Texas Hold 'Em
Texas Hold 'Em is a popular version of the cardgame poker, played in casinos, home games and online. At the Main Event of the World Series of Poker, the winner receives millions of dollars. Millions of people play Texas Hold 'Em, but, ironically, it is not legal to play Texas Hold 'Em in Texas!
Choosing the Dealer
The dealer position is determined in one of two ways. In tournaments, players pick numbers to determine both table and position. In single table games, the deck of cards is spread out on the table and each player flips up one card.
The ranking of cards is the usual one in poker, such that Ace > King > Queen, and so on. If two players should pick the same high card, then the suits of the cards determine the dealer. The priority of suits is in reverse alphabetical order, that is spades > hearts > diamonds > clubs.
The Initial Deal
Before the deal, the player imediately to the left of the dealer is mandated to place a bet, called the small blind, and the next player to the left of the dealer if mandated to place a bet twice as large, called the big blind. The name "blind" derives from the fact that these bets are laid before any cards have been seen. The amount of the blinds increase as the games progresses, generally based on time.
Cards are dealt face down, one at a time, in a clockwise direction starting with the player to the left of the dealer, until each player holds two cards. After the initial two cards are dealt, the player to the left of the big blind is the first to act, as the prior two players have already made their bets. That player can fold his hand, match the big blind, or, if he wishes to raise, must at least double the big blind. Each subsequent player to the left can then match the current bet, raise, or fold. If no player has raised the bet, the player in the big blind position may raise, fold, or check (keep playing but make no raise).
Community Cards: The Flop, Turn and River
After the first round of betting indicated above, three community cards, called the flop, are dealt face up, which all players can use, and a second round of betting ensues. Unlike the first betting round, in which the person third to the left of the dealer is first to act, in this and all subsequent rounds of betting the player to the immediate left of the dealer is first to act. After the second round of betting, a fourth community card, called the turn, is dealt face up and another round of betting occurs. Finally, a fifth community card, called the river, is dealt face up and the final round of betting follows. In years past, the fifth community card, now referred to as the river, was called the turn.
Making a hand
Each player still remaining in the pot makes his hand using the best five cards possible out of the two cards in his hand and the five community cards that are displayed face up. The cards "speak for themselves", meaning that if a player inadvertently calls out a hand weaker than his best possible hand, he still gets to play his best hand. It sometimes occurs that the best hand possible uses all five of the community cards, in which case the players remaining in the hand split the pot.
Poker Hand Rankings
Texas Hold 'Em poker hand strengths follow the same ordering as in other poker games, as outlined below:
| Hand | Description |
|---|---|
| Royal Flush | Ace-King-Queen-Jack-Ten in one suit |
| Straight Flush | A straight and a flush, starting below an ace |
| Full House ("A boat") | three of a kind (a "set") and two of a kind (a "pair") |
| Flush | Five cards in the same suit |
| Straight | Five sequential cards. An ace can be played as a one. |
| Three of a Kind (a "set") | Three cards of the same number |
| Two Pair | Such as Ten-Ten & 4-4 |
| A Pair | Two cards of the same number, such as jack-jack |
| High Card | The highest card in the players hand |