If you have played any other form of poker, 5-card draw rules are similar in that the aim of the game is to make the best five-card poker hand. Like Texas hold'em, the poker hand rankings, from. In poker, players form sets of five playing cards, called hands, according to the rules of the game. Each hand has a rank, which is compared against the ranks of other hands participating in the showdown to decide who wins the pot. In high games, like Texas hold 'em and seven-card stud, the highest-ranking hands win. A royal flush is the absolute best possible hand in the game of Texas Hold'em. You will rarely (if ever) see this hand. #2 Straight flush. 5 cards of the same suit in sequential order.
Table Of Contents
If you want to learn how to play Texas hold'em games, then you need to start from the basic rules and hands. That's exactly what you'll find on this beginner's guide to the game.
Texas hold'em is a simple poker game, but it can be daunting to get to grips with.
But don't let that put you off. By the time you are down with this beginner's guide to Texas hold'em, you will know:
1. What Is Texas Hold'em Poker?
Texas Hold'em is the most popular of all poker variations.
All of the marquee tournaments around the world (including those played at the World Series of Poker, the World Poker Tour, the and the European Poker Tour) feature the no-limit variation of this game.
Texas hold'em is so popular that is the only poker game many players will ever learn.
It takes a moment to learn, but a lifetime to master.
Discovering how to play Texas hold'em poker is not difficult and the simplicity of its rules, gameplay, and hand-ranking all contribute to the popularity of the game.
However, don't let the simplicity of the game mislead you.
The number of possible situations and combinations is so vast that Texas hold'em can be an extremely complex game when you play at the highest levels.
If you are approaching the game of Texas hold'em for the first time, starting from the basic rules of the game is key. Not only these are the easiest ones to learn, but they are also essential to understand the gameplay and, later on, the game's basic strategy.
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'>2. Texas Hold'em Rules
So how do you play Texas hold'em?
The goal of a Texas hold'em game is to use your hole card and in combination with the community cards to make the best possible five-card poker hand.
Hold'em is not unlike other poker games like five-card draw.
However, the way players construct their hands in Texas hold'em is a little different than in draw poker.
It's always possible a player can 'bluff' and get others to fold better hands.
- In a game of Texas hold'em, each player is dealt two cards face down (the 'hole cards')
- Throughout several betting rounds, five more cards are (eventually) dealt face up in the middle of the table
- These face-up cards are called the 'community cards.' Each player is free to use the community cards in combination with their hole cards to build a five-card poker hand.
While we will see each betting round and different phase that forms a full hand of a Texas hold'em game, you should know that the five community cards are dealt in three stages:
- The Flop: the first three community cards.
- The Turn: the fourth community card.
- The River:The fifth and final community card.
Your mission is to construct your five-card poker hands using the best available five cards out of the seven total cards (the two hole cards and the five community cards).
You can do that by using both your hole cards in combination with three community cards, one hole card in combination with four community cards, or no hole cards.
If the cards on the table lead to a better combination, you can also play all five community cards and forget about yours.
In a game of Texas hold'em you can do whatever works to make the best five-card hand.
If the betting causes all but one player to fold, the lone remaining player wins the pot without having to show any cards.
For that reason, players don't always have to hold the best hand to win the pot. It's always possible a player can 'bluff' and get others to fold better hands.
READ ALSO: Common Poker Tells: How to Read People in Poker
If two or more players make it all of the way to the showdown after the last community card is dealt and all betting is complete, the only way to win the pot is to have the highest-ranking five-card poker hand.
Now that you know the basics of Texas hold'em and you start to begin gaining an understanding of how the game works, it's time to get into some specifics.
These include how to deal Texas hold'em and how the betting works.
Basic Rules Key Takeaways:
- A game of Texas hold'em feature several betting rounds
- Players get two private and up to five community cards
- Unless all players abandon the game before the showdown, you need the highest poker hand to win
5 Card Texas Holdem Hands Game
How to Play
Let's have a look at all the different key aspects of a Texas hold'em game, including the different positions at the table and the betting rounds featured in the game.
The Button
The play moves clockwise around the table, starting with action to the left of the dealer button.
The 'button' is a round disc that sits in front of a player and is rotated one seat to the left every hand.
When playing in casinos and poker rooms, the player with the dealer button doesn't deal the cards (the poker room hires someone to do that).
