How To Play Texas Holdem - A Beginners Guide To Success

The easiest way to learn the rules is to practice with some software. Here is a brief explanation of how to play along with links to a more detailed explanation.

There is a disk called the "Dealer Button" that sits in front of one player at the table. This player acts as the dealer for that single hand. The disk is then passed to the player to the left at the end of each hand.

Before the cards are dealt, the 2 players to the left of the dealer make forced bets known as "blinds" to start the pot. (They are known as blinds because they are making bets before they have seen their cards. These players are blind to what they have.) The player to the dealer's immediate left must put up half of the minimum bet (small blind). The second player to the dealer's left must put up the full amount of the minimum bet (big blind).

After the blinds are posted, two cards are dealt face down to each player beginning at the dealers left and continuing clockwise around the table. These are known as "hole cards" and are not shown to anyone.

The first round of betting begins with the player immediately after the big blind. (The players who have put up the small blind and big blind are considered to have already placed their bets for the first round.) Players may fold, call, or raise at least the minimum bet. For example, if the minimum bet is $4, a player must raise to $8 or more. If a player has raised to $8, another player may raise to $12 or more.

After this round of betting, three cards (known as the "flop") are dealt face up in the middle of the table. These are community cards that every player will use to make the best 5 card poker hand possible when combined with their 2 hole cards.

A second round of betting begins with the player to the dealer's left.

After the betting, another card ("fourth street") is dealt face up on the table.

A third round of betting begins with the player to the dealer's left.

After the betting, another card ("the river") is dealt face up on the table.

A final round of betting begins with the player to the dealer's left. When the betting is done, players show their hole cards and determine who has the best 5 card poker hand.

Here is a more detailed explanation of the rules.

Now, it's time to practice by yourself so that you can understand the basics of the game. Here is some free software to download and practice your game. At this point, don't worry about winning and losing, just enjoy yourself playing against computer opponents. Remember, this is just p-r-a-c-t-i-c-e.

Now that you understand the basics, it's time to play against some live competition. There are two recommended ways of doing this. First is to have a poker night with your friends. Hosting a poker night can be a lot of fun.

The second way is to take advantage of many live, free sites available online. For any reputable site, you can sign up for a free account, get 1000 chips, download some software (without any embedded adware or malware!) and begin playing in about 5 minutes. Many have features to let you chat with other players, or find and play with friends of yours.

Playing online against live competition will sharpen your skills and identify areas that you need to improve. Best of all, you haven't risked a single dime of your money in the process!