Texas Holdem

Texas Holdem is a community card game. This means that players will be required to use community cards (cards that everyone else around the table can see and use) when making their 5-card poker hands.

Texas Holdem is played with blinds. Game-play commences with the posting of two blinds bets known as the big blind (BB) and the small blind (SB). These are called ‘blind bets’ because players make them without any cards in their possession. The BB is usually double the SB. The SB is on the immediate left of the dealer, with the BB in its immediate left.

After the blinds are posted, the dealer gives players 2 hole cards. The first round of betting is about calling the BB, raising it, or folding. Players who remain in the game after the ‘preflop’ round, get to see the first three community cards land on the board.

This is called the ‘flop’ and it is followed by betting again. At this stage, players make their hands with their 2 hole-cards and the three community ones on the board.

Provided at least 2 people ‘survive’ the post-flop betting, a 4^th community card is shown, called the ‘turn’. The turn is followed by betting again. At any one point, if someone makes a raise and every else folds to him, he wins the pot, without the need to continue with the hand. He doesn’t even have to show his pocket cards if he doesn’t want to.

The ‘river’ is the 5^th and last community card followed by the last round of betting. The showdown comes next, and the player with the best 5–card poker hand wins the pot.

Players can use both their pocket cards or only one of them (and 4 cards off the table) to make their hands.

The dealer button travels around the table in a clock-wise direction, pushing the SB and BB positions in front of it.