Texas Holdem Poker

An Introduction to Texas Holdem Poker

So you're new to Texas Holdem poker? Not a problem. Texas Holdem poker is by far the best game for a beginner to learn. Other poker games like Omaha or 7 card stud need a higher understanding of calculating odds and card counting. Texas Holdem can be learned in a few minutes and you can be playing fairly well with a few hours of practice. However, in order to learn the game you must play and you must play fairly often.

Online poker rooms offer a wide variety of play money tables where beginners may practice for free until they are ready to move up to the fun at real money tables. We recommend playing online to start because online poker rooms handle many tedious details, like dealing, shuffling, and determining who has the best hand.

A Texas Hold'em poker game goes as follows:

1. Depending on the limit and betting structure, players will place out blinds and antes so there is an initial amount to get things started. This is called posting.
2. The dealer shuffles up a standard deck of 52 playing cards.
3. Each player is dealt two private cards face down. These are called your hole cards or pocket cards.
4. Then there is a round of betting starting with the player to the left of the blinds. This is the preflop betting round. Like most games of poker, players can call, raise, or fold.
5. After the betting round ends, the dealer discards the top card of the deck. This is called a burn card. This is done to prevent cheating.
6. The dealer then flips the next three cards face up on the table. This is called the flop. These are communal cards that anyone can use in combination with their two pocket cards to form a poker hand.
7. The player to the left of the dealer starts another betting round.
8. After the betting concludes, the dealer burns again then flips another communal card onto the table. This is called the turn.
9. The player to the left of the dealer begins another round of betting. In many types of games, this is where the bet size doubles.
10. Again, the dealer burns a card and places a final card face up on the table. This is called the river. Players can now use any of the five cards on the table or the two cards in their pocket to form a five card poker hand.
11. There is one final round of betting starting with the player to the left of the dealer.
12. After that, we have the showdown. All of the players who haven't folded reveal their hands. This begins with the player to the left of the last player to call. Players use a combination of their pocket cards and the community cards to form a five card poker hand.
13. The player who shows the best hand wins! Although sometimes players with the same hand split the pot.

An Explanation of Texas Holdem Odds

Probability is a huge factor in texas hold em. Players use odds to determine their actions. The chances of finishing a flush or a straight, the probability of getting an overcard, the percentage of times you're going to flop a set to match your pocket pair are all important factors in poker. Knowledge of these statistics is key to winning. In online games especially with very few (if any) tells, statistical knowledge becomes the main factor when choosing whether to bet, call, or fold.
Here are some terms that you'll hear on this site and whenever you're talking about poker odds...

Outs	The number of cards left in the deck that will improve your hand. "I had four hearts on the turn, so I had only 9 outs left to finish that flush."
Pot Odds	The odds you get when analyzing the current size of the pot vs. your next call. "There's $200 already in the pot, and only another $10 bet coming at me, so my pot odds are good if I hit that flush."
Bet Odds	The odds you get as a result of evaluating the number of callers to a raise. "With a 1 in 5 chance of hitting it, and knowing all six of these guys are gonna call my bet, my bet odds are good too."
Implied Odds	The odds you are getting after the assumed result of betting for the remainder of the hand. "Since I think these guys are going to call on the turn and river, my implied odds are excellent."

In Texas Hold 'Em, you commonly use outs and pot odds the most. This is also the starting point for those who want to learn about poker odds. To those out there who "ain't good at countin' much", you better get good because that is how it's done. At this point it's only simple division The numerator will be the number of outs you have. The denominator is the number of cards left that we haven't seen. The result will be the percentage chance of making one of those outs. Therefore, the most math you'll be doing will be dividing small numbers by 50 (preflop), 47 (after the flop), or 46 (after the turn).

Before we move on, I get a lot of questions about why we never factor in opponents' cards or burn cards.

Pot odds are as easy as computing outs. You compare your outs or your chance of winning to the size of the pot. If your chance of winning is significantly better than the ratio of the pot size to a bet, then you have good pot odds. If it's lower, then you have bad pot odds. For example, say you are in a $5/$10 texas hold'em game with Jack-Ten facing one opponent on the turn. You have an outside straight draw with a board of 2-5-9-Q, and only the river card left to make it. Any 8 or any King will finish this straight for you, so you have 8 outs (four 8's and 4 K's left in the deck) and 46 unseen cards left. 8/46 is almost the same as a 1 in 6 chance of making it. Your sole opponent bets $10. You if you take a $10 bet you could win $200. $200/$10 is 20, so you stand to make 20x more if you call. 1/6 higher than 1/20, so pot odds say that calling wouldn't be a bad idea.

