Texas Holdem Guide

What is Texas Holdem?

Rules of Texas Holdem

Texas Holdem is one of the most popular stud poker games around. Read a brief description of texas Holdem below and learn why it has become one of the most loved poker games played online and offline. The World Series of Poker has made it even more famous and it is rapidly becoming the number one poker game in casinos and online casinos.

Like at many other Stud Poker games, at Texas Holdem you are dealt 2 cards face-down and an additional 5 cards face-up. You can make a combination of your cards and the cards faced down to create a winning five-card combination. Sounds easy? It is.

Example:

The cards that are laid down on the table and that all the players can see (facing-up) are Ace of spades, five of hearts, six of clubs, seven of hearts and the eight of hearts. To keep it easy let’s say that only two players are playing Texas Holdem: you and your opponent.

Each of you is dealt with two cards facing downwards. Each player can see his cards only. Your opponent was dealt an eight of spades and a six of hearts. You got a nine of hearts and a four of spades

Who wins?

You!

because you have a straight (5, 6, 7, 8, 9) while your Texas HoldEm opponent has only two pairs (sixes and eights).

Texas Holdem Betting Structures

Texas Holdem Betting Structures Details

Betting at Texas Holdem is easy once you are familiar with the different betting structures.

Why?

Because each Texas Holdem game has a minimum and a maximum betting limit and Texas Holdem is played accordingly. Read about the betting structure of texas Holdem and understand how you can fit in among the betting frenzy of this poker game.

Structured Limit

These Texas Holdem limits are set before the game begins. By this, I mean that the limits are decided upon by the casino and you can decide to enter this game and abide by its limits or not. These Texas Holdem games are named according to their limits: $4/$8 or $50/$100 games.

Note this means that during the first two rounds you bet the lower amount and during the last two rounds according to the higher amount. In addition, only four different bets can be made per round.

Spread Limit

Unlike set limits, in this game of Texas Holdem, you have a range of betting amounts. Something like a range of $20 – $100 means that you can bet sums of money accordingly at any juncture of Texas Holdem.

Sometimes you might come across a four amount range. Here it means that you can bet the first range pre-flop and on the flop, on a turn, it goes up to the third number and on the river it goes up to the last number.

Pot Limit

At these Texas Holdem games, you can bet money ranging anywhere between the cost of the big blind and the size of the pot.

No Limit

At these Texas Holdem games, you have total freedom to bet any amount you feel like or sometimes it means that you can bet any amount between the cost of the big blind and the amount in the pot.

Bluffing at Texas Holdem

Bluffing is one of the tactics that has made poker and Texas Holdem so popular. The idea that you can fool someone into winning his money drives greed and ambition. Read here to learn how to bluff when playing texas Holdem and scare other poker players into folding their cards and allowing you to win even though you have weak cards.

You should bluff when…there aren’t many other players left in a pot…

It’s easier to fool four people than to outwit eight! Remember that the number of Texas Holdem players remaining directly impact your odds of winning by bluffing. What could happen is that some Texas Holdem players will remain because they didn’t fall for your bluff while others might simply not notice it? Yes – those who don’t notice might be playing foolishly, but if they take your money does it matter?

you have a moderate hand that can beat other weak ones…

Always some Texas Holdem players remain in the game just for checking out the cards of their opponents and for the pot. By betting a large amount and by bluffing them, you might cause them to fold.

you play last and all the others have only checked their bets…

Do this and it will make some Texas Holdem opponents fold their cards thinking you have good cards. But beware because some will remain behind to check if you were honest or were bluffing.

you have made your texas Holdem players respect and fear you and your playing skills…

If you win a good hand and you can see the other Texas Holdem players regarding you with new respect, this might be the time to attack this ‘respect’ by bluffing the next round. But play this round identically like the previous round to make them believe that it’s a repeat of the previous round.

You see a pair among the face-up cards at Texas Holdem…

Prefer this strategy if the pairs are eights or less. You stand a good chance that someone or the other folded a pair of eights. Try and find out if any of the online poker players who folded had such a pair.

Don’t Bluff when …

you are playing against texas Holdem players who are conservative and tight…

The chances are high that if they don’t fold then their cards are strong. Yes – not a good idea to challenge their hands in the next betting rounds and on the contrary, it might be a good idea to fold.

Bluffing!
Lying!

The two aren’t very different and so if you can’t lie don’t even try and bluff others. They will read the truth and flush you out!