1. PokerStars description of Texas Hold'em rules; PokerStars in-depth explanation of poker hand rankings; Betting Rules. You should know how betting in poker works. Understand the terms bet, raise, call, check, fold, and all-in. Check-raising means checking and then later raising in the same betting round. Know what a blind is.
  2. We will guide you through the fundamental knowledge and the best Texas hold’em poker tips that give you an edge over your competitors. Texas Hold’em Rules. Like most poker games, Hold’em also requires forced bets by two players, indicating the small and big blind bets. The bet of the big blind will have to be double that of the small blind.

HOW TO PLAY TEXAS HOLDEM POKER ?

Basic Texas Hold’Em Poker Gameplay In this super popular poker game there are four “rounds” of bets during which players can bet, bluff, or back out depending on the strength of their hands. As each level passes, more community cards are dealt to give them a better idea of how strong their hand is and the probability of their opponents.

In the beginning, two cards are dealt face down to each player; these cards are known as “hole cards”. This is followed by a round of betting. In Texas Holdem, the betting starts with a small blind, to the left of the dealer that is followed by a big blind. These are compulsory or forced bets that must be made before seeing one’s cards. Play runs clockwise starting from the blinds, with each player having the option to fold, call, or raise. The blinds are “live”, meaning that they may raise their bets when the action gets back around to them.


Again the next 3 cards are dealt face up in the middle of the table; this is called the “flop”. A round of betting follows, with action starting from the first blind, i.e. immediately to the dealers left. Another card is dealt face up (called the “Turn”), followed by another round of betting, again beginning to the dealer’s left. Then the final card (the “River”) is dealt which is followed by the final round of betting.


Texas Holdem is played for high cards only, and each player makes the best five-card combination to win the pot. Players may or may not use both their hole cards to make their best hand. A player may even choose to use all the 5 cards on the table i.e. “play the board” & use no hole cards at all. For Poker Hands Ranking, please click on the Poker Hands Ranking link.


Note: This information is provided to just give you an overview of the game; to understand and master the game completely, it is advisable that you browse articles about how to play poker on the internet and watch some poker videos which might help you to improve your game. If you are new to online poker, then we suggest you to start playing online poker with play-money so that you have some hands on experience with online poker before you start playing with real money.

KNOW YOUR TERMS

Blinds

Blinds are designed to induce player participation and betting by forcing players to have a monetary stake in the game. Otherwise, there would be no financial motivation for players to collect more chips in a timely manner. Over the course of a game or tournament the blinds periodically increase in amount in order to compensate for the increased size of chip stacks. By manipulating the size of the big blind or the amount of time between increases it's possible to control the duration and stakes of a poker game.


The small blind is placed by the player to the left of the dealer button and the big blind is then posted by the next player to the left. The one exception is when there are only two players (a 'heads-up' game), when the player on the button is the small blind, and the other player is the big blind. (Both the player and the bet may be referred to as big or small blind.)


Generally, the 'big blind' is equal to the minimum bet. The 'small blind' is normally half the big blind.

Pre Flop

After all the players receive their hole cards, the pre flop betting round starts. After seeing their hole cards, each player has the option to play their hand by calling, folding or raising. Action starts from the left of the big blind and then proceeds clockwise around the table. If the big blind(also the live bet on the table) was 1€, it would cost 1€ to call, or at least 2€ to raise. Each player is given the option to fold, call the bet of the previous player or raise. If the previous player raised, the call amount is adjusted accordingly. Betting continues on each betting round until all the active players (who have not folded) have placed equal bets in the pot.


Note: Big blinds and small blinds will also get their chance to call/raise since their first bets were only blinds. Betting continues till all active players(those who have not folded) have put in equal amounts in the pot.

Flop

After the pre-flop betting round is complete, the flop is dealt face up on the table which is the first three community cards available to all the active players. Betting for the flop round begins after the cards are opened on the table. The rules of the flop betting round are the same as the preflop, with two small exceptions: the first player to act is the active player immediately clockwise to the button. This is the big blind position but in case he has folded then the next player in the clockwise direction starts the betting round.

