How Do You Play Poker As A Beginner?

What Kind of Poker To Play

Poker is one of the most popular card games and famous for its place in casinos and even on ESPN. When you start playing poker, it is recommended to begin with the most popular and most simple version of poker to play, Texas Hold’em. Other variations include Seven Card Stud, Chinese Poker, and Omaha Hold’em, but Texas Hold’em is the easiest to learn and play.

Setting the Game Up

To start the game the dealer, who should be one predetermined person or can change per hand, should fully shuffle a deck of playing cards and deal two cards to each player. The betting will start before any other cards are put out, depending on the rule there is either a big and small blind or an ante. Blinds are an amount pre-set that the player two seats and one seat to the left of the dealer have to put into the “pot” to start the game. An ante is an amount that every player has to put in to start betting. The World Series of Poker, and other traditional poker events use blinds but at casual home games it is up to the players.

Betting

Betting goes in rounds with cards placed down at the ending of each round before the next one. The first round of betting is after all cards are passed out. The second round occurs after one card is shown, “the flop.” Then another round occurs after “the turn,” and then one more after “the river.” After the river, the betting continues and then the people who have chosen to stay in the hand will show their cards and determine the winner.

How to Win

The way to win at poker is to create the best combination of cards with the two cards dealt to the player and with the five cards placed on the table. The best combination is a “Royal Flush” which is all the cards in the same suit starting at 10 and going until Ace. In general higher cards are better, cards of the same suit are better and the same number cards are very good.

Playing the Game

Based on the above hands, a player has three choices, betting, folding and checking. Starting with the player left of the dealer they can either bet an amount, fold, throw away their cards until the next round, or check, ask the dealer to put out another card. If everyone at the table checks, then another card is put out by the dealer and the players have another chance to bet.