by Matt Bourie

Created on: February 17, 2010

The Basics of Texas Hold'em

I'm going to give you a brief introduction to Texas Hold'em including the rules of the game and the ranking order of every hand in poker. The Point of the game is to make the best 5-card hand from the two cards in your hand and the five cards that are delt face-up in the middle of the table, also known at the "board."

Each hand, one player is selected as the "dealer" even thought they don't actually have to deal. This is signified by the "dealer button." The order of play is based on the position of the button.

The first two person to the left of the dealer have to put money in the pot before play begins, they are known as the "blinds." The player immediately to the left of the dealer is the small blind and the player after the small blind is known as the big blind. The blinds are a forced wager on two players at the table to guarantee there is always money being wagered. The big blind is usually twice the amount of the small blind. When someone says the blinds are 5/10 they mean that the player in the small blind position must wager $5 prior to seeing their cards and the player in the big blind position must wager $10 before seeing any cards. After each hand is played, the dealer button is passed to the left one position which also shifts the blinds one position to the left giving all players equal time as a blind.

Each person at the table is then dealt two cards face down and the betting begins. The player directly to the left of the big blind goes first. Each player must then choose one of the following options:

Call - This means to match the amount of the last bet and stay in the game.

Fold - To fold means to get rid of your cards and wait for the next hand.

Raise - Just like the name implies, this means to raise the amount of the bet to either get more money from your opponets or scare them into folding.

Reraise - This is when one person raises and then someone to their left raises the amount of the bet a second time.

If no bets have been made that round, a player may choose to simply check which means you are not betting but you would still like to stay in the hand. However, once a bet is made the option to checks is no longer available and a player must call or raise.

The Flop

Once the first round of betting has ended, three cards are dealt face up in the middle of the table. These are the first three of five "community" cards which may be used by all players to build the best hand possible. After the flop is dealt there is another round of betting.

4th Street

After the second round of betting, the dealer turns over one more card. This card is called "4th Street," or also known as the "Turn." This is another community card to be used by all players. There is then another round of betting again.

The River

The dealer then turns over the fifth and final card. This is called The river or 5th Street. All remaining players then use these five community cards along with the two in their hand to make the best five-card poker hand. There is one last round of betting after the river and then the hand is over and all players reveal their hands.

The best way to practice your poker is to get some free poker money and play online and practice.

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