Holdem Poker rules

See also

• Holdem: Preflop Hand Categories (Part I - Pocket Pairs)
• Holdem: Preflop Hand Categories (Part II - Suited Cards)
• Holdem: Preflop Hand Categories (Part III - Offsuit Cards)
• Online Limit Holdem Strategy

Texas Holdem is the most favourite form of poker around the world. It’s a community cardboard game, with straight poker rules, where each participant is dealt two pocket cards which can be used in conjunction with the 5 community cards on the table to create the highest possible 5 card poker hand. This guide describes the general Holdem Poker rules.

Similarly to land-based Holdem poker games, in online poker the table can have as many as 10 players. One of these players will get a button in front of their position, also known as the dealer button. It indicates that the 2 players playing to the immediate left have to post blind bets.

Though the button stems from the custom in land-based poker game, but in online poker the Dealer’s duty is carried out by a virtual dealer whose sole duty at the table is to deal cards.

Blind bets.
Most hands of Holdem poker begin by some form of forced bets. This is to insure that there is action with every round of betting. Hold'em is played with two blind bets (before the hole cards are received).

The two players sitting to the dealer’s left side begin with placing Small and Big Blinds. The small blind is made by the first and the BB by the second. The value of the SB and BB is determined by the table's betting structure. The BB is equal to the minimal stake at the poker table and the SB is equal to half.

Ante.
An ante is another mandatory bet that all persons have to put in before the cards are dealt. It is commonly approximately ten percent of the small bet.

1-st Round. Before the flop.
When the blinds are made, the dealer deals two dark cards, known as hole cards, to each player. The dealer deals in a clockwise direction.

Then the players choose if they would like to bet. The person after the big blind starts. In the 1-st round of betting the players has not choice of checking, however they can do any of the following alternatives: Bet, Call, Raise or Fold. All players have to put the same amount in the pot in order to continue. So if one player raises, the other players must either call or reraise, or fold (drop out of the round).

The betting round ends when all persons have either folded or called the last raise.

Flop.
Once first round of betting is finish, it's time to move on to the flop. 3 of the 5 cards are dealt open in the center of the playing area. These are communal cards which players can use as part of the final 5 card poker hand. Now, the round of betting begins with the first active player left of the dealer, who has the alternative to check or bet.

Bets at this phase are of the lower betting limit, which is the same as the big blind (e. G., $7 in the $7/$14 limits).

A check is simply declining the opportunity to bet, and can be done if there have been no bets so far.

Action proceeds in a clockwise manner until all players have matched the required bet or folded, and then we continue to the Turn.

3rd Round. The Turn.
When betting action is finished for the previous round the dealer shows the fourth face-up card on the table, so all persons get 6 cards to act with. A betting action occurs again.

4th Round - The River.
Once third round of betting concludes, the final common card, called the river, is dealt face-up into the middle of the playing area and the last betting round begins with the remaining player to the button’s left.

This person has the choice of folding, calling or raising within the bounds of the limits and table stakes. Subsequent players can then check, call, fold or raise (a person can only check in the event that no bet has been posted).

The Showdown.
After the final betting is closed, all persons still left in the hand at this stage show their hole cards and the person with strongest hand takes the money.
In the instance that you don't want to reveal your hole cards you can choose to muck at this level, which simply means to fold the cards.

In order to win you must get the highest 5-card hand, which can be made up of your hole cards and/or any of the common cards. You don't even have to use any of hole cards if you don't want to. This also happens if two or more opponents hold the same denomination combinations, the money is split up into equal parts.