Texas Holdem Rules
In Holdem, players receive two downcards as their
personal hand (hole cards), after which there is a round of
betting. Three boardcards are turned simultaneously (called
the "flop") and another round of betting occurs.
The next two boardcards (called "the turn" and "the
river" respectively) are turned one at a time, with a round
of betting after each card. The boardcards are community
cards, and a player may use any five-card combination from
the board and personal cards.
A player may even use all of the boardcards and no
personal cards to form a hand (this is called "playing the
board")A dealer button is used. The usual structure is to
use two blinds (bets without seeing one's cards to ensure
that there's something to win on every hand), but it is
possible to play with one blind, multiple blinds, an ante,
or combination of blinds plus an ante.
For more details go to
How
to Play Texas Hold'em
Texas Holdem Irregularities
What to do in poker when the dealer makes a mistake?
These rules deal only with irregularities in land-based
casinos. Obviously the software at online casinos never
makes the mistakes described below.
- If the first holecard dealt is exposed, a misdeal
results. The dealer will retrieve the card, reshuffle,
and recut the cards. If any other holecard is exposed
due to a dealer error, the deal continues. The exposed
card may not be kept. After completing the hand, the
dealer replaces the card with the top card on the deck,
and the exposed card is then used for the burncard. If
more than one holecard is exposed, this is a misdeal and
there must be a redeal.
- If the flop contains too many cards, it must be
re-dealt. (This applies even if it were possible to know
which card was the extra one.)
- If the flop needs to be re-dealt because the cards
were prematurely flopped before the betting was
complete, or the flop contained too many cards, the
boardcards are mixed with the remainder of the deck. The
burncard remains on the table. After shuffling, the
dealer cuts the deck and deals a new flop without
burning a card.
- If the dealer turns the fourth card on the board
before the betting round is complete, the card is taken
out of play for that round, even if subsequent players
elect to fold. The betting is then completed. The dealer
burns and turns what would have been the fifth card in
the fourth card's place. After this round of betting,
the dealer reshuffles the deck, including the card that
was taken out of play, but not including the burncards
or discards. The dealer then cuts the deck and turns the
final card without burning a card. If the fifth card is
turned up prematurely, the deck is reshuffled and dealt
in the same manner.
- If the dealer mistakenly deals the first player an
extra card (after all players have received their
starting hands), the card will be returned to the deck
and used for the burncard. If the dealer mistakenly
deals more than one extra card, it is a misdeal.
- You must declare that you are playing the board
before you throw your cards away; otherwise you
relinquish all claim to the pot.