We should probably clarify one thing. A lot of players want to somehow factor in money they wagered on previous rounds. With the last example, you probably had already invested a significant portion of that $200 pot. Let's say $50. Does that mean you should play or fold because of that money you already have in there? $50/$200? That's a big no. That's not your money anymore! It's in a pool of money to be given to the winner. You have no "stake" in that pot. The only stake you might have is totally mental and has no bearing on hard statistics.

The next step is to use bet odds and implied odds. That's tougher, because it involves predicting reactions of other players. With bet odds, you try to factor in how many people are going to call a raise. With implied odds, you're thinking about reactions for the rest of the game. One last example on implied odds...

Say it's another $5/$10 texas holdem game and you have a four flush on the flop. Your neighbor bets, and everyone else folds. The pot is $50 at this point. First you figure out your chance of hitting your flush on the turn, and it comes out to about 19.1% (about 1 in 5). You have to call this $5 bet vs a $50 pot, so that's a 10x payout. 1/5 is higher than 1/10, so bet odds are okay, but you must consider that this guy's going to bet into you on the turn and river also. That's the $5 plus two more $10 bets. So now your facing $25 more till the end of the hand. So you have to consider your chances of hitting that flush on the turn or river, which makes it about 35% (better than 1 in 3 now), but you have to invest $25 for a finishing pot of $100. $100/$25 is 1 in 4. That's pretty close. But there's more!... if you don't make it on the turn, it'll change your outs and odds! You'll have a 19.6% chance of hitting the flush (little worse than 1 in 5), but a $20 investment for a finishing pot of $100! $100/$20 is 1 in 5. So the chances would take a nasty turn if you didn't hit it! What's makes it more complicated is that if you did hit it on the turn, you could raise him back, and get an extra $20 or maybe even $40 in the pot.

I'll let it go at that, as once you've mastered simple outs and pot odds, bet and implied odds are just a longer extension of these equations. If you sit and think about these things while you play, it'll come to you eventually without any tutoring. Good luck!

Preflop Strategy in Texas Holdem

Before you start betting like a madman when you get two eights in the pocket, you need to carefully consider all factors involved in solid preflop strategy.

The factors to consider are the number of players, how aggressive/passive the players at the table are, your bankroll, your position, and how much risk you are willing to entail.

Number of players: With 10 people in the game, it's much more likely that someone else has a strong hand in the pocket than in a short-handed game. Also, you'll need to be more cautious in larger games, as the chances of someone's preflop hand fitting the flop will be much better. More competition means stiffer competition.

How aggressive the players are: Assuming you've been playing with a few people for several hands, and you noticed some jackass is raising every hand preflop, you'll want to play tighter. Let the guy win the blinds (big deal) and nail him to the wall when you have a solid hand in the pocket preflop.

Your bankroll: If you have $2 left, you'll want to play extremely carefully and select one hand to bet on, hoping to get as many players involved as possible for a larger pot. You'll want to be all-in before the flop is dealt. On the flip-side, if you have $1000 at a $1/$2 table, you can take the high-risk, high-payout bets.

Your position: People in late position have the ability to influence the size of the pot much more than those in early position. This is especially true preflop.

Your tolerance for risk: Depending on your playing style, you may want to play more or less aggressively preflop. Players who shoot for larger pots, but don't mind a greater chance for losing a few hands will want to raise preflop, especially if they are in late position. Some players prefer to be as selective as possible preflop, grinding out a winning hand here or there. It really depends on your own style of play, and how you perceive the players around you.

You might also want to consider what cards you have in your hand. Naturally, AA is the best to start with. It helps if your hand is suited or if the cards are sequential in rank like a Seven and an Eight ("connected"). It's important to understand how your two cards hold up against other combinations of cards though.

When To Bet in Texas Holdem

A bet is a declaration that either:
a)"I have the best hand and I'll wager money on it" or
b)"You have a poor hand, and you will fold if you are forced to wager on it".

Typically, players are supposed to bet when they have a good hand. Players who don't have good hands are supposed to fold. Of course, if it was this simple, there would be no need for this page. You might as well wager on Tic-Tac-Toe. Most players play contrary to this idea, attempting to be a cunning or deceptive player. Don't fall into this trap when you are just learning to play.

Your betting strategy should be built upon this simple idea, but you must know when to stray and bet in situations when you otherwise wouldn't. Here are some situations you should start looking at to improve your game:

Example one: Blind-stealing

When you are in the dealer's position, and only you and the blinds are remaining in the game, a raise is often called "blind-stealing". This is because the blinds may fold, whereas if you didn't raise but simply called, the blinds would simply check. Its a good way to make a buck or two, but will never make you rich. Its more of a way to end the game fast and have a new hand dealt with more players (and more money).

Example two: The steal-raise

If you are last to act and all players have checked to you, betting to simply limit the number of players or take the pot is called a steal-raise. Don't use this exclusively, as better players will be onto you quickly and begin check-raising against your (most likely) poor hand. It is good to use a steal raise when you have an excellent drawing hand such as a nut flush draw. Players will tend to "check to the raiser". If you draw to your hand, you now have a larger pot to win. If you don't, you can always check, and hope the fifth card makes your hand.