In when you play poker home games with friends the player with the button usually deals the hands.
The button determines which player at the table is the acting dealer.
The first two players sitting to the immediate left of the button are required to post a 'small blind' and a 'big blind' to initiate the betting.
From there, the action occurs on multiple streets:
- Preflop
- Flop
- Turn
- River
Each one of these moments (or 'streets' in the game's lingo) is explained further below.
The button determines which player at the table is the acting dealer.
In Texas hold'em, the player on button, or last active player closest to the button receives the last action on all post-flop streets of play.
While the dealer button dictates which players have to post the small and big blinds, it also determines where the dealing of the cards begin.
The player to the immediate left of the dealer button in the small blind receives the first card and then the dealer pitches cards around the table in a clockwise motion from player to player until each has received two starting cards.
READ ALSO: Poker Positions Explained: the Importance of Position in Poker
The Blinds
Before every new hand begins, two players at the table are obligated to post small and big blinds.
The blinds are forced bets that begin the wagering.
Without these blinds, the game would be very boring because no one would be required to put any money into the pot and players could just wait around until they are dealt pocket aces (AA) and only play then.
The blinds ensure there will be some level of 'action' on every hand.
In tournaments, the blinds are raised at regular intervals. In cash games, the blinds always stay the same.
In tournaments, the blinds are raised at regular intervals.
- As the number of players keeps decreasing and the stacks of the remaining players keep getting bigger, it is a necessity that the blinds keep increasing throughout a tournament. [*]In cash games, the blinds always stay the same.
The player directly to the left of the button posts the small blind, and the player to his or her direct left posts the big blind.
The small blind is generally half the amount of the big blind, although this stipulation varies from room to room and can also be dependent on the game being played.
In a '$1/$2' Texas holdem game, the small blind is $1 and the big blind is $2.
First Betting Round: Preflop
The first round of betting takes place right after each player has been dealt two hole cards.
The first player to act is the player to the left of the big blind.
This position referred to as 'under the gun' because the player has to act first. The first player has three options:
- Call: match the amount of the big blind
- Raise: increase the bet within the specific limits of the game
- Fold: throw the hand away
If the player chooses to fold, he or she is out of the game and no longer eligible to win the current hand.
Players can bet anywhere from the amount of the big blind (the minimum bet allowed) up to the total amount in the current pot.
The amount a player can raise to depends on the game that is being played.
In a game of no-limit Texas hold'em, the minimum opening raise must be at least twice the big blind, and the maximum raise can be all of the chips a player has in his or her stack (an 'all-in' bet).
There are other betting variations in hold'em poker.
In fixed-limit hold'em (or just 'limit hold'em), a raise is always exactly twice the big blind.
In pot-limit hold'em (played much less often than the other variations), players can bet anywhere from the amount of the big blind (the minimum bet allowed) up to the total amount in the current pot.
After the first player ('under the gun') acts, the play proceeds in a clockwise fashion around the table with each player also having the same three options — to call, to raise, or fold.
Once the last bet is called and the action is 'closed,' the preflop round is over and play moves on to the 'flop.'
Second Betting Round: The Flop
After the first preflop betting round has been completed, the first three community cards are dealt and a second betting round follows involving only the players who have not folded already.
A check simply means to pass the action to the next player in the hand.
In this betting round (and subsequent ones), the action starts with the first active player to the left of the button.
Along with the options to bet, call, fold, or raise, a player now has the option to 'check' if no betting action has occurred beforehand.
A check simply means to pass the action to the next player in the hand.
Again betting continues until the last bet or raise has been called (which closes the action).
It also can happen that every player simply chooses not to be and checks around the table, which also ends the betting round.
Third Betting Round: The Turn
Call – match the amount of the big blind
The fourth community card, called the turn, is dealt face-up following all betting action on the flop.
Once this has been completed, another round of betting occurs, similar to that on the previous street of play.
Again players have the option to options to check, bet, call, fold, or raise.
Final Betting Round: The River
Fold – throw the hand away
The fifth community card, called the river, is dealt face-up following all betting action on the turn.
Once this has been completed, another round of betting occurs, similar to what took play on the previous street of play.
Once more the remaining players have the option to options to check, bet, call, fold, or raise.
After all betting action has been completed, the remaining players in the hand with hole cards now expose their holdings to determine a winner. This is called the showdown.
