How To Play Texas Holdem Poker

Texas Holdem Poker is the most popular poker game. Texas Holdem is a very easy game to learn how to play.

In Texas Holdem each player receives two cards dealt face down. These two cards are referred to as "hole cards". Five community cards are dealt face up in the center of the table. You use your two hole cards and the five community cards to create the best possible hand.

There are three common variations of Texas Holdem Poker - No Limit, Limit and Pot Limit.

A Limit Texas Holdem Poker game means that the size of the bet is fixed on each street. An example of this would be, in a $1/$2 Texas Holdem poker game, the bets are made in increments of $1 before and after the flop. On the turn and the river the bets increase to $2. If you are new to the game I highly recommend that you play in a structured limit game.

A Pot Limit Texas Holdem Poker game is a combination of structured limit/ No limit, in which you can make a maximum bet at any time up to the amount of money that is in the pot.

In a No Limit Texas Holdem Poker game there is no limit to the amount that you can bet. But there is usually a minimum for each bet.

Here is a summary of how to play Texas Holdem Poker:

There are 10 steps in a game of Texas Holdem. They are:

1. Blind Bets

2. Deal - each player is dealt 2 cards

3. First betting round

4. The Flop - the first three community cards are dealt

5. Second betting round

6. The Turn - the fourth community card is dealt

7. Third betting round

8. The River - the final community card is dealt

9. Final betting round

10. Showdown

Here is a step by step rundown of how to play Texas Holdem Poker

First the dealer will shuffle a standard 52-card deck. If you are playing in a casino, the dealer does not play. If you are playing poker online then a round disc -- known as a "dealer button" -- moves clockwise from player to player with each hand. The button marks which player is the dealer.

The two players to the left of the dealer start by “posting the blinds” which is putting in a blind bet before any cards are even dealt. This ensures that there is money to play for in every hand.

The player to the left of the dealer is the “small blind” and the player seated two seats to the left of the dealer is the “big blind”.

Most often, the "small blind" puts up half the minimum bet, and the "big blind" puts up the full minimum bet. For example, in a $2/$4 game the "small blind" would be $1 and the "big blind" would be $2.

Each player is then dealt two cards, face down. These first two cards are "hole cards."

This is followed by the first round of betting. The first round of betting starts with the player to the left of the big blind. Players can call, raise, or fold when it's their turn to bet.

The Flop

After the first betting round, the dealer discards the top card of the deck. This is called burning the card.

The dealer then flips the next three cards face up on the table. These are the first three community cards. These cards are called the "flop."

After the flop, the second round of betting takes place. The betting begins with the player to the left of the dealer. Players can check, call, raise, or fold when it is their turn to bet.

The Turn

The dealer once again burns another card and then places one more card face up onto the table. This is the fourth community card. This round is referred to as the "turn" or "Fourth Street."

After the turn, the third round of betting takes place with the player to the left of the dealer.

The River

The dealer burns another card before placing the final face-up community card on the table. This round is referred to as the "river" or "Fifth Street". Players now use a combination of their two hole cards and five community cards to come up with the best possible five-card poker hand.

After the river card has been dealt, the fourth and final round of betting starts with the player to the left of the dealer. After the final betting round, all of the players who are still in the game show their hands. The player who made the initial bet or the player who made the last raise shows their hand first.

The player with the best hand wins.