Example three: The check-raise

Check raising is checking to your opponent, with the intention of luring them to bet, so that you can raise them back. Your intention is to lure them into a false sense of security so that you can raise them and increase the pot (remember, after one bet is committed, its more likely they'll commit to two).

Example four: The opener

This reckless move is often done by people who bluff. It is when the person first to act raises, making all other players call two bets at once. Its inteniton is to limit the number of players. Basically, this move amounts to a backwards steal-raise. The effect will almost certainly cause many players to fold, but the ones remaining will either be equally aggressive or truly have a great hand. This is also known as betting for information. This tactic is best used with few players in on the hand.

Example five: Squeezing

Squeezing is a tactic only used in a short-handed game. It's betting when you have a good hand currently, and you suspect another player or players may be on a draw. For example, you have top pair with the best kicker. Chances are they won't make their draw (be it a straight or a flush draw, etc). Your goal is to limit their pot odds.

The above examples are just really examples of bets. If you are playing no limit or pot limit holdem, the whole thinking behind betting becomes radically different.

Cheating

"Trust everybody, but cut the cards." - Finley Peter Dunne

No, not on how to cheat. How to spot cheating. This will focus more on online cheating. If you were hoping for ideas on how to not be cheated in home games, go to our page on home game cheating. Otherwise, read on!...

Online texas holdem poker rooms are probably the safest place to play at right now. Did your mother ever tell you to "never trust a stranger"? Well, playing online limits the number of sneaky people you could potentially be dealing with. The dealer is a program. Programs don't cheat. You don't have to worry about any sort of illegal card handling. There are no "cards" online.

Many poker players refuse to play online becaue of a fear of "hackers". In fact there are websites that claim they can either "see their opponents' pocket cards" or "see the turn and river before they are dealt". You should know that most of these sites are total garbage and I'm only saying "most" for legal reasons. Please visit our online poker safety page for more information. The big instance of an online poker room having security problems opened the eyes of the operators and now top sites are now so excessively secure that it's almost wasteful. Not only is the technical security present but all the measures you'd expect in a brick-and-mortar casino.

The most common form of online cheating is player collusion. That's when two or more players reveal to each other what cards they hold. This form is more difficult to pull off in a live game, but playing online gives players the chance to have a fellow player on the phone with them, or sitting next to them at another computer.

Fortunately most of these players are the ones who have no idea how to use that advantage. These two must coordinate well together, which takes practice. Online poker rooms not only look for telltale signs of collusion, but check to see if two players always play at the same table together. They would have to use "hit and run" tactics when using this form of cheating. Colluding players would have to hit up a high-limit table, then flee to another online poker room with their winnings and never look back.

To make a long story short, it is barely worth it to try it. But just in case, here are some things to look for...

1. A team of players who try to "steamroll" other players out of the game. This means reraising each other to make non-colluding players call multiple bets at once.

2. Players who never play fast preflop. That's the time to talk about what they hold. Watch whoever is under the gun and be mindful of reaction time.

3. A group of players who hike up bets by reraising with someone in between them. This gets the maximum amount of bets out of a third party. The alarm should really go off if one of those reraising players has a piss poor hand, or if one of them folds with one bet to go despite a massive pot. There's a time to bluff and a time to fold and most people have an idea when that is, so be on the lookout for players who exercise horrible judgement like that. Identify that person as a potential goldmine for yourself or a potential cheater.

Position

Position is simply where you are sitting in relation to the dealer's button. In holdem and many other poker games, your position at the table is a big factor. The strength of your position comes from the fact that the betting goes in a clockwise fashion. In a favorable position you get to see how many other players react to their hands and whether they fold, bet, or call before you do. The poker phrase, "Position is power" comes from this simple idea.

There are many names associated with position to identify where players are sitting in relation to the dealer's button. Each particular position has its own strengths or weaknesses.

• The small blind has the worst position after the flop and must invest half a bet.
• The big blind invests an entire bet and similarly has a poor position.
• The player under the gun has the worst position preflop and a junk position afterwards.
• The button has the best position during any betting round.

If you aren't familiar with the above terms (small blind, button, under the gun).

The importance of your position depends on many factors. For example, in no limit hold em, position is much more important than in limit hold'em. It is always better to be in an late position though, so it is important to identify what hands are generally playable in all positions.