The Showdown
Players construct their hands by choosing the five best cards from the seven available
5 Card Texas Holdem Hands
The remaining players show their hole cards, and with the assistance of the dealer, a winning hand is determined.
The player with the best combination of five cards wins the pot according to the official poker hand rankings.
3. The Hands in Texas Hold'em
These hand rankings aren't specifically part of Texas hold'em rules, but apply to many different poker games.
- Royal Flush — five cards of the same suit, ranked ace through ten; e.g., A♥K♥Q♥J♥10♥
- Straight Flush — five cards of the same suit and consecutively ranked; e.g., 9♣8♣7♣6♣5♣
- Four of a Kind — four cards of the same rank; e.g., Q♣Q♥Q♦Q♠4♦
- Full House — three cards of the same rank and two more cards of the same rank; e.g., J♣J♥J♠8♦8♥
- Flush — any five cards of the same suit; e.g., A♠J♠8♠5♠2♠
- Straight — any five cards consecutively ranked; e.g., Q♣J♦10♥9♠8♦
- Three of a Kind — three cards of the same rank; e.g., 8♣8♠8♦K♣4♥
- Two Pair — two cards of the same rank and two more cards of the same rank; e.g., A♠A♣J♦J♣7♠
- One Pair — two cards of the same rank; e.g., 10♥10♣9♥4♦2♦
- High Card — five unmatched cards; e.g., A♣J♦10♠5♣2♥ would be called 'ace-high'
Players construct their hands by choosing the five best cards from the seven available (their two hole cards and the five community cards).
If the board is showing 9♣5♠K♦3♠A♥, a player with the two hole cards 9♠ would have two pair (aces and nines) and would lose to a player who has 9♦9♥ for three of a kind (three nines).
Learning hold'em poker begins with understanding how hands are dealt and the order of play as described above.
Of course, learning Texas hold'em rules is just the beginning, as the next step is to learn strategy which involves understanding what constitutes good starting hand selection, the odds and probabilities associated with the game, the significance of position and getting to act last during those post-flop betting rounds, and many other aspects of the game.
4. How to Play Texas Hold'em Games Online
Now that you know how Texas Hold'em works, it's time to put the theory into practice and play your first games.
The best way to start playing Texas Hold'em is to start from these free poker games available online and then move up to the real money action only when you feel comfortable enough to do so.
All the 'must-have poker rooms' below offer free games to practice online.
If you are completely new to the game, you should go for play money options, first. These risk-free games with fake money are an excellent way to familiarise with the different moments of play and the betting rounds.
The play money games are a great way to learn more about the hand rankings and begin to read the board fast enough to take all the right decisions at the right time.
After that, you should more to the poker freerolls. These are free poker tournaments with actual prizes on tap that range from free money to free entries into more expensive real money games.
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Introduction
Texas Hold'em is a shared card poker game. Each player is dealt two private cards and there are five face up shared (or 'community') cards on the table that can be used by anyone. In the showdown the winner is the player who can make the best five-card poker hand from the seven cards available.
Since the 1990's, Texas Hold'em has become one of the most popular poker games worldwide. Its spread has been helped firstly by a number of well publicised televised tournaments such as the World Series of Poker and secondly by its success as an online game. For many people nowadays, poker has become synonymous with Texas Hold'em.
This page assumes some familiarity with the general rules and terminology of poker. See the poker rules page for an introduction to these, and the poker betting and poker hand ranking pages for further details.
Players and Cards
From two to ten players can take part. In theory more could play, but the game would become unwieldy.
A standard international 52-card pack is used.
The Deal and Betting
Texas Hold'em is usually played with no ante, but with blinds. When there are more than two players, the player to dealer's left places a small blind, and the next player to the left a big blind. The big blind is equal to the minimum bet and the small blind is typically half that amount. When there are only two players (a 'heads-up' game), the dealer places the small blind and the non-dealer the big blind.
The cards are shuffled and cut, the dealer 'burns' one card and then deals the cards one at a time face down until each player has two cards. These are known as the player's hole cards or pocket cards. Players may look at their two hole cards and must not show them to any other player.
The first betting round is begun by the player to the left of the big blind. The blinds count as bets, so the small blind need only pay the difference between the blinds to call. The big blind player acts last and is allowed to raise, even if the other active players have all called.