Turn

After the betting round is complete for the flop, the turn is dealt face up on the table. The turn is the fourth community card in an Omaha game. Once the turn card has been dealt, the turn betting round starts. Betting starts with the active player immediately clockwise to the button.

River

After the turn betting round is complete, the river is dealt face up on the table. It is the fifth and final card on the table. The betting is identical to the betting round on the turn and also starts with the active player clockwise to the button.

Showdown / Show cards

After the betting rounds are complete, all the players left in the game will show their cards in what is also referred to as a showdown. The cards of all the players in the showdown are displayed on the table simultaneously. The player with the best five card poker hand using two of their hole cards and three of the community cards is declared as the winner in this poker game. If two players have identical hands then both are winners and the pot is divided equally between them.

POKER HAND RANKINGS

Before you start playing the game, it is best to learn the game and acquaint yourself with the game rules.


We bring you the culmination of poker hand rankings to help you out in making the best out of the game and win real money in it. Poker hands consist of five cards where the player having the highest rank hand is chosen as the winner.

Royal Flush

Texas

Poker’s most famous hand, a royal flush, cannot be beaten. It consists of the ace, king, queen, jack and ten of a single suit.

Straight Flush

Five cards in sequence, of the same suit. In the event of a tie, the highest rank at the top of the sequence wins.

Four of a Kind

Four cards of the same rank, and one side card or ‘kicker’. In the event of a tie, the player with the highest side card (‘kicker’) wins.

Full House

Three cards of the same rank, and two cards of a different, matching rank. In the event of a tie, the highest three matching cards wins.

Flush

Five cards of the same suit, not in sequence. In the event of a tie, the player holding the highest ranked card wins.

Straight

Five non-suited cards in sequence. In the event of a tie, the highest ranking card at the top of the sequence wins.

Three of a Kind

Three cards of the same rank, and two unrelated side cards. In the event of a tie, the player with the highest, and if necessary, second-highest side card (‘kicker’) wins.

Two Pair

Two cards of matching rank, two cards of different matching rank, and one kicker. If both players have an identical Two Pair, the highest kicker wins.

Pair

Two cards of matching rank, and three unrelated side cards. In the event of a tie, the player with the highest, and if necessary, second or third-highest side card wins.

High Card

Any hand that does not qualify under the categories listed. In the event of a tie, the highest card wins, such as ‘ace-high’.

Up until the 2000s, seven card stud was the dominant form of poker throughout many parts of the world. But this changed during the poker boom of the mid 2000s, when Texas holdem became the preferred game for every major tournament.

Thanks to this popularity, millions of people now play Texas holdem on a daily basis. And no matter whether you’re just playing with friends or grinding in online casino cash games, the goal is always to win money.

But how do you win if you’re a beginner and / or not very good at poker?

Find out in this comprehensive guide, where we take you from the basics to the techniques that’ll help you beat Texas holdem.

The Basics of Winning at Texas Holdem Poker

Texas holdem is often described as taking 5 minutes to learn and a lifetime to master. This is even truer today with strategy being so readily available, giving more players the opportunity to become experts.

Nevertheless, everybody has to start somewhere with the game, and that somewhere should not immediately be real money poker tables.

If you’re new to the game or just looking for a solid strategy base, here are the basic concepts that you should know.

Table Position

One of the most overlooked concepts among poker beginners is table position, meaning you act after opponents.

Position is measured by where you sit in relation to the big blind. The dealer button is the latest position, while the small blind is the earliest.

The reason why position is so important is because it allows you to gain more information based on your opponents’ decisions. Additionally, having position on most or all of your opponents helps you control the pot size and better read your opponents’ hand strength.

On a 9 seat table, here’s how table position looks:

Early Position


Small blind, big blind, seat to the big blind’s left. You generally want to play strong hands from these spots because you don’t have as much information.

Middle Position


The next three seats. Middle position gives you an idea of what a few players are doing. But you still want to be cautious about what hands you play in this area.

Late Position


Dealer button, best, and the two seats to its right. Late position gives you a good opportunity to steal blinds, small pots, and judge opponents’ hand strength on later streets.

While it’s entirely possible to win from any position on the table, the majority of your Texas holdem winnings will come from late position, while most losses will come from early position.

