Texas Hold'em Poker Rules - Learn The Basics To Start Playing

Poker, especially Texas Holdem, has gained a lot of popularity over the past few years. The growing popularity of this game stems from the fact that it is extremely easy to learn. Beginners can comfortably start playing the game within minutes by following Texas Hold'em poker rules. Of course the game can be mastered only after gaining significant skills learned over years of play.

General Rules Of Texas Holdem Poker

Poker is based on 5 card hands which are ranked in order of difficulty in achieving these specific combinations of cards.

Dealer: Typically, 6-9 players sit at a Texas Hold'em table. One of them is randomly labeled the 'dealer'. Game commences from the left of the 'dealer' and continues in a clockwise order. The designation of 'dealer' moves one place to the left after each hand. The advantage of being in this position is that the 'dealer' is the last to act during betting. Every player other than the 'dealer' must bet or fold before he acts.

First 2 Cards: Each player playing by Texas Holdem rules is dealt two private cards, face down. Each player looks at his/her cards and the first round of betting begins. A player can 'bet', 'raise' or 'fold' depending on how strong he thinks his cards are.

The Flop: After the first round of betting the dealer burns the top card of the deck and then deals three cards face-up in the middle of the table. These cards are called 'flops' and they are the community cards. That is, the players can use any possible combination of the community and their two hole cards to form the best possible five-card poker hand. After this, another round of betting/raising/folding commences.

The Fourth Street: The dealer burns another card, and deals the fourth community card called the 'fourth street' or the 'turn'. The 3rd betting round ensues.

The River: After this betting round, the dealer deals a final community card called the 'river' and the last betting round ensues.

Blinds: An essential Texas holdem is the concept of 'blinds'. The two players to the left of the dealer are called the small and the big blind, respectively. Their role ensures that there is always someone who has contributed to the pot so that there is always someone playing in each hand. The small blind bets an amount equal to 1/2 of the minimum bet at the table and the big blind bets an amount equal to the minimum bet.

Showdown: As per Texas poker rules, the player (that hasn't folded) with the best combination of five-cards from amongst the seven cards wins the pot.