Guide To Texas Holdem Poker
Texas Hold’em is the most popular poker game type among all. Most of the tournaments around the world including WSOP, WPT, EPT, etc. are played under Texas Hold’em variant. It is a game which is easy to learn but difficult to master. There is an almost infinite number of possible situations which makes the game more complex than just understanding the rules. If you are playing for the first time, here is how to play texas holdem poker.
Each player on the table is dealt two hole cards as a start for making the best of five-card hand. The game is played clockwise around the table, starting from the left side of the dealer button. The first two players on the left are supposed to post a small blind and a large blind respectively to initiate the betting, and then the other actions occur.
Button
A button is an object which determines the acting dealer. In Texas hold’em, the dealer keeps switching to the person in the left after every hand. The last active players closest to the button on the right side receives the last action on all post-flop streets of play. However, you do not have to worry about the dealer when playing in a casino. The staff dealers handle the duty of dealing the cards, and the rest of the process of blinds and last action remains the same for players.
Blinds
Before every round, two players at the table are obligated to post blinds. It is called forced bets and is meant to start the betting. Without the blinds, the game can get boring as there will be no money in the pot if no one feels lucky. As the number of players keeps decreasing, the blinds need to be increased as fewer people mean more stack and the game needs some pace. However, in cash games, the blinds always remain the same for the entire game time.
The Aim of the Game
The aim of the game is to hold the best combination of cards. Please check the poker combination sequence if you do not know it yet. In Texas hold’em, each player receives two cards which they cannot show to other players till the end of the game. There are five cards on the table face down which are turned to make possible combinations with the two cards that each player has.
The round of bet
The round of betting takes place after all the players receive their cards. The actions that players take are called:
Call: To match the amount of the big blind or the highest bid in the table in the clockwise direction.
Raise: To increase the bet within the specific limits of the game.
Fold: To put down the cards and throw the hand away.
If a player folds the cards, he or she can no longer play or win the running hand. The amount that a player can raise depends on the limits of the game that is being played.
