Read this guide if you are absolutely new to poker and want to learn how to play this wonderful game. There are many types of poker games, so for now focus on only one type before you move to another one. Most players just stick to the most popular poker game called Texas Hold’em.
Types of poker games
- Texas Holdem – the most popular poker game.
- Omaha Poker – second most popular poker game. Usually with bigger pots.
- Five Card Draw – The biggest difference compared to Texas Holdem is that you will have 5 whole and 0 community cards, whereas in Texas Holdem you have 2 whole cards and 0-5 community cards.
Poker rules – Texas Hold’em
In poker you can:
- Check – if nobody has raised before you, and you don’t want to raise either, you can just check the game.
- Call – call the bet of somebody else. If somebody raises before you, you cannot check.
- Bet – if nobody has bet before you, you can be the first. This way, weak handed players will have to fold.
- Raise – if somebody has already bet, you can bet more. This is called a raise.
- Fold – if somebody has bet or raised, you can fold if you think that your hand is not strong enough.
In Poker there is always a dealer. The first player in the left of the dealer is the small blind and the second player is called the big blind. Blinds are obligatory and can vary. The big blind is always two times the small blind (i.e $1/$2).
The whole cards are the two cards that are dealt at the beginning of the game. Community cards are 3-5 cards “shared” by all players. Winner is, who has the best combination of all cards.
Example:
Player 1 holds: A 10
Player 2 holds: 10 10
The community cards are: 10 A 2 4 5
Winner is player 2 (he has a set, whereas player 1 has 2 pair A and 10)