How to Play Texas Hold‘Em – Hold’em Poker Rules
When players start learning about poker games, they first learn how to play Texas Hold’em. This version is the overall most popular one as it combines relatively simple gameplay with the opportunity for significant wins and the use of psychology to outmanoeuvre opponents.
Learning Texas Hold’em rules is the first step in understanding this captivating game. You’ll find all the basic information you require to play this game for free or with real money as well as helpful strategies that should allow you to join online poker rooms with confidence.
What is Texas Hold’em?
The game of Texas Hold’em evolved from original poker and features community cards. In what has become the most popular variant of poker in the world, each player receives two cards face down, called hole cards. In addition, up to five community cards are dealt face-up in the centre of the table.
As Texas Hold’em poker rules dictate, the game’s objective is beating all opponents by having the strongest five-card hand using any combination of the seven available cards. However, unlike in most other card games, players can use psychology, strategy, and clever manoeuvring to outsmart active players and win.
Texas Hold’em Rules
To learn how to play poker Texas Hold’em, you must start by learning the basic rules and stages of the game. Every professional player starts by learning these and knowing them is essential to understand the game’s dynamics. With this knowledge, you’ll be better prepared to make informed decisions and develop winning strategies
Game Setup
- Participation – Before being allowed to join a table and play for real, participants may need to pay a buy-in. This ensures that players have something to play more. Moreover, during the game, the operator takes a poker rake to cover its expenses. In tournaments, this is often part of the buy-in, though different rake mechanisms are available.
- Players and the dealer – Texas Hold’em can be played with two to 10 participants around a table. A dealer button moves clockwise after each hand, determining the order of play. The first player to the dealer’s left is the small blind, and the next play to the left is the big blind.
- Texas Hold’em big blind small blind rules – The small blind and big blind are mandatory bets that start each game. The big blind is double the small blind and serves as the minimum bet that players need to match to stay in the game. Big and small blinds travel across the table, so over multiple turns, each player must place either wager.
Handy Tip: Texas Hold’em is a type of multiplayer poker game where players play against others, not the dealer or the house. During this game, the dealer ensures that players follow the rules and helps to move the game along. The casino receives a percentage of the prize pot as payment. In other variants, such as 3 Card Poker, the player plays against the dealer in a similar format to blackjack.
The Deal
- Hole cards – Each player receives two cards which are dealt to him or her face down. Each player should be careful not to show these hole cards to others.
- The first betting round – Once the blinds have been placed, the game moves on to the Pre-Flop starting with the player sitting on the left-hand side of the big blind. This player begins the betting by choosing to fold, call, or raise. The action continues clockwise around the table.
Handy Tip: If you’re not familiar with the different types of bets, we recommend viewing our how to play poker page. You can learn more about bluffing and how to claim different poker bonuses.
The Community Cards and Betting Rounds
- The Flop – The first three co-called community cards are spread face-up on the table. When the dealing is complete, players take turns placing bets.
- The Turn – The fourth community card is revealed, and is, once again, followed by more betting.
- The River – The fifth community card is also the final one and is dealt face-up, leading to the final opportunity for players to place bets.
Handy Tip: Poker rules for Texas Hold’em dictate that the game should only progress if there are two or more players still in the game. Using bluffs to dissuade your opponents from continuing to play during the various betting rounds often proves to be a much more effective way to win than hoping to get the strongest hand.
The Showdown
- Best hand wins – The winner according to Texas Hold’em rules is simple to identify. Following the final round of betting, each player shows his or her hole cards and the one with the strongest hand according to the game’s hand rankings wins the pot.
Handy Tip: If all other players fold before the game reaches the showdown, the last player standing wins the pot. The player can choose whether to show the hold cards or keep them private. Moreover, unlike Omaha Poker rules, players can use any combination of hole and community cards to form their strongest hand.
Texas Hold’em Rules Step by Step
With a better understanding of how to play Texas Hold’em poker, let's move on to a typical game.
Step 1: Posting the Blinds
The game begins with the small blind and big blind being posted by the two players on the left of the dealer. This ensures that there is money to play for. If it’s not your turn to post either bet, you won’t need to do anything at this stage of the game.
Step 2: Getting the Hole Cards
You’ll receive your two hole cards which, if you’re playing at a land-based casino, must do everything you can to keep hidden from others. You will probably use one or both of these cards to create your hand.
Step 3: Pre-Flop
When it’s your turn, you can decide whether to fold, call the big blind, or raise. Following this stage, the dealer will place the first three community cards face-up in the centre of the table. This moment is known as the flop.
Step 4: The Turn
Unless you have folded, you will once more be asked to participate in a round of betting. When all player bets are equal, the dealer deals the fourth community card, known as the turn.
