Introduction to Texas Holdem

Texas holdem is by far the most popular poker game in the world. Prestigious tournaments are televised on a daily basis, and with the availability of Texas Holdem online, everyone can get involved. The game itself is easy to learn and easy to play, yet difficult to master. As your skills develop, you'll learn that one of the most important "rules" of Texas holdem is observation. Just consider that rule as you begin to play, and you will quickly understand that observing and learning an opponent is as important as playing the cards you've been dealt.

One of the most important Texas Holdem tips is to learn the rules properly. The game begins with action from the dealer. They will place a dealer button in front of the player to their left, and the two players following the button will be responsible for posting blinds. The first player will post the small blind and the second will post the large blind. Blinds are nothing more than bets that are offered to the pot before the deal begins. They insure that every hand will be played. If you're familiar with an ante, they're very similar.

After blinds have been posted, the dealer will offer two cards facedown to each player, beginning the deal to the left of the dealer button. These cards are your hole, or pocket, cards, and will be the foundation of your opening bet. After all players have their cards, the first round of betting takes place. The high bet on the table is the large blind. Therefore, the next player in the action must equal the large blind (call), raise the bet or quit the hand (fold). The action continues around the table to the left. After all bets are equal, the dealer will offer three community cards face up on the table known as the flop.

All players who remain in the action to continue building the strongest five-card hand use the flop. After the cards are shown, another round of betting begins. This time the betting begins with the first remaining player to the left of the dealer button. This individual may choose to check the action (pass) to the next competitor. Any of the following competitors may choose to check as well, until a bet has been placed. When a bet has been laid down, every remaining player must at least call the bet, including the individual(s) who initially checked. Once all bets are equal, the dealer proceeds.

The turn is the next community card offered to the table. It is a single card, face up. Another round of betting takes place after the turn just as it did after the flop. After all bets are equal, the dealer will offer the final community card.

The river is another single, face up card placed on the table. There are now seven total cards to choose from to make your best hand. Those are the hole cards and community cards. If you are still in the action, you can use any combination of cards to build your best five-card hand. After the river is offered to the table, a final round of betting takes place just as it did the two previous rounds. After all bets are equal, you enter the showdown where all remaining competitors show their cards in the order that they played. A winner will be declared, the dealer button and blind responsibilities rotate one individual to the left and the process repeats.

You now know the rules of Texas holdem and are ready to get into a game. To be a successful player you need to know about staring hand selection, position, poker odds and many other things, but that's another story.