Texas Holdem Poker is considered one of the most popular poker variations widely played in the United States. Although, many popular online poker websites in India allow users to participate in this worldwide popular poker game. Because of its simplicity and popularity, Texas Hold ’em has spawned many strategy books that detail correctly playing the game. This game’s popularity sky-rocketed back in the 2000s because of high exposure on television and the web. During this period, Hold ’em surpassed all other types of poker as the most popular game in casinos in the United States.
The game rules of Texas Hold’em Poker might be perplexing at times for most of the novices. This article will take you through the fundamentals of Texas Hold’em, including how bets are put, how hands are dealt, and how the winners are chosen.
Beginning of the Game
At the beginning of the game, each player is given two private cards (Hole Cards or Pocket Cards). Once they both get the cards, a betting round is made. The “Flop,” consisting of three community cards, is faced up, followed by a second betting round. After a third betting round, a fourth community card is dealt face-up, commonly known as the “Turn.” The fourth and final betting round begins after a fifth communal card, i.e., the “River” is faced up. At the end of the game, each participant has to make the most delicate five-card hand they can with any five cards from the two pocket cards and the five communal cards.
Now, let’s look at all of the essential features of a Texas hold ’em game, including the various table positions and betting rounds.
The Dealer Button
When the game of Texas poker begins, a fictitious dealer is appointed. Although the computer handles all of the dealings in online poker, this notional dealer is significant because it signifies who places the mandatory bets (referred to as blinds) before each hand and who is the first to react in every betting round.
After each hand, the dealer button goes towards the following player towards the left of the present dealer and continues to move clockwise after each hand is completed.
The Blinds
Before each new hand begins, two players must post small and large blinds at the table. The blinds are the initial forced bets in the game. The game would’ve been highly monotonous without any of these blinds since nobody would be obligated to invest any money into the pot, and players could wait until they have pocket aces (AA). Because of these blinds, every hand will have some amount of ‘activity.’
Pre-Flop: The First Betting Round
Following the posting of the blinds, two cards are dealt face down towards each participant at the table. These two cards are known as the “hole cards.” Hole cards are only visible to each player. The first betting round begins at this stage, and each player must decide how to proceed depending on the merits of their hole cards.
They can choose from the following options:
- Call- If the other player has raised, call the large blind’s value or the maximum bet, and join the hand.
- Fold- Don’t play this hand and discard the cards right away.
- Raise- Make a more excellent bet than the one you’re now making. If a player wishes to keep playing, they will have to call your additional chance. The options are fold, call, or wager. If they decide to call, they must equal the amount of the big blind, and the raise has to be equal to or more than the size of the Big Blind. There is no limit to how much you can raise in No Limit. If you want, you can even increase your whole stack.
Flop- The Second Betting Round
After completing the first preflop betting round, the first three community cards are dealt with, followed by a second betting round, including only the players that have not yet folded. During this round of betting, the game begins with the first active participant placed on the left side of the button. In addition to the choices to call, bet, raise or fold, a player can now ‘check’ if no betting action has taken place before.
Followed by these rounds, there are two more steps before the showdown, i.e., the third betting round- The Turn and the final betting round- the river.
These are some of the basic steps and round every poker player should know about if they are interested in a Texas Holdem poker game.
Conclusion
If you want to experience the best online real poker game and earn huge cash prizes, then Texas Holdem is just for you. Follow the above steps, study the game a bit more, keep practicing, and you will excel in this online card game with time.
To Know More Details List of Poker Hands, check here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_poker_hands