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Texas Hold'em - Rules of the game

Texas Hold'em is the most fashionable game played in casinos, although it's not the only one. Texas hold'em can be found in almost all cardrooms, and even though other games like Stud and Omaha are played, Texas Hold'em is the most common.

Having learned the rules, you must have noticed the similariy between texas hold'em and other community poker games. This is not far from the truth, since texas hold'em is a community game, in which cards are dealt faced-upwards and are shared by all players in addition to their hands. In the end of the game there will be 5 cards in the middle of the table, that players will use with the two concealed cards they have.

The Button

The button is a small chip, that's passed between players around the table, clockwise order. The button symbolizes the player who is now "dealer". This is necessary to determine which player bets first, since in poker games the player to the left of the dealer bets first. In casinos, there is a real dealer dealing the cards, to refrain from giving the gamblers an opportunity to cheat. That is why the button was created, to simulate a change of "dealer"s, just like texas hold'em is supposed to be played .

The cards are dealt at the start of each round to each player starting from the player to the left of the "dealer" (the button). In the end of every hand, the player who has the button, moves it one seat in clockwise direction, so the next hand could start.

Blinds and Pre-Flop Betting Round

This is the most complex idea to understand, for home players. Poker games must start when the pot has some money in it. If the pot has no money, there's no encouragement for the players. Most of the home games require the player for an "ante", an initial amount, to be put in the pot. Texas hold'em has no antes, but has "blind bets" that are put in the pot for starters.

This is named Blind bet because the player must put a wager before he even sees his cards. This bet is obligatory, a must for all players. In most cases two blind bets are put, the small blind and big blind. The big blind bet is set according to the fixed height of the bet in the 1st round. If you're playing a 3-6 game, the bet therefore 3 dollars. The small blind is usually half the size of the big blind. When the big bet is an odd number (and will not divide into two) the small bet is rounded either up or down, depending on the cardroom. Example: when the big blind bet is 5, the small bet is either 2 or 3.

The first player to place a blind bet is the player to the left of the dealer, he places a small blind. The player to the left of him places a big blind. These two bets are a must, and placed before the cards were dealt. They are actually the starting of a betting round. Then, two cards are dealt to each player and starting from the left of the player who bet the big blind, the gamblers can decide their action - see & call, see & raise or fold. When the round gets to the small blind player, he must put the difference between his bet and the big blind bet, and also the raises of the rest of the players. The big blind better must make up for any raises made in that round, and is able to raise.

Another important difference between home and casino Texas hold'em poker, is in that when a bet is placed and none of the other players raises it (call or fold to it), he who placed the bet cannot raise it. In texas Hold'em, this is permitted, but only to the player who placed a big blind bet, because it was obligatory. The daler must signal to the big blind bettor by asking "Option?", before continuing the game.

When all the players have put the same amount in the pot, the betting round is finished.

The Flop

The top card in the deck is burned, and three cards are dealt face-up and put in the middle of the table. Blind bets are not put during the first 3 rounds of betting, they are normal rounds. The round is started with the player to the left of the dealer, and continues clockwise like a regular round.

A 3-6 table means: 1. the big blind is 3 dollars. 2. each raise must be 3 dollars (so if you want to see and raise you must put 6 dollars). 3. each call must be by multiplications of 3 (if you call two bets and raise in the same time you put 9 dollars). In such a table you don't need to declare how much money you put, only your action, because it will always be a fixed amount.

After the betting round, the turn begins.

The Turn

Another card is burned from the top of the deck, and one more card is dealt to the middle of the table, thus starting another betting round.

If this is a 3-6 table, this will now cause the betting factor to be 6. this means that now all bets and raises are on a 6 dollar basis.

The river

Last, the final card is dealt to the middle of the table, and another betting round starts. Like before, the fixed amount for betting/raising is 6.

The showdown

Gamblers that still havn't folded now uncover their hands, to decide who wins the round. A hand is set by using the 2 hole cards (hidden) the player was dealt in the beginning of the round, combined with the 5 communal cards that were dealt to the middle of the table, to form the best five cards poker hand.

Sometimes the communal cards form the best hand themselves without using the hole cards. This case is called "playing the board". the best that can happen in this case is tying with another player who's also using these cards, else you defiantly lose.

Another thing about tying a hand with other players, is that both players are winners and the pot is split between them. For example if two players have flushes of the same rank, they divide the pot in the middle and each receive a portion.

Summary

Texas hold'em is a collective poker game, in which 2 cards are dealt to each player at the beginning of the round, and 5 cards are dealt to the middle of the table. Just as in every collective poker game, you must make up the best 5-card poker hand out of your cards and the communal cards.

Like other collective poker games, the way in which the communal cards are dealt varies. In texas hold'em, the first 3 cards are dealt at the same time ("Flop"), next comes the forth card ("Turn"), and then the fifth card ("River"). After each communal dealing a betting round is preformed. The fixed amount for betting, raising and calling is set by the table's limit. A 3-6 table initially sets the amount to 3, and in the final two rounds the amount is 6.

This concludes the rules of playing "Texas Hold'em", the most popular poker game in casinos and online casinos.