Holdem Poker Rules

Poker is an extremely easy game. Just by learning the basic rules you can go on to win a million dollars in a large poker tournament, or at least few thousand online. The same couldn’t be said for a game like chess, where the better player always wins.

Anyone can play and win, but only the really good players will win in the long run. To get good you need to keep an open mind, read into different poker strategies and tactics, and gain experience and feel for the game by playing.

Holdem Intro

Holdem poker, also known as Texas holdem Poker, is a card game that uses a standard 52-card deck. Anywhere between 2 and 10 players can be in a hand. Everyone is dealt two cards that must be matched with a total of five community cards to make the best five-card hand.

Key concepts

The button – This is the dealer. If nobody in the hand is literally dealing, then a button represents the dealer. The button rotates clockwise after each hand and is always the last to act post-flop.
The big blind – The big blind is a mandatory bet put in by the player left of the small blind. In a 1/2 no limit game, the big blind would be $2 and in limit it would be $1
The small blind – The small blind, to the left of the button, is usually half of the big blind.

Your options

Bet/raise – to add more money to the pot.
Fold – to give up your hand. Most hands will be folded.
Call – to put in the minimum amount to stay in the hand.

Game Play

1. Everyone gets dealt two cards, face down, and a round of betting occurs starting from the player to the left of the big blind.
2. Three community cards, known as the flop, are dealt face up. All players still in the hand use the flop to make a five card hand with their two down cards and. A round of betting starts from the small blind and ends with the button.
3. A single card, known as the turn, is dealt face up and a round of betting occurs. In limit poker, the bet size would be twice the big blind from now on.
4. A final card, known as the river, is dealt face up and the last round of betting occurs. Players still in the hand turn their cards face up and the person with the best five card hand wins.

Summary

That’s it! Now you can start playing, gain experience, and before you know it you’ll be a master. Try to get your chips in the pot when you think you have the best hand, and fold with the worst.

For hand ranking explanations and poker strategy details read the Holdem Poker Basics article.