For example, lets say you're under the gun. You have Queen-Ten, unsuited and decide to limp into the pot. The player to bet after you raises, and everyone but you folds.. Now you're in a jam. Chances are good that this player has a better hand than you. If they have any ace, king, or pocket pair, they are statistically better than you. You'd suspect that someone who raised has at least a hand like that. Now you can either call again and go into the flop as an underdog or you can fold and just give up a bet. What's worse is that if you call, you will be acting before this player for the rest of the hand. On the other hand, let's say you're on the button. You have Queen-Ten, unsuited and everybody folds to you. One option would be to fold and let the blinds fight it out. Another would be the just call and see what happens on the flop. Many players here would raise because you could steal the blinds and even if you didn't, you'd act after them for the remainder of the hand. Raising is only a viable option because of your favorable position.

Another notable factor is that position goes hand in hand with knowing the players directly around you. For example, an aggressive, blind-stealing player to the immediate right of a tight player usually results in the tight player's blinds getting stolen.

Being in late position with a good hand has major strengths over being early with a good hand. Early position raisers are assumed to have a good hand and it tends to scare players away. Early preflop raises can force the other players to call two bets at once (or more in the case of pot limit or no limit hold 'em) when there is nearly nothing in the pot worth fighting for. In late position, there may be players who have already called one bet. Those players only have to call one bet (in limit) with a little something already in the pot. So players in late position with a good hand have the ability to manipulate the pot size, which will make future bets easier to call in the upcoming betting rounds.

Bluffing in Texas Holdem

"You can fool some of the people all the time, and all of the people some of the time, but you cannot fool all of the people all the time." - Abraham Lincoln

One element of poker is deception. Bluffing is the quintessential trick in hold em poker. Of course, the reasoning for a bluff is to deceive the other players into thinking you have a better hand when you actually do not. For a bluff to work, you need the other players to think you actually have that better hand. Many beginning poker players love this idea of bluffing and often misuse it. The value of the bluff increases under certain general circumstances that often have a lot to do with information you assume about the other players. This vagueness makes it difficult to give definitive reasons or places to bluff. Some less generalized times to bluff and some advice are given below. The bottom of the page gives some more ideas and perspectives on deception in poker.

Some typical reasons to bluff...

A. When there aren't many other players in a pot.

Simply put, it's easier to trick a couple people than a crowd. With fewer hands out there, chances are better that no one has made a reasonable hand. This is fairly common though, so many players won't believe you. Some will stay in the hand just to "keep you honest", so sometimes this needs to be a persistent bluff over a period of two or three betting rounds. That can be costly if they don't fall for it. You need to know the players before you use this type of bluff.

B. When you're up against fairly tight players.

Those that tend to fold easily are the biggest targets of a bluff. Bets will be put out just as a form of information gathering on this player's hand. If you bluff early (preflop, flop) against a very tight player and they don't buckle, you should think twice about trying it again on a future round. They have something. Your job is to determine whether they have a made or drawing hand. Once again, you need to know the players.

C. On the river.

Especially if apparent drawing hands missed. That's when players react to rule #1 "the moment you know you can't win, throw in your cards". It is often a good idea to bluff with a weak hand, like ace-high or lowest pair with these kinds of bluffs, because some players will stay in just because of pot odds. If you do that, it is actually semi-bluffing (see the bottom of the page).

D. You're in late position and everyone else checked.

This one you'll have to gauge for yourself. It will most likely force some players out, but not all. This is a pretty common bluff once again, and many players will stay in just because of bet odds, and/or to once again "keep you honest". This is another example of a bluff that needs to be more persistent over a couple betting rounds.

E. You bet preflop and missed.

That's because they don't know you missed! This can be dangerous, and you really have to evaluate to board before you get into this one. Sometimes it's good to bluff when AK misses, sometimes when 99 misses. You have to really feel this one out.

F. You have given other players "the fear".

It's about how other players perceive you. If you just won a hand through good play, the players who say "nice hand" are the ones who now respect you. They will more likely fold to your bluff if you play it right. The trick is to play the hand exactly the same way you played the other winning hand. Give it the "here we go again" act.

G. When the flop isn't so great.

Some players will fold automatically if all they have is an overcard. With a rainbow flop of 2, 6, 9, not many players will have much. This is another example of a bluff that can go horribly awry. I wouldn't be too persistent in this case, unless only more low cards pop up. Once again, know your players.

H. Preflop on the button, and everyone else has folded.

This is usually best used with tight players to your left. Its good because it can change from a bluff to a deceptively good hand with luck and the right flop.

I. When there is a pair on the board.

This is especially useful when the pair is 88 or lower. Chances are that these cards might have been folded or are still in the deck. This is one situation where you want to evaluate the hand very carefully if they do call though. This is a great situation to read the tells of the players who are NOT involved in the game. It's much easier to give away the fact that you HAD a card than if you HAVE it.

Keep in mind that these are pretty common reasons to bluff. Many players know these reasons. Most of the time it just won't work. The main thing is always to know your players and to not do it so often that it never works.

There's some great books about bluffing out there. We suggest reading as much as you can about it, as it's one of the most misunderstood aspects of poker.