Texas Hold’em Rules
Texas Hold’em is played using a standard 52 card deck, and between
two to ten players. Big tournaments💰 may include many hundreds of players but during any
one hand, the player is only competing against others on his💰 or her table. Before every
hand, one player is designated the nominal “dealer”, identified by a marker known as
the💰 dealer button or “button”. This person does not actually deal the cards –
especially not online, where it is done💰 automatically – but the position of the dealer
determines which two players have to post the “blind” bets that get💰 the action
started.
The two players to the left of the dealer must post these compulsory “blinds”
– so called because💰 they are placed before anyone even sees their cards. The player on
the dealer’s immediate left posts the “small blind”💰 and the player one further seat
round the table posts the “big blind”, which is usually twice the size of💰 the small. In
the illustration, the dealer is in seat five with the button in front of them. The two
💰 seats to their left are in “the blinds”. After every hand is complete, the dealer
button moves clockwise one position💰 around the table, which means that players take
turns to be the dealer, the small blind and the big blind.💰 After the blinds have been
posted, all players are dealt two cards face down. These are known as “hole” cards,💰 and
can only be seen and used by one player. By the end of the hand, five more “community”
cards💰 may have been dealt, face up in the middle of the table, which are available for
all players to use.💰 The first three of the community cards are exposed together (known
as the “flop”), then a fourth card (known as💰 the “turn”) is dealt individually, and
then a fifth (known as the “river”) is exposed. A betting round separates each💰 deal.
The aim of poker is to make the best five-card hand out of the seven available – two in
💰 an individual’s hand and the five community cards. The Four Betting Rounds If a hand of
poker is played all💰 the way to its conclusion, there will be four betting rounds – or
four periods during which players can commit💰 their chips to the pot. A player can also
“fold” their cards and leave the action at any time (see💰 below). A betting round must
be concluded satisfactorily before the remaining players see more cards and another
betting round begins.💰 Pre-Flop – The First Round of Betting The first betting round
takes place before the first three community cards (the💰 “flop”) are dealt. This action
is described as “pre-flop” and at this stage players are wagering based solely on the
💰 strength of their two concealed “hole” cards. The player sitting to the left of the big
blind acts first –💰 a position known as “under the gun”. Players then act in turn,
moving clockwise around the table. You have the💰 following options when it is your turn
to act: Fold : This means that you no longer want to play💰 the hand, and are throwing
your cards away. You no longer have any claim to the money in the pot,💰 even if you paid
one of the blinds.
: This means that you no longer want to play the hand, and💰 are
throwing your cards away. You no longer have any claim to the money in the pot, even if
you💰 paid one of the blinds. Call : This means that you want to play the hand by
matching the size💰 of the current bet. Pre-flop, this will be at least the size of the
big blind, and may be greater💰 if any other player has raised.
: This means that you
want to play the hand by matching the size of💰 the current bet. Pre-flop, this will be
at least the size of the big blind, and may be greater if💰 any other player has raised.
Raise : This means that you want to raise the size of the current bet.💰 If nobody before
you has made a raise, you can make a raise yourself.
: This means that you want to
💰 raise the size of the current bet. If nobody before you has made a raise, you can make
a raise💰 yourself. Check: If you are sitting in the big blind and no else has raised
before you, you have the💰 option to check. This means that you do not wish to commit any
more chips to the pot. You can💰 only check pre-flop if you are in the big blind and no
one else raised.
The betting round is complete when💰 all players have either folded,
indicating they no longer wish to continue in the hand, or committed the same amount💰 of
chips to the pot. The Flop – The Second Round of Betting After the first round of
betting is💰 complete, the first three community cards are dealt face up in the middle of
the table. This is known as💰 the “flop”. Another round of betting begins with the first
player still with cards to the left of the dealer.💰 If no one has bet, you have the
option to check (ie, to move the action to the next player💰 without committing any chips
to the pot.) Otherwise you have the same options as you did pre-flop: fold, call or
💰 raise. Again, the betting round is complete when all players have either folded,
indicating they no longer wish to continue💰 in the hand, or committed the same amount of
chips to the pot. The Turn – The Third Round of💰 Betting When all bets have been made in
the second betting round, and at least two players still have cards,💰 the fourth
community card is dealt. This is known as the “turn”. Another round of betting begins,
starting with the💰 first player still in the hand to the left of the dealer. Play
progresses exactly as it did after the💰 flop. The River – The Fourth Round of Betting
When all bets have been made in the third round of💰 betting, the fifth and final
community card is dealt. This is known as the “river”. A final round of betting💰 begins,
again starting with the first player to the left of the button.
Any players still with
cards go to a💰 “showdown”. Showdown After the last round of betting is complete, each
player must form the best possible five-card poker hand,💰 made from a combination of
their two hole cards and the five community cards. At this point, all players remaining
💰 must show their hands, so that the best hand can be determined. The player who has the
highest ranked poker💰 hand at showdown wins the pot. Example:
In the example above,
Player 1 has two pair: kings and queens, with a💰 seven. The five best cards available to
them are the two kings on the flop, the two queens (his own💰 hole cards), and the seven.
(Remember all poker hands have five cards.) Player 2 has three of a kind. He💰 has one
king “in the hole” which he matches with the two kings on the flop. His other cards are
💰 the seven and the six, which were the turn and river. Three of a kind is better than
two pair💰 and so player Player 2 wins. If more than one player has the same winning
hand, the pot is split💰 evenly among all the players with the winning hand. When the
current hand is complete, the dealer button is passed💰 one position to the left and the
next hand begins. Poker Rules & Etiquette
