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Texas Hold’em Poker

If you are new to the game of poker or want to learn more about the game, understanding the rules and format of Texas Hold’em poker is important as it’s the most commonly played variant. Texas Hold’em revolves around two hole cards, which are private to each player, and then five community cards that are revealed by the dealer as the hand progresses.
After each card reveal, players must decide whether to check, bet, raise or fold in a bid to form the most valuable five-card hand and of course win the pot. To learn more about the rules of poker, visit our poker school.

Texas Hold’em Rules

Texas Hold’em is the most popular poker variant and can be played with between two to ten players. The rules are as follows:

One player is the dealer, with the position of the dealer rotating clockwise to the next active player after every hand. The two players to the left of the dealer are named the small blind and big blind.
Both the small blind and big blind are required to make forced bets and are typically the only players to put money in the pot before the cards are dealt. Every player is then dealt two cards (hole cards) face down.
Once the hole cards are dealt, the first round begins with the player sitting to the left of the big blind. This participant can fold, call or raise.
Betting continues clockwise, with each player able to fold, call or raise the highest bet made before them. In order to stay in the hand and see the next card, all players must typically have the same number of chips in the pot.
After the first betting round comes the flop, where three community cards are turned face-up on the table.
Betting resumes with each player remaining in the hand having the option to check, bet or raise, call or fold.
When the second round is finished, another community card is revealed in the ‘turn’.
The third round of betting starts with the first remaining player sitting to the left of the dealer. It is played clockwise, as with the earlier rounds.
When the third round is over, another community card is revealed in the ‘river’.
The fourth round again starts with the first remaining player sitting to the left of the dealer. The betting continues clockwise until a winner is determined. If two or more players remain active after the fourth betting round has concluded, these players’ hole cards are revealed and the best poker hand wins the pot.

The Blinds

The blinds in Texas Hold’em are determined by which player is designated the dealer, or the ‘button’ for the hand. The player to the left of the button is designated the small blind, meaning the first forced bet. The player to the left of the small blind is designated the big blind, another forced bet typically twice the size of the small blind.

The blinds can differ depending on the betting structures, as follows:

Limit games: The big blind is the same as the small bet, and the small blind is typically half the size of the big blind depending on the stakes.
Pot Limit and No Limit games: The games are referred to by the size of their blinds.

Depending on the game, each player may also post an ‘ante’, which is another type of forced bet that is usually smaller than either blind. Once these bets have been made, playing can proceed.Rules are different for other variants of poker; to find out how the betting structure can differ from Texas Hold’em, visit our guide to Omaha poker.

Betting Actions

Each poker hand is a culmination of various betting rounds, the number of which depends on the variation.
In Texas Hold’em there are four betting rounds, and each player must decide whether to fold, call, check, bet or raise when it is their turn to act, often basing their decision on the actions already taken by other players active in the hand.

Check: Players check if they want to pass the action onto the next player but keep their cards. When a player checks, they don’t have to put anything into the pot unless they are playing with a big blind and/or small blind.
Fold: If you fold your hand in poker, you lay down your cards and stop playing the hand. Folding means you are out for that hand and relinquish your claim on the pot. Folding the cards involves tossing them to the dealer.
Bet: The player bets a certain amount based on the strength of his cards (or bluff if they are feeling adventurous). The bet must be more than the big blind.
Call: Calling is what’s used to call a bet, which is when a player matches the amount that has been put in by another player in the form of a bet or a raise. If nobody calls the bet, the hand is over and the uncalled player wins the hand.
Raise: Raising is when a player increases the opening bet. After raising it, other players still active in the hand will have to either call, fold or re-raise, which is the act of increasing a raise that’s already been put in.
When all players have either folded or called the last raise, the betting round is over and all bets that were made are added to the pot. If all players except one have folded when a betting round concludes, the remaining active player wins.