Limit the Number of Hands You Play

The single biggest Texas holdem mistake bar none is playing too many hands.

Many new players think that they can play a wide range of hands on speculation. But the truth is that most of the 169 possible starting hands are complete garbage.

Before we continue, here’s a look at the top 10 starting Texas holdem hands:

These are premium hands that are playable in many situations, regardless of your table position.

As you can see, popular hands like A Q, K J, and 9 9 are not on this list. Yet many players treat these cards like they’re premium hands, playing them in any situation.

The majority of beginners also have trouble understanding how their hand strength relates to position.

How To Bet At Texas Holdem Poker

If you have QQ through A A, table position won’t be a factor because these are premium hands. But when you play hands like K J, Q J, 8 8, and A T from early position, you can be put into a difficult situation if somebody raises.

Another mistake that players make is overvaluing speculative hands like suited connectors, or consecutive cards of the same suit, i.e. 6d 7d. While there are certainly times where these hands are valuable, you’ll be better off folding these cards the vast majority of the time.

In fact, you should be folding 80 to 85% of your hands until you develop a better understanding of poker. As you gain more experience, you’ll develop a better idea on when to play certain hands based on opponents, table position, and previous bets.

Reading Opponents

Reading Texas holdem opponents is less about identifying a nervous ticks than it is about paying attention.

When you first come onto a table with new opponents, you have no information about what range of hands they like to play or the type of bets they make in specific situations. The best that you can do in these situations is pay attention and take mental notes.

The good news is that if you’re folding 80 to 85% of the time like we suggested before, you’ll have plenty of hands to observe opponents. You can then use this information when you’re faced with difficult decisions against the same opponents whom you’ve been watching.

You’ll find no shortage of things to look for when observing other players. But key factors to look for include what range of hands they play in each position, when they bet, the size of their raises / re raises, and how often they bluff.

As you play more Texas holdem, you’ll eventually begin seeing patterns in less skilled opponents that you can exploit.

Limit Your Bluffing, Look for the Right Opportunities

Aside from playing too many hands, another mistake that new players make is bluffing too often. We can blame Hollywood for this, but the key is that you understand the reality behind bluffing.

Before we continue, the main types of bluff include: small bluffs, semi bluffs, and naked bluffs.

Small Bluff

Small bluffs are bets that are normally made in late position to steal blinds and small pots. The idea is to keep your bet low so that you risk very little to earn a small profit.

Here’s an Example

The flop is Js Jh 4c, and everybody checks to you on the dealer button.

Either somebody has a jack in this situation and they’re slow playing it, or nobody has a jack and they don’t like the board.

Odds are that it’s the latter, and you can steal this pot with a small bet that represents strength.

Semi Bluff

A semi bluff is a bet / raise where you don’t have a made hand, but you could possibly still win the pot later.

Here’s an Example

You raise pre flop with Ac Kc and draw two callers. The flop is dealt 10c 2h 8c.

The first player checks, and the second makes a two thirds, pot sized bet. You make a pot sized raise in late position in hopes of pushing them out of the hand.

Assuming they have any pair, then they currently have you beat. But the fact that you can still win with your over cards or flush draw makes this a semi bluff.

Naked Bluff

The naked bluff, a.k.a. stone cold bluff, is the type that you see in poker movies, where somebody goes all in with 2 7 off suit and forces a fold.

These are the worst possible bluffs because they leave you totally exposed and out your money if the opponent calls.

Here’s an Example

You raise with 8s 7s in late position to steal blinds, but the small blind calls. You then see a flop of Kc 4d 2c.

The opponent makes a two thirds pot sized bet to open, and you come back with a 1.5x pot sized raise.

You have absolutely nothing in this situation because both your flush and straight draws were killed on the flop. Your only hope is that the opponent doesn’t have kings, or another made hand, and folds.

Naked bluffs can be useful in the right situations, for the right player. But you need to have experience and good reads on opponents before you can turn these plays into long term profits.

A good rule of thumb is to completely avoid naked bluffs until you’re adept at small bluffs, semi bluffs, and reading opponents.

Understand Basic Poker Math

Poker is often miscast as a game where you need to make great reads and incredible bluffs to win. While these aspects can help you gain an edge, it’s far more important that you understand the math behind playing certain hands rather than when to bluff with 3 9 off suit.

