Playing poker may seem pretty easy to the casual observer, but when you actually start to learn poker and begin to see the intricacies in the game and how much psychology plays a part in it, then you will realize just how much there is to it when you want to learn how to play Texas Hold Em poker, the most popular poker game by far in the civilized world. It is not as simple as it seems.
Because Texas Hold Em is the most popular form of poker today, every time you surf the TV channels you will inevitably run across a poker tournament and the game they are playing is always Texas Hold Em. Most likely because the favor is there in the viewing audience, but also because it is an easy form of poker to watch----there are a lot of cards face up on the table during the play, so you can watch the progress of the game and understand the betting process better. If you know how to play Texas Hold Em, you have a better grasp of what is going on when the players are betting because you can see what the hole cards are held by each player and the MC of the tournament usually keeps you abreast of the play.
To start the actual play for this form of poker, the dealer------who is designated by a dealers button that is placed in front of him-----calls for the players to put all enforced bets into the pot. Called antes or blinds, these bets are started by the player sitting immediately to the left of the dealer who puts in the first blind bet called the small blind. The next player to the dealers left is now in line to post the second blind bet and this is called the big blind----a point here to remember is that in Texas Hold Em games, the small blind is of the big blind bet. Now the actual card dealing begins, and if you know how to play Texas Hold Em, you know that the dealer will deal two cards to each player face down so no one else can see what they are except the player to whom they are dealt, and these are referred to as the "hole" cards. Each player scrutinizes their own hole cards and decides from that holding if he should continue to play, or throw in his cards and fold.
The betting starts after the two hole cards are dealt, and the player to the left of the big blind starts the betting. He will either check, call, raise, or fold; and the betting proceeds around the table until all players have placed a bet or folded their cards. Next, the dealer will deal 3 cards face up on the table so all players can see them---these are the community cards or the "flop". The betting proceeds again with the player to the left of the dealer initiating the betting. After all players still in the game have placed their bets, then the dealer places another community card face up on the table---this is referred to as the "turn". This is when it is important to know how to play Texas Hold Em poker because you must evaluate your two hole cards with the 4 cards face up on the table and decide if you have a running chance to make any kind of a good hand that can win the pot. If it looks pretty bleak, then you should fold.
Now the 5th community card hits the table face up and this is the card called the "river". This is the time when all the players who are still alive in the game will look at the 5 cards sitting face up and knowing what they have in the hole with their two hidden cards, will decide how to bet or fold by what kind of a 5 card combo can they make that will possibly win the pot. This is when it really pays off to know how to play Texas Hold Em poker because there may be players sitting still in the game at this point that are trying to bluff their hand, and they really don't have much to bet with at all. They are just making you think they do to up the ante, and possibly fool you into folding because you think you don't have a chance of beating what you think they are holding. Psychology plays a big part in this game.
The final round of betting has now taken place, and all players that are still playing at this point must show their hands. The player with the best 5 card combo ------that includes the cards on the table that are face up for you to use, and the 2 hole cards that you have------the best combo from all these cards will win the pot. If it turns out that there are 2 players who have identical hands in value, then they must split the pot. Sometimes it happens that the hole cards that each player has, are not worth anything as far as making up a winning 5 card combo, and the face up (community cards) cards on the table are the best combination overall for everyone. In that case, the pot is split by all the players that are in the game at this point. The dealer button now is moved clockwise to the next player, and he now is the designated dealer for the next hand.
You'll find that if you learn how to play Texas Hold Em, that a whole new world of fun, excitement, strategy, and psychology will open up for you in a way you can only imagine. Texas Hold Em truly is the most popular form of poker, and this is for good reason---it has wonderful strategy, fun to play, relatively easy to learn, and something that will make you want to keep playing for years and years.
Because Texas Hold Em is the most popular form of poker today, every time you surf the TV channels you will inevitably run across a poker tournament and the game they are playing is always Texas Hold Em. Most likely because the favor is there in the viewing audience, but also because it is an easy form of poker to watch----there are a lot of cards face up on the table during the play, so you can watch the progress of the game and understand the betting process better. If you know how to play Texas Hold Em, you have a better grasp of what is going on when the players are betting because you can see what the hole cards are held by each player and the MC of the tournament usually keeps you abreast of the play.
To start the actual play for this form of poker, the dealer------who is designated by a dealers button that is placed in front of him-----calls for the players to put all enforced bets into the pot. Called antes or blinds, these bets are started by the player sitting immediately to the left of the dealer who puts in the first blind bet called the small blind. The next player to the dealers left is now in line to post the second blind bet and this is called the big blind----a point here to remember is that in Texas Hold Em games, the small blind is of the big blind bet. Now the actual card dealing begins, and if you know how to play Texas Hold Em, you know that the dealer will deal two cards to each player face down so no one else can see what they are except the player to whom they are dealt, and these are referred to as the "hole" cards. Each player scrutinizes their own hole cards and decides from that holding if he should continue to play, or throw in his cards and fold.
The betting starts after the two hole cards are dealt, and the player to the left of the big blind starts the betting. He will either check, call, raise, or fold; and the betting proceeds around the table until all players have placed a bet or folded their cards. Next, the dealer will deal 3 cards face up on the table so all players can see them---these are the community cards or the "flop". The betting proceeds again with the player to the left of the dealer initiating the betting. After all players still in the game have placed their bets, then the dealer places another community card face up on the table---this is referred to as the "turn". This is when it is important to know how to play Texas Hold Em poker because you must evaluate your two hole cards with the 4 cards face up on the table and decide if you have a running chance to make any kind of a good hand that can win the pot. If it looks pretty bleak, then you should fold.
Now the 5th community card hits the table face up and this is the card called the "river". This is the time when all the players who are still alive in the game will look at the 5 cards sitting face up and knowing what they have in the hole with their two hidden cards, will decide how to bet or fold by what kind of a 5 card combo can they make that will possibly win the pot. This is when it really pays off to know how to play Texas Hold Em poker because there may be players sitting still in the game at this point that are trying to bluff their hand, and they really don't have much to bet with at all. They are just making you think they do to up the ante, and possibly fool you into folding because you think you don't have a chance of beating what you think they are holding. Psychology plays a big part in this game.
The final round of betting has now taken place, and all players that are still playing at this point must show their hands. The player with the best 5 card combo ------that includes the cards on the table that are face up for you to use, and the 2 hole cards that you have------the best combo from all these cards will win the pot. If it turns out that there are 2 players who have identical hands in value, then they must split the pot. Sometimes it happens that the hole cards that each player has, are not worth anything as far as making up a winning 5 card combo, and the face up (community cards) cards on the table are the best combination overall for everyone. In that case, the pot is split by all the players that are in the game at this point. The dealer button now is moved clockwise to the next player, and he now is the designated dealer for the next hand.
You'll find that if you learn how to play Texas Hold Em, that a whole new world of fun, excitement, strategy, and psychology will open up for you in a way you can only imagine. Texas Hold Em truly is the most popular form of poker, and this is for good reason---it has wonderful strategy, fun to play, relatively easy to learn, and something that will make you want to keep playing for years and years.
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Dean Evert puts forth information and articles on the subject of poker strategies ebook. For more information on Poker Tips Online visit our site.
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