After the first betting round the dealer burns one card and deals three cards face up to the table. These three cards are known as the flop. There is then a second betting round begun by the first active player to the left of the dealer seat.
When the second betting round is complete, the dealer burns a card and then deals one card face up to the table. This card is known as the turn or fourth street. There is then a third betting round, again begun by the first active player to the left of the dealer seat.
After the third betting round the dealer burns another card and deals one more card face up - the river or fifth street. There is fourth and final round of betting before the showdown, again begun by the first active player to the left of the dealer seat.
In a fixed-limit or spread-limit game, any betting round that has more than two active players at the start is normally limited to one bet plus three (sometimes four) raises. In the first (pre-flop) betting round the big blind counts for this purpose as the first bet. If a betting round begins with only two active players, there is no limit on the number of raises.
In limit poker, the betting limits are usually doubled before the third betting round. So for example a $10-$20 game would typically have blinds of $5 and $10, bets of $10 in the first two rounds and bets of $20 in the last two.
The Showdown
Active players show their hands in clockwise order, beginning with the player who was the last to bet or raise in the final betting round. If everyone checked in the final betting round, the first active player to the left of the dealer seat is the first to show. See the betting and showdown page for further details.
Each player makes the best possible five-card poker hand from the seven available cards: the player's two hole cards and the five face-up table cards, which are known as the board. This can be in any combination: both hole cards with three from the board, one hole card with four from the board, or just the board cards without using the hole cards at all, which is known as playing the board.
Note that:
- For a hand to be considered for winning the pot, the player must show both hole cards, even if only one or neither of them is used to make the best hand.
- The cards speak for themselves: the best hand is entitled to win the pot if shown, even if the owner does not realise that it is the best hand.
- As always, poker hands consist of just five cards. The two unused cards have no bearing on whether one hand is better than another.
Example. On the board is A-Q-Q-9-6. Player A has K-9; player B has 9-6; player C has 9-3. This is a three-way tie, since all three players have Q-Q-9-9-A as their best hand. The pot is split equally between A, B and C.
Strategy
Because of its great popularity as a tournament and online game, much has been written about the strategy of Texas Hold'em.
The Poker Strategy page provides a list of sites with useful Texas Hold'em Strategy articles.
The Poker Books page reviews a couple of good books about how to play Texas Hold'em.
Variations
The game described above is Texas Hold'em as played formally in public card rooms. When it is played at home, the same procedure can be used, but in some informal games the burning of cards is omitted, and the five community cards are dealt face down to the table at the start. Three of these cards are turned face up after the first betting round, one after the second and one after the third. The result is similar to the formal game, but there is an increased risk that a player might, by accident or by cheating, learn the identity of some of the table cards before they are officially exposed.
The practice of dealing the community cards to the table at the start and turning them face up later is commonly found in community card poker games with more complex layouts, such as Iron Cross and Tic-Tac-Toe. Several of these are listed on the Poker Variants page.
Pineapple
This is played the same way as Texas Hold'em, except that each player is initially dealt three hole cards and must discard one of them before the first round of betting.
Crazy Pineapple
As in Pineapple, each player is dealt three cards, but in Crazy Pineapple they are kept until after the second betting round. Each active player must discard one card immediately before the fourth board card (the turn) is dealt.
Crazy Pineapple Hi-Lo 8 or Better
Crazy Pineapple is often played in such a way that the pot is shared between the players with the highest and lowest hands. The deal and betting are exactly as in Crazy Pineapple. At the showdown, as well as making their best hand, each active player makes the lowest possible hand from their seven cards. When making a low hand, the five cards must all be of different ranks, the aces count as low, straights and flushes do not count, and no card can be higher than an 8. So the best low hand is A-2-3-4-5 and the worst is 8-7-6-5-4. Cards are compared from the top down, so 7-5-4-3-2 is better than 7-6-3-2-A because the 5 is lower than the 6. Players can use a different selection of cards for their high hand and their low hand.
The pot is split equally between the highest hand and the lowest hand. If none of the active players qualifies for low (which will automatically be the case if there are three cards higher than 8 on the board), then the player with the highest hand wins the whole pot.
Irish
This Texas Hold'em variant is similar to Crazy Pineapple, but each player is initially dealt four hole cards. These can all be kept until the end of the second round of betting. Before the fourth board card (the turn) is dealt, each active player must discard two of their hole cards, keeping just two for the turn and river.