Lesson 1: How to Play Texas Hold'em
In this lesson, you will learn how to play limit Texas Hold’em. This lesson will introduce you to the various stages of a poker hand, the methods of betting, ways to buy-in to a table, and hand values.
Lesson Objectives
- To be able to play through a complete hand
- To understand a table’s betting limits
- To understand the betting rounds
- To be able to rank the various poker hand combinations
There will be a multiple-choice quiz at the end of the lesson that will test your understanding of the lesson’s concepts.
Introduction
Texas Hold’em is a game of 2-10 players. It has fast play and simple game rules. It is a community card game in that all players share the five board community cards that are turned face-up in the middle of the table. There are four betting rounds that occur as the cards are dealt. With limit Texas Hold’em, betting rounds are structured by the table betting limits, and there is a limit on the amount that you can bet during each round.
Throughout the game, each player is dealt two face-down cards known as “pocket cards”. The first betting round follows. Players may call, raise, check, or fold. Once a player folds, they are out of the hand.
The dealer then deals three community cards face-up on the table. This is known as “the flop” and is followed by the second betting round. The players may again call, raise, check, or fold.
The dealer then deals a fourth community card known as “the turn”. The third betting round follows, and players either call, raise, check, or fold.
The dealer then deals the fifth, and last, community card known as “the river”. The fourth and last betting round takes place. Players may call, raise, check, or fold.
Each player creates the highest valued five card poker hand by using any combination of his or her two pocket cards and the five community cards.
The combinations are:
- The two pocket cards plus three community cards.
- One pocket card plus four community cards.
- All five community cards.
The winner is the player with the highest ranked hand.