Step 5: The River
Once more, unless you have folded, you will participate in another round of betting which is then followed by the fifth community card, called the river.
Step 6: The Showdown
The river is followed by the final round of betting as long as there are still two or more players left. If you are still in the game following this round, you’ll show your cards and the dealer will determine which player has the strongest hand.
How Do Hand Rankings Work in Texas Hold’em?
Texas Hold’em rules feature 10 winning hand rankings that qualify for consideration during the showdown. While possibly confusing at first, you should quickly become familiar with them after playing for some time. Nevertheless, the best poker sites feature these rankings, so you can always refer to them if you need to.
To help you understand how hand rankings work, we’ve created three examples where we identify the strongest hand for each of two players. Once you’ve familiarised yourself with them, we recommend learning key poker terms to understand different actions and situations.
Hand Ranking Example 1
| Hole Cards Player 1 | Hole Cards Player 2 | Community Cards |
| A♠ and K♠ | 10♥ and 9♥ | Q♠, J♠, 3♣, 7♦, and 2♠ |
- Winning hand – Player 1 has a Flush (A♠, K♠, Q♠, J♠, and 2♠) while Player 2 has a High Card (Q♠) and loses the pot.
Hand Ranking Example 2
| Hole Cards Player 1 | Hole Cards Player 2 | Community Cards |
| 8♣ and 8♦ | A♥ and K♦ | 8♥, 4♠, 9♦, 2♣, and 5♠ |
- Winning hand – Player 1 has a Three of a Kind (8♣, 8♦, and 8♥) while Player 2 has a High Card (A♥), so Player 1 wins.
Hand Ranking Example 3
| Hole Cards Player 1 | Hole Cards Player 2 | Community Cards |
| 7♠ and 6♠ | Q♥ and 10♣ | 5♠, 8♠, 4♠, 2♥, and 10♠ |
- Winning hand – Player 1 has a Straight Flush (8♠, 7♠, 6♠, 5♠, and 4♠), a very strong hand that is only beaten by a Royal Flush. Player 2’s strongest hand is a Pair (10♠ and 10♣), which loses against a Straight Flush.
Free Texas Hold’em Vs Texas Hold’em For Real Money
Some of the best casino sites in the UK allow you to play this popular card game for free and with money. Playing for free is excellent for beginners who want to learn how to play Texas Hold’em without financial risk. However, playing for real offers a more thrilling experience and is the only way to win cash pots.
The following table outlines key differences between playing Texas Hold’em for free or with real money.
| Feature | Free Texas Hold’em | Real Money Texas Hold’em |
| Financial risk | No risk of losing money | Real risk with the potential of losing money |
| Stakes | No stakes since the game features worthless chips or credits | Real stakes that get higher as the prize pot grows |
| Behaviour | Casual and often less serious | Serious and competitive play |
| Payouts | No real cash payouts | Opportunity to win real money prizes |
| Player pool | Often includes absolute beginners | A combination of beginners and seasoned players |
Types of Texas Hold’em Cash Games and Tournaments
A poker game can be structured in several ways, especially in terms of Texas Hold’em betting rules.
- No Limit Texas Hold’em – This is the most popular and widely recognised format, especially in tournaments like the World Series of Poker. In no limit Hold’em, players can bet any amount of their chips at any time, up to their entire stack. This creates a highly dynamic and aggressive game where the potential for large pots and big bluffs is high.
- Pot Limit Texas Hold’em – In this format, the maximum bet a player can make is equal to the size of the current pot. As a result, this format strikes a balance between the aggressive potential of No Limit Hold’em and the more controlled betting seen in limit games.
- Limit Texas Hold’em – In this format, all bets and raises are set to a fixed amount. For example, in a £10/£20 limit game, all bets in the first two rounds are in increments of £10, and in later rounds, they are in increments of £20. This format is preferred amongst beginners and players looking to gamble responsibly as it avoids the stress of higher stakes than a player may be comfortable with.
Playing Texas Hold’em at Online Casinos
While only a few UK gambling sites offer regular Texas Hold’em games, many top live casinos provide a variant of this popular card game. These games allow you to put your knowledge of hand rankings and poker strategy to good use whilst enjoying shorter games with fewer variables.
Similar to playing online blackjack, live dealer Texas Hold’em games make the dealer your opponent. Instead of needing to beat every other player at the table, your only concern needs to be getting a stronger hand than the dealer’s. Some players prefer this type of gameplay as it removes the risk of being bluffed out of the game.
One of the most popular live dealer versions of the game is Ultimate Texas Holdem by Evolution Gaming. Ultimate Texas Hold’em rules are very similar to the traditional game and begin with you placing an ante bet and a blind bet. The dealer then deals the community cards in stages, and just like in the classic gameplay, your objective is to beat the dealer with a stronger hand.
FAQs
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