Below are the most important Texas holdem math concepts in the order that you should learn them.

Counting Outs

The best place to begin is with counting your outs, or the number of cards needed to make your desired hand.

Here’s an Example

You have an open ended straight draw, meaning there are four cards on either end that will complete your straight, giving you 8 total outs.

In order to calculate your outs, you need to know how to read the board, which shouldn’t be hard as long as you understand poker hand rankings.

Also note that you can’t count outs that will give your opponent / s a better hand.

Here’s an Example

You have an open ended straight draw, but two diamonds on the flop. Anybody with two diamonds in their starting hand will form a flush if another one lands on the turn or river.

That said, you can’t count the two diamonds that will complete your straight on either end, thus reducing your outs to 6.

Pot Odds

Pot odds help you decide when to make a tough call based on the amount of money in the pot compared to how much you must contribute to see the next card / showdown.

Here’s an Example

$20 is in the pot and your opponent bets $10, making the total pot $30. You now need to call $10 to play for the $30 pot, making your pot odds 30 to 10 or 3 to 1.

This alone doesn’t tell you anything, which is why you must figure out your chances of getting the card you need to win the hand.

An easy way to do this is by taking your outs, then multiplying this number by 4, which puts your chances of winning the hand into a percentage.

Here’s an Example

You have a flush draw, which gives you 9 outs to make your flush. Multiplying this by 4, you have a 36% chance of making your hand, or a ratio of 64 to 36.

The final step is to compare your ratio of winning the hand 64 to 36 to your 3 to 1 pot odds.

Since it’s hard comparing 64 to 36 to 3 to 1, let’s simplify 64 to 36 by dividing 64 by 36, making the ratio roughly 1.8 to 1.

Now, you can compare your 3 to 1 pot odds to 1.8 to 1 hand odds.

The idea is that you want to call if your pot odds are higher than your hand odds. Since they’re higher, you would make the call in this instance.

Implied Odds

Once you’re adept with pot odds, you can start factoring in implied odds, which take into account whether calls are worth making based on future betting action.

The goal of implied odds is to determine if your opponent will pay you off after your drawing hand is completed. In essence, implied odds can make what appears to be a non-profitable call based on pot odds turn into a profitable call.

The only problem with implied odds is that they don’t have a clean mathematical formula like pot odds. Instead, you’re estimating based on the board and an opponent’s previous betting patterns if they will pay you off.

Here’s an Example

You work your pot odds out to 3 to 1, and your odds of winning a hand to 3 to 2. Based on pot odds alone, you shouldn’t make this call.

But let’s also say that you hold 8s 9c on a board of Jh 10h 3s, and your opponent bets into the pot. Based on their previous betting patterns, you feel that the opponent will pay you off if you make the straight.

Based on the slim ratio that you’re already facing with 3 to 1 pot odds versus 3 to 2 hand odds, any future raise from the opponent will make this play worth calling.

Reverse Implied Odds

Continuing on the example above, you also have to consider that your opponent could have a flush draw based on the board. And if they hit this flush, you’ll lose regardless of whether you complete the straight.

This is where you should consider reverse implied odds, or the amount of money that you stand to lose based on an opponent making their hand.

Just like implied odds, this concept doesn’t have a clean mathematical formula that you can base your decision on.

But the basic idea is that you don’t want to call without pot odds if an opponent / s can form a better hand than you based on the board.

How To Bet At Texas Holdem Poker

Essentially, reverse implied odds call on your to forget implied odd when opponents are drawing for a better hand.

Texas Holdem Tournaments vs Cash Games

In order to win in both Texas holdem cash games and tournaments, you need to understand that there are crucial strategy differences between the two. Here’s a closer look at the strategy nuances that you’ll see when moving from cash games to tournaments.

Texas Holdem Cash Game Strategy

One notable aspect about cash games is that you theoretically have unlimited chances to win. If you go all in and bust out, you can buy back in and continue playing.

This allows you to be more aggressive with your chips and play the odds to a T. Furthermore, you’ll find that it’s always correct to chase draws when you estimate good pot odds and implied odds.

