One of the most challenging and exciting games to learn how to play is texas hold’em poker. If you are new to the game it can feel a little overwhelming at first but don’t fear, it’s actually quite simple to learn.
To begin with there are no letters attached to cards, only face value. It might seem like a very simple game but it can be very complicated, especially for beginning players.
First a couple of players are dealt cards, and depending on the letters they are dealt face-down or face-up, starting from the dealer.
A player’s hand is made up from the initial two cards that are dealt, and what the other player’s hand is, face up or not.
A number of community cards are also dealt by the dealer, these are placed face up in the centre of the table, that anyone can use. The idea is that the community cards are shared by all players.
Texas hold’em, as opposed to other types of poker, starts with each player being dealt two cards face down, the dealer also deals an additional card in the form of a “burn” card, this is a card that is going to be discarded for the players to make their hands.
There is then a round of betting, starting again with the first active player, the betting, or blind, round finishes when all players have either folded or matched the maximum bet.
After this betting round finishes, the flop cards are dealt. These are three cards dealt face up in the middle of the table, these are also community cards and no one, not even the best players, knows what the flop cards are until the end of the hand.
The flop cards are followed by a second round of betting and the associated cards are then opened on to the field.
Each player now has three cards opened in front of them, there is a final round of betting and then the showdown, the most important being the last.
Remember, it is possible to fold during the Texas hold’em poker round, it is simply dependent on the cards and your hand, if you want to double up you can lose otherwise you will be risking so that you can double your winnings.
Rules of Texas hold’em
One of the most important things to learn in Texas hold’em is the pre-flop round of betting.
This is the first and arguably the most important round of the game.
Because of the limited nature of the game and the fact that players are allowed to fold early, the strength of their hand early game is prime real estate for picking a good hand and sticking to it for the full round of betting.
Here’s a basic write-up of the rules of Texas hold’em:
Limit Texas hold’em or No limit Texas hold’em:
In no limit hold’em there are no sweeping rules changes with regard to the amount of hands a player can bet on. When the first round of betting is completed, the best hand will always win.
If the best hand is within one of the ranges, for example, a combination of Ace-King-Queen, a player can choose to bet. The betting will continue until there are no players left in the hand.
In all cases, when the hand is won, the highest hand card will be compared.
Limit hold’em:
Similarly to state-based lotteries, there is a limit placed on the amount a player can bet. The effect of this limit is that the period in which the player can raise the full bet can only be limited by circumstances.
The specific card remains the same, but the period for raising the hand is either the entire pot or a predetermined number of forced bets.
In both limit and no limit poker, players are at once allowed to raise their bets and to make subsequent re-raises. However, since betting is capped, players cannot make further raises beyond what has been placed in the pot and subsequent to that the player can only bet with the best hand.
The pot limit:
In both limit and no limit hold’em, the size of the pot sets the ceiling on the size of the bets that players can make. When playing in pots, the players are playing with their own money.
Have you ever seen a poker tournament on TV where the players are taking each other’s money? That’s what they call kitty fighting.
If your hand is small, and the bets become big, you can’t afford to stay in the game.
The implied odds:
Contrary to popular belief, not all bets have a positive expectation. This is particularized to poker.
When the odds of a return on a bet are predicted, whether they will win or lose, there is always some player who is ready to pay you off.
