Texas Holdem is the most popular version of the poker game. It is available in most of the online poker rooms as well as in land based casinos. Here you can learn about the Texas Holdem rules and you can start practicing your game online, at a nearby casino, or in a friendly Texas Holdem game.

The Texas Holdem rules are used both in online and in land based casinos. Here are the basic Texas Holdem Rules.

Texas Holdem Rules

When playing Texas Holdem in a casino, the dealer is a casino employee who does not take part in the game. The game starts with the players left to the dealer placing a set amount of money called an ante. This stage is called posting the blinds. When the player who sits left to the dealer places half of the minimum bet it is called the first blind, when he puts the full amount of the minimum bet it is called second blind.

The game continues with the dealer deals two face cards to each of the players. Those cards are called hole cards. After this round of dealing, the first round of betting begins. The player who sits on the left to the two players who posted the blinds is the first to decide whether to call, raise of fold.

When the first round of betting is done, the dealer puts three face up cards in the center of the table, called community cards. This stage of the Texas Holdem game is called the flop. After the flop, another round of betting takes begins. From now on, on each betting round the players has to choose whether to check, call, raise, or fold in their turn to bet.

The dealer place another community card in the center of the table. This stage is known as the turn or the fourth street. The game continues with a third round of betting. After this, the dealer places the last fifth community card on the table, called the river or the fifth street.

According to the Texas Holdem rules, the players have to create the best possible five card hand out of any combination of seven cards, their two hole cards, and the five community cards. The last round of betting begins with the player left to the dealer.

When the last round of betting is done, the players who remained in the game expose their hand, starting with the player who made the first bet or the one who made the last raise. This is called the showdown. The player who has the highest ranked poker hand wins the pot.