Texas Hold’em Poker: Guide, Rules, Tips to Play for Real Money

Texas Hold’em poker has become one of the trendiest poker variants. It holds a prime place among poker players and is regularly found at most online casinos. The Texas Hold’em poker variant originated in Texas, USA, around the start of the 20^th century, and it was brought to Las Vegas in 1963, immediately spreading in popularity.

By the 2000s, Texas Holdem’s popularity surged, and is now the most popular poker variant worldwide. Here I’ll share my guide on playing Texas Hold’em poker online, along with the rules, strategies, and the best online casinos in India where you can play this exciting poker game!

Important Texas Hold’em Poker Terms

Before playing Texas Hold’em poker, you must learn the essential terms and expressions used during the game. Knowing these is vital as you must know the slang that is used at the poker tables, and I’ve gathered the essential words you’ll hear around Texas Hold’em:

How to Play Texas Hold’em Poker

Playing online Texas Hold’em poker is exciting, engaging, and challenging, as this is a game of skill that many people enjoy. You can play Hold’em poker at 10Cric. Here is a rundown of how to play Texas Hold’em poker, and it involves five simple steps:

1. The players place the ante and get two cards each, and the pre-flop round of betting occurs where the players can fold, call, or raise the stakes based on their cards;
2. The flop round begins when three community cards are dealt face-up on the table, and the players start the second round of betting;
3. The turn or fourth street follows, where a fourth card is dealt face up on the table, followed by the third round of betting;
4. The river or fifth street is the final community card dealt face up on the table, and the fourth and final round of betting starts;
5. The showdown is the last step, where the players reveal their cards, and a winner is determined.

Rules of Texas Hold’em Poker

The above explanation of Texas Hold’em poker gameplay is a condensed version, so here I’ll explain each of the hands and rules that you should know to master this widely popular game:

• Ante and Blinds

In most poker games, all the players are required to place the ante, an equal amount of money, to the pot before the game starts to help increase the pot money. The blinds are the forced bets that two players left of the dealer must place: the first player on the left side of the dealer places the small blind, and the next player on the left places the big blind.

• Betting Options

Please note that the poker betting options are the same in land-based and online poker games that you can play at 888Casino. The players with a weak hand can fold at any time, or they can opt to bluff and try to outplay the other players by hoping the others will fold or that they’ll develop a good hand later in the game. Here are the betting options the players can make during a Texas Hold’em game:

Fold – folding means to discard the cards and forfeit the ante, blinds, and any other bet stake.

Check – if no one has opened the initial betting round, a player can pass their turn by checking. It means they wish to remain in the game without acting, reserving the right to decide later in the round.

Bet – the opening of the betting round is done when a player bets a certain amount to the pot, and the remaining players must act appropriately.

Call – to call means to match a bet or match a raised bet, and the betting round ends when all players have bet an equal amount. If no one calls a bet, the player who’s made or raised wins the pot.

Raise – to raise means to increase the amount of the existing bet in the same betting round. Players can also re-raise the bet in the same round, known as re-raise.

• Pre-Flop

The pre-flop starts the betting in Texas Hold’em poker game after the players receive their hole cards – two face-down cards they can see. The player can decide to check, bet/call, or fold based on the hole cards. When a player decides to check, they pass the decision on to the player on their left, and when the first bet is made, all players must follow suit.

The player on the left of the dealer can open the betting, and the round continues clockwise; every player must make an appropriate action like folding, calling, or raising a bet. If all the players call the bet, the player in the big blind position must check or raise for the round to continue.

• The Flop

After the pre-flop round, the dealer deals the flop – the three community cards are placed face up on the table. The players can use these three cards and their two cards to make a winning hand. Then, the second betting round starts, and the player nearest to the left of the dealer starts the betting, continuing in a clockwise direction.

• The Turn

When the flop betting round ends, the dealer adds another community card face up on the table, this one known as the turn or fourth street. Then, the players make another betting round, with the player closest to the left of the dealer beginning the betting round. The next round starts after all the remaining players on the table take appropriate action.

• The River

The river is the step when the dealer places the fifth community card face-up on the table, known as the river or Fifth Street. The players then start the fourth round of betting; again, the player closest to the dealer’s left side starts the betting round.

• The Showdown

Once all the remaining players make their actions: fold, call, or raise/re-raise, the betting round ends, followed by the showdown. In the showdown, the active players play the best possible poker hand using the seven cards on the table – the five community cards and their two hole cards, and a winner is determined.

The rule states that the players can use one, both, or none of their hole cards to create a winning hand. If they don’t use any of their hole cards and create a winning hand using only the community cards, the pot is split because all other players can use the community cards to create a winning hand.

Hand Ranking in Texas Hold’em Poker

Now that you know the rules of Texas Hold’em poker, let’s outline the poker hand ranking. You must know this to be able to create a winning hand and plan your course of play at Betway:

Texas Hold’em RTP, House Edge, Odds and Payouts

Per the standard rules of online Texas Hold’em poker, the house edge is 2.18% for the ante bet, and the house edge for the ante and blind bet is 1.09%. However, the actual odds for each player are not easily calculated, as this involves a complex mathematical calculation that depends on the number of players, their cards, and the community cards, and these change as the game progresses.

The payout in poker is the pot amount that is gathered during the game (excluding the house edge). It is variable and depends on several factors, like the number of players, the bets they make, how much they raise when they fold, and the round when the game ends.

Texas Hold’em Poker Varieties

Several poker varieties are similar to Texas Hold’em poker, known as community card games. Per the game’s rules, the players can use the community cards and their hole cards to create the best possible hand. Here are Texas Hold’em poker varieties that you can try at Spin Casino:

• Limit Hold’em

Known as risk-free poker, in this poker game, the bet size is fixed before the hole cards are dealt. There are a total of four rounds of betting. The bet size in the first two betting rounds is usually half the bet size in the final two betting rounds.

• No Limit Hold’em

As the name suggests, in this poker variant, the players can raise, bet or call as much as they want, as there is no limit to the bets. High rollers usually play this variant. In many cases, the size of the lower and the higher stakes is fixed, and the bet size should equal the previous bet.

• The Pot Limit Hold’em

Per the rules of this poker variant, the bet size can’t be larger than the pot amount, and it is also considered a combo between Limit and No-Limit Hold’em poker. For example, if the pot value is $20, you can’t raise more than $20, but the other players are more tempted to call because of the bet limit, and the game becomes more exciting. Pot Limit Hold’em is the best game for players who love to apply strategies. You can find Pot Limit Hold’em at 888.

• Omaha Hold’em

As with Texas Hold’em, in Omaha Hold’em, the players get hole cards and community cards placed on the table. The players get four hole cards and can only use two of them and can use three of the five community cards. There are further variations of Omaha Hold’em poker, and the two most famous ones are Omaha Hi-Lo and Omaha 8 (Omaha Hi-Low split).

• Pineapple Hold’em

This Hold’em poker variant uses five community cards, and the players get three hole cards, of which they need to discard one (pre-flop, post-flop, or at showdown). The gameplay continues precisely as Texas Hold’em. There are three famous variants of this poker variant:

Pineapple – the players discard one hole card pre-flop
Crazy Pineapple – the players discard one hole card post-flop before the fourth community card is dealt
Lazy Pineapple (Tahoe) – the players discard one hole card after the fourth betting round, at showdown.

• 3 Card Hold’em

Three-card Hold’em is a popular online poker variant where the players play against the dealer. The dealer and players get two hole cards, and three community cards are placed on the table; one face up and two face down. The players start the first betting round, after which the dealer reveals the second community card and the second round of betting starts. The dealer then reveals the third community card and his hole cards, and the players use the three community cards and their hole cards to get the best possible three-card hand. The hand rankings in this poker variant are slightly different, and these are:

Straight Flush – three cards in a sequential rank in the same suit
Three of a Kind – three cards of the same rank
Straight – three cards in a sequential rank in different suits
Flush – three cards of the same suit
Pair – the player with a pair wins the pot
High Card – the highest card wins the pot

Texas Hold’em Tips & Strategies: When to Play & When to Fold?

You will encounter many hands when you play online Texas Hold’em poker at 20Bet or another online casino, so you should know the difference between the potentially valuable and invaluable hands. You can play offensively and aggressively but must also know when to fold in poker. The poker hands worth playing should have these (at least two of them) traits:

Big Pair potential: Any hand that forms a pair should not be folded, as this is an excellent starting hand that can improve your chances of getting a full house, four-of-a-kind, three-of-a-kind, or a pair. It is statistically proven that a player who starts with a pair in his hole cards has a 45% chance of winning. A top pair like A-A, K-K, Q-Q, J-J, 10-10 are excellent to play with, as these give you the best winning hand potential.

Flush Potential: A good flush potential is a hole card hand with two suited cards, which can be a good starting point to reach high pairs, full house, flush, and a straight flush.

Straight Potential: A good straight potential hand is a hole card with two cards close in rank. The closer the rank, the better the hole hand; it can be a good starting point to reaching a straight, straight flush.

After consulting expert poker players and playing online poker at 22Bet, I’ve compiled a list of tips outlining which hands you should consider folding:

• A hand containing a two except a pair of twos or a hand with a suited ace and a two;
• A hand containing a three except a pair of threes or a hand with a suited ace and a three.
• A hand containing a four except a pair of fours or a hand with a suited ace and a four.
• A hand containing a five except a pair of fives or a hand with a suited ace and a five.
• A hand containing a six except a pair of sixes or a hand with a suited ace and a six.
• A hand containing a seven except a pair of sevens, a hand with a suited ace and a seven, or a suited seven and an eight.
• A hand containing an eight except a pair of eights, a hand with a suited ace and an eight, a suited seven and an eight, a suited eight and nine, or a suited eight and a ten.
• A hand containing a nine except a pair of nines, a suited ace and a nine, a suited eight and a nine, a suited nine and a ten, a suited nine and a jack, a suited nine and a queen, and a suited nine and a king.

Texas Hold’em Styles of Play

It is common to refer to poker players using nicknames derived from their playing styles. I feel it is vital for me to share the four typical poker styles of play you’ll most likely encounter at popular Texas Hold’em tables at the best online casinos in India, like JackpotCity:

• Tight Aggressive – a player who plays fewer hands but will frequently raise and make more substantial bets
• Loose Aggressive – a player who plays a broad range of hands, frequently raising the bets and playing more substantial bets
• Tight Passive – a player who plays fewer hands and is more likely to check and call but rarely raises the bet
• Loose Passive – a player who plays a broad range of hands but is more likely to check and call and rarely raise the bet

Where to Play Texas Hold’em Poker in India?

Now that I’ve covered all the main aspects of playing Texas Hold’em poker online, let me tell you where you can play this fascinating casino game in India. Many online sites carry Texas Hold’em poker. Still, it would help if you always looked for one that has an active casino license, all the favorite Indian deposit methods, varied casino games, excellent customer support, appealing casino bonuses, and games from reputable game providers.

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