TEXAS HOLD’EM POKER​

 

In Texas Hold’em Poker game, the dealer deals two cards at the beginning of each round (not to be shown) and there are five cards face-up on the table. Every player then uses their two cards (or one or none of those cards) in combination with five face-up cards to create the best probable hand. The player with the best hand secures the round.

BASIC RULES OF THE GAME

In a nutshell, every player is dealt 2 private cards (‘Pocket Cards’ or ‘Hole Cards’), after which there is a betting round. Then three community cards are dealt face up (the ‘Flop’), followed by a 2nd betting round. A 4th community card is dealt face up (the ‘Turn’), followed by a 3rd betting round. A 5th community card is dealt face up (the ‘River’) and the 4th and final betting round. At the Showdown, every participant plays the best five-card hand they can create using any 5 cards from the 2 pocket cards and the 5 community cards (or ‘Board Cards’). A player with the best hand according to the hand ranking rules secures the round i.e. the Pot (Pot is the sum of money that participants bet during each hand. After every betting round, all bets go into the Pot until the Showdown).

To commence the game, the dealer deals two cards at the beginning of each hand (round), which are not supposed to show to the rivals. In poker, the action moves to the left. Two forced bets, called the ‘blinds’ will have to be placed into the ‘Pot’ (potential winning amount). Big blinds are always double the number of small blinds. The participant sitting left of the dealer lays the small blind on the table and the player sitting left of him laid the big blind.

As soon as the blinds are laid, the player on the left side of the big blind will have to determine whether they wish to play the hand. Players have 3 choices to choose from. They can:

• Fold – This is the situation where the player does not wish to participate in the hand and gives up the cards i.e. Surrenders.
• Call – This simply includes matching the big blind as a signal of participation in the hand.
• Raise – This includes raising the bet at a minimum of double the big blinds and it’s a clear sign of a strong hand.

Once the initial bets are laid, the dealer has to deal the first 3 cards, known as ‘the flop’. After the flop, another betting round occurs, beginning from the player who laid the small blind, always moving to the left. Participants are not forced to bet, as they also have a choice to ‘check’, meaning they do not place a bet and would like to see the next card for free. If all players check, the next card is dealt. If one participant bets, once again, everyone will wait their turn to determine whether they decide to fold, call or raise.

The next card to be dealt is known as ‘the turn’. This is the 4th card and another betting round takes place, giving players one more chance to decide whether they wish to stay in the hand. The last and final card is known as the ‘river’. After the final round of betting, the action ends there, where players will have to show their hole cards. To make a poker hand, participants must merge their hole cards with any three of the five cards dealt by the dealer or use the cards dealt by the dealer to create a hand. The player with the best hand secures the pot.