Even if you fail to make your hand, which happens the majority of the time, you’re still making smart positive expected value +EV plays.

Another notable factor about tourneys is that you should always be playing with a full stack size. This allows you to get maximum benefit out of any +EV situations where you need to make large raises / re raises or go all in.

Any time that your chip stack is less than the max buy in, you should get more chips to build it to the max.

Texas Holdem Tournament Strategy

Chips gain more value in poker tournaments because, outside of rebuy events, you can’t replace them. This means that you need to be more conservative with your chips in certain spots.

Here’s an Example

You’re getting 4.2 to 1 pot odds and have a 4 to 1 chance to hit your drawing hand. In a cash game, the correct decision would be to call; in a tournament, this thin value isn’t worth the risk to your stack size.

Aside from representing your tournament life, your chip stack size also plays a role in the overall strength of your bets, raises, and bluffs. The larger your stack, the better you can intimidate smaller stacks that are fighting for their tournament lives.

On the reverse side, having a smaller stack forces you to be more aggressive in situations that you might not otherwise be.

Specifically, when your chip stack falls below 10 big blinds, you need to look for any chance you can to steal blinds and / or double up. Oftentimes, these won’t be your favorite time to go all in, but you can’t afford to let the blinds wither your chip stack to nothing.

Quality of Tournament Players vs. Cash Players

One more thing worth noting is that you’ll generally face weaker players in Texas holdem tournaments.

For starters, Texas Holdem is one of the simplest poker variations to learn, making it popular among beginners and recreational players.

Another element is that players can only lose as much as their tournament buy in. This is more comforting than cash games, where there’s no limit on the amount of money that you can lose.

Online Texas Holdem vs Live Texas Holdem

Another big division in Texas holdem strategy comes between the live and online format. That being said, let’s look at what you need to be aware of when transitioning between the two.

Hands Per Hour

The rate of hands that you play in online poker versus live poker isn’t even close.

At a standard online Texas holdem table, you’ll play anywhere from 60 80 hands per hour HPH on average. If you multi table, you could easily play hundreds of HPH.

Contrast this to live poker, where, even with an experienced dealer, you’ll only play 20 to 30 HPH.

This is both good and bad as far as online poker goes. On one side, you gain more experience through internet poker since you’ll see more hands. On the other hand, you stand to lose more money if you’re not very good.

Assuming you do become great at poker, the online version will provide you with a better hourly rate. You can also get over downswings quicker since you’ll be playing more HPH.

Online Poker Forces You into Quick Decisions

Internet poker sites feature timers that force you into quick decisions.

This is good from the perspective that other players can’t stall when thinking about decisions. But it’s also bad when you’re trying to improve and can’t make snap decisions.

If you start playing bad due to the faster pace, this can lead to tilt, or the mental state where you make bad decisions because you’re no longer in the optimal poker mind state.

This makes being aware of yourself and your mind state one of the most important factors in online poker success.

Live Texas Holdem Offers Physical Tells

The number of tells that you can gather from nervous facial expressions is overrated in live poker. But the fact is that you can gain physical information from live poker players through their facial expressions, hand movements, posture, and talkativeness.

When playing internet poker, the only tell that you have is your opponents’ betting patterns and range of playable hands.

This is still enough to gain crucial information that can help you win. But it also cuts out one weapon since you can’t physically observe how your opponents react in certain situations.

Texas Holdem Bankroll Management

Far too many beginning poker players jump into tournaments or cash games with only a few buy ins to their name.

We get it: the prospect of winning money through poker is exciting when you set your mind to it. But due to the variance / downswings of poker, you won’t last very long without a sizable number of buy ins.

Below, you can see what to plan for in terms of bankroll management.

What Stakes Should You Play?

The first step to poker bankroll management is figuring out how much money you can afford to play with. Look at your finances and bills, then come to a determination on a comfortable amount that you can put towards poker.

The next step is figuring out what stakes you should be playing based on this amount.

A good guideline for cash games is to never play stakes where you have to risk more than 5% of your bankroll at once. If you have $500 set aside, then you should never play a cash game where the max buy in is over $25.

Tournaments are different because there’s more variance involved due to only 10 15% of the field making money. This is why it’s good to play stakes where you can cover at least 100 buy ins.

If you want to play tourneys with $10 + $1 buy ins, you should have a bankroll of $1,100 or more.

Deal with Variance

Expanding on the previous topic, having a solid bankroll helps you survive downswings and variance that might otherwise wipe out your funds.

Given that poker has elements of chance, you’ll go through periods where nothing seems to go right no matter how well you’re playing. Bad beats, poor card runs, and tilt will all wreak havoc on your bankroll at some point.

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Pulling out of these downswings not only requires patience and skill, but also enough money to cover the losses.

Focus on More Than Money

The primary reason why people play Texas holdem is to make profits. But if you’re only focusing on how much you win and lose each session, then you’ll do far more of the latter.

Instead, you should focus on goals that will improve your long term skills so that you can make money.

Examples of non monetary goals include:

  • Playing x number of hands per month
  • Studying poker strategy for x number of hours each week
  • Playing sessions for x number of hours
  • Spending x number of hours analyzing your own play

Drop Down in Stakes

What should you do when you can’t pull out of a rut and are questioning your poker skills?

The best answer is to drop down in stakes for two reasons: 1) you’ll facer weaker competition, and 2) you’ll be risking less money per buy in.

Nobody wants to work their way up to a certain level, only to have to drop down because they’re not playing well. But sometimes this is the best remedy when nothing else is going right.

Poker Tools to Help You Beat Texas Holdem

Best Texas Holdem Poker Hands Chart

What we’ve covered so far only scratches the surface of how you can become a better Texas holdem player.

The best tip we can give you is to never stop in your quest to keep improving because there’s always something to learn. Here’s a closer look at some tools that’ll boost your poker skills.

Texas Holdem Articles

Since the mid 2000s, thousands of poker articles have sprang up on the internet covering every Texas holdem topic imaginable.

You can either visit major poker sites and browse through their strategy section or just perform simple Google searches to find the exact topics that you’re looking for.

Texas Holdem Books

Books were once the dominant way to learn poker strategy. After all, the internet didn’t exist and players had no way to quickly access Texas holdem information.

Poker books aren’t as popular as they once were, but you can still find a great deal of information through both ebooks and hardcover works.

One of the best things about Texas holdem books is that they allow you to dive deep into the mindset of pros and how they play their hands.

Coaching

You can hire professionals to teach you poker either in person or online. Regarding the latter, coaches can use screen sharing software to see how you play internet poker and offer suggestions over the course of your play.

This is perhaps the quickest way to improve if you find a good coach. But the downside is that you have to pay a high hourly rate to hire the best coaches.

Forums

Since the Poker Boom, forums have become populated with both Texas holdem tips and discussion groups.

This has archived a great deal of poker strategy information that you can use to improve your play. You can even pose your own questions, although forums are becoming a less popular today thanks to the spread of social media.

Poker Software

Third party companies sell software that you can use at poker sites to gain advanced statistics on opponents.

The most popular type of software is a Heads Up Display HUD, which offers numbers and percentages on players’ tendencies.

Some HUDs can even offer you statistics on players whom you’ve never even seen. For this reason, many online poker sites have banned HUDs to give recreational players who don’t use software a fighting chance.

Training Videos

For Texas holdem players on a budget, the best value in poker strategy is training videos.

These videos feature mostly skilled pros explaining different strategy concepts while playing online poker.

This not only gives you more insight into how pros think, but it’s also cheaper than coaching. Many sites allow you to access thousands of training videos for a $30 monthly subscription fee.

Conclusion

One final thought on becoming a better poker pro is to constantly think about and analyze your play.

This is made easier through the use of online hand histories. But when you don’t have access to these, then at least replay difficult situations in your head and try to come up with solutions on how to work through these problems.

You can also pose specific hand questions / problems on forums or ask coaches.

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Additionally, you should spend at least one hour studying strategy for every 3 to 4 hours you spend playing. This might not sound like fun, but the improvement that you see in your play will be well worth it.

Best Texas Holdem Poker

And once again, there’s no cap on the amount of time that you can spend improving as a player. If you truly want to become a profitable player, then keep fine tuning your strategy and working your way up the stakes.

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