Texas Hold’em Poker is widely played poker game and is quite popular at casinos both online and live casinos. Before playing this game you should know the rules of this game and how it is played. Let us explore here what Texas Hold’em is all about.
Texas Hold’em- A poker game
It is a type of poker. Two cards are dealt face down to each player, and five more cards are placed facing upwards by the dealer. These five cards are laid in sequence, and all players make use of them in their hands. The first three cards also known as the flop are placed, followed by the forth also the turn, and the fifth known as the river. Between each of these sequences, players can bet, raise, fold, and so forth. The game ends when all but one player folds, or several players enter a showdown and compare hands.
Players compete for the pool of betting chips known as the pot. Players try and influence the amount of money in the pot depending on how good they think their hand is. They bet depending on how confident they are in their prediction.
The objective of Texas Hold’em
Its objective of Texas hold’em is not to win every single hand, but to maximize your long term winnings. Players may spend more than a dozen straight hands folding before receiving a hand they want to play, and many played hands end in folding as well. Knowing when to play, raise, or fold, is crucial to achieving this objective.
Variations in Texas Hold’em
The four major variations of Hold’em are distinguished from each other by their betting limits:
- Limit Texas Hold’em: There is a pre-determined betting limit on each round of betting.
- No Limit Texas Hold’em: A player can bet any amount, up to all of their chips.
- Pot Limit Texas Hold’em: A player can bet any amount, up to the size of the pot.
- Mixed Texas Hold’em: The game switches between rounds of Limit Texas Hold’em and No Limit Texas Hold’em.
Each of these Hold’em variations are available to play for free money or for real money.
Rules in Texas Hold’em
The Blinds
In Hold’em, a marker called ‘the button’ or ‘the dealer button’ indicates which player is the nominal dealer for the current game. Before the game begins, the player immediately clockwise from the button posts the “small blind”, the first forced bet. The player immediately clockwise from the small blind posts the “big blind”, which is typical twice the size of the small blind, but the blinds can vary depending on the stakes and betting structure being played.
1. In limit games
The big blind is the same as the small bet, and the small blind is typically half the size of the big blind but may be larger depending on the stakes. For example, in a $2/$4 Limit game the small blind is $1 and the big blind is $2. In a $15/$30 Limit game, the small blind is $10 and the big blind is $15.
2. In pot limit and no limit games
The games are referred to by the size of their blinds for example, a $1/$2 Hold’em game has a small blind of $1 and a big blind of $2. Depending on the exact structure of the game, each player may also be required to post an ‘ante’ another type of forced bet, usually smaller than either blind, posted by all players at the table into the pot. Now, each player receives his or her two hole cards. Betting action proceeds clockwise around the table, starting with the player ‘under the gun’ (immediately clockwise from the big blind.
Options to bet in Texas Hold’em
In this game, as with other forms of poker, the available actions are ‘fold’, ‘check’, ‘bet’, ‘call’ or ‘raise’. Exactly which options are available depends on the action taken by the previous players. Each poker player always has the option to fold, discard their cards and give up any interest in the pot. If nobody has yet made a bet, then a player may either check decline to bet, but keep their cards or bet. If a player has bet, then subsequent players can fold, call or raise. To call is to match the amount the previous player has bet. To raise is to not only match the previous bet but to also increase it.
1. Pre-Flop
After seeing his or her hole cards, each player now has the option to play his or her hand by calling or raising the big blind. The action begins to the left of the big blind, which is considered a ‘live’ bet on this round. That player has the option to fold, call or raise. For example, if the big blind was $2, it would cost $2 to call, or at least $4 to raise. Action then proceeds clockwise around the table.
The betting structure varies with different variations of the game.
2. Limit Texas Hold’em
Betting in Limit Hold’em is in pre-determined, structured amounts. Pre-flop and on the flop, all bets and raises are of the same amount as the big blind. On the turn and the river, the size of all bets and raises doubles. In Limit Hold’em, up to four bets are allowed per player during each betting round. This includes a (1) bet, (2) raise, (3) re-raise, and (4) cap (final raise).
3. No Limit Texas Hold’em
The minimum bet in No Limit Hold’em is the same as the size of the big blind, but players can always bet as much more as they want, up to all of their chips. In No Limit Hold’em, the raise amount must be at least as much as the previous bet or raise in the same round. As an example, if the first player to act bets $5 then the second player must raise a minimum of $5 with total bet of $10. The size of your stack that is your chips on the table. In No Limit Hold’em, there is no ‘cap’ on the number of raises allowed.
4. Pot Limit Texas Hold’em
The minimum bet in Pot Limit Hold’em is the same as the size of the big blind, but players can always bet up to the size of the pot. The raise amount must be at least as much as the previous bet or raise in the same round. As an example, if the first player to act bets $5 then the second player must raise a minimum of $5 (total bet of $10). The size of the pot, which is defined as the total of the active pot plus all bets on the table plus the amount the active player must first call before raising. In Pot Limit Hold’em, there is no ‘cap’ on the number of raises allowed.
5. Mixed Texas Hold’em
In Mixed Hold’em, the game switches between rounds of Limit Hold’em and No Limit Hold’em. The blinds are typically increased when the game switches from No Limit to Limit, to ensure some consistency in the average pot size in each game.
Thus these are the most popular form of poker today, and is the most common game played in online casinos. It is simple game to learn with a little practice and you can become efficient in playing and master the tactics if you concentrate on your betting and the rules of the game. Practice for free to have your hands set on this poker game before you venture out for some real money play.
