular poker card games. Though it's a simple poker game, it can be daunting if you don't get the grip of the game. Hence, it would be best if you started from the basic rules and hands. Before going into the details, let's discuss what Texas Holdem poker is?
What is Texas Holdem Poker?
Texas Holdem is so popular that it's the only poker game many players will ever learn. It's the only game that features all the marquee tournaments that happen around the world. It includes the World Series of Poker, the World Poker Tour, the European Poker Tour, etc. The competitions feature the no-limit variation of this game.
Before you start playing the game, remember, it takes a moment to learn but takes a lifetime to master.
Texas Holdem poker is not difficult to understand the game. The simple rules, gameplay, and hand-ranking contribute to the popularity of the game. However, do not get overexcited by the simplicity of the game and mislead yourself. The game can become extremely complex as you move ahead and play at the highest levels. The number of possible combinations and situations is so immense.
If you have just started or are planning to approach the Texas Holdem game for the first time, knowing the game's basic rules is crucial. The rules are easy to learn, but understanding the gameplay and basic strategy of the game is essential.
Texas Holdem Rules
The objective of a Texas Holdem card game is to utilize your hole hard and make the best possible five-card poker hand by combining it with the community cards. Unlike other five-card draw poker games, Texas Holdem provides an opportunity for the players to construct their hands.
1. In a Texas Holdem game, each player is dealt two 'hole cards' face down with the aim of making the best five-card hand through several betting rounds.
2. The five cards are called the 'community cards' and are dealt face up in the middle of the table.
3. The players are free to use the face-up cards to build a five-card poker hand by combining them with their hole cards.
To form a full hand of five community cards, the Texas Holdem game see different phases of betting rounds in three stages. They are:
1. The flop – where the first three community cards are dealt.
2. The turn – dealt the fourth community card.
3. The river – the fifth and final community card is dealt.
The Texas Holdem game's objective is to construct a five-card poker hand using the best available five cards out of the seven total cards (the two-hole cards and the five community cards).
You can achieve the five-card poker hands in three ways by combining:
1. Both your hole cards with three community cards,
2. One hole card with four community cards, or
3. No hole cards
You can accomplish the combination by playing all five community cards and ignoring the hole cards if the cards on the table lead to a better combination. You are free to do whatever you can to make the best five-card hand in a Texas Holdem game.
It's a betting game, so players can 'bluff'. Players need not hold the best hand to win the pot but, if they can get others to fold better hands, they can win the pot without showing any cards. Hence, if the betting causes all but one player to fold, the lone remaining player wins.
However, if two or more players succeed in the showdown after the last community card is dealt with, all the betting is complete then, the only means to win the pot is to have the highest-ranking five-card poker hand.
These are the basics of Texas Holdem poker. Now, learn the specifics that include understanding the betting and dealing with the game.
How to Play Texas Holdem Poker Card Game?
Here's how to approach a Texas Holdem game, including the different positions at the table and the betting rounds featured in the game.
The Button
The 'button' is a round disc at the table that determines which player is the acting dealer. It moves clockwise around the table from the left of the dealer button.
Usually, the player with the button deals with the hands but, when playing on sports betting websites in India and poker rooms, they hire someone to handle the button.
The player sitting to the immediate left of the dealer button is required to post a 'small blind' to initiate the betting. While the dealer button dictates which players have to post the small and big blinds, it also determines where the dealing of the cards begin.
The player sitting in the small blind position receives the first card, and then the dealer pitches the cards around the table in a clockwise motion until each player has received two starting cards.
The Blinds
The two players are required to post small and big blinds before the beginning of every new hand. The blinds are forced bets that initiates the stakes.
The game would be boring without blinds because no one would be required to put any money into the pot. In tournaments, the blinds are raised at frequent intervals and ensure some level of 'action' on every hand.
As the involvement of players keeps decreasing and the stacks of the remaining players get bigger, the blinds must keep increasing throughout the tournament. In cash games, the blinds will always stay the same for a given limit of which the game is being played.
The small blind will be posted by a player sitting directly to the left of the button, and the player sitting directly to their left posts the big blind. Generally, the small blind is half the amount of the big blind.
From this step, the action occurs on multiple betting rounds:
1. PreFlop
2. Flop
3. Turn
4. River
First Betting Round – Preflop
As soon as all the players are dealt two 'hole cards,' the first betting round starts. The player is sitting to the left of the big blind need to act first. Hence, this position is referred to as 'under the gun'.
The first player has three options:
Call – the player can match the amount of the big blind
Raise – they can increase the bet within the limits of the game, or
Fold – they can opt-out by throwing the hand away, and they are not eligible to win the current hand
The preflop round will be complete after all the players in the table gets the same three options, and the last bet is called. Now, the game moves on to the next round, "flop."
Second Betting Round – Flop
The first three community cards are dealt in the preflop round, and the second betting round will be played by those players who have not folded their cards.
The active player sitting to the left of the button needs to start the Flop round action. Along with the options bet, call, fold, or raise, the players now have a 'check' option to confirm if no betting action has occurred beforehand.
A check means passing the action to the next player in hand. Either the players continue to bet or choose to check around the table to complete this round.
Third Betting Round – Turn
By following all betting actions on the flop, the fourth community card, turn, is dealt face-up on the table.
Similar to the previous rounds, another round of betting occurs, and players have the option to check, bet, call, fold, or raise.
Final Betting Round – River
The fifth community card, river, is dealt face-up on the table by following all betting actions on the turn.
Once again, similar to the previous rounds, another round of betting occurs, and players have the option to check, bet, call, fold, or raise.
After all betting actions are completed, the remaining players in hand with hole cards need to expose their holdings to determine a winner, called the showdown.
The Showdown
With the dealer's assistance, the remaining players expose their hole cards for determining a winning hand. According to the official poker hand rankings, the player with the best combination of five cards wins the pot.
The Hands in Texas Holdem
Though these hand rankings aren't officially part of Texas Holdem rules, many different poker games follow them:
1. Royal Flush – 5 cards of the same suit, ranked ace through 10 (A♥K♥Q♥J♥10♥)
2. Straight Flush – 5 cards of the same suit and consecutively ranked (9♣8♣7♣6♣5♣)
3. Four of a Kind – 4 cards of the same rank (Q♣Q♥Q♦Q♠4♦)
4. Full House – 3 cards of the same rank and 2 more cards of the same rank (J♣J♥J♠8♦8♥)
5. Flush – any 5 cards of the same suit (A♠J♠8♠5♠2♠)
6. Straight – any 5 cards consecutively ranked (Q♣J♦10♥9♠8♦)
7. Three of a Kind – 3 cards of the same rank (8♣8♠8♦K♣4♥)
8. Two Pair – 2 cards of the same rank and 2 more cards of the same rank (A♠A♣J♦J♣7♠)
9. One Pair – 2 cards of the same rank (10♥10♣9♥4♦2♦)
10. High Card – 5 unmatched cards (A♣J♦10♠5♣2♥) would be called "ace-high"
Players are free to construct their hands by choosing the five best cards from the seven available cards (two 'hole cards and the five 'community cards).
Indeed, learning Texas Holdem rules is the beginning. However, learn the strategies that involve understanding what represents the good starting hand selection, the probabilities and odds associated with the game, and the significance of the position. Learning when to act post-flop betting rounds matters and many other aspects of the game.
Now that you know how Texas Holdem works, it's time to put the theory into practice and play games on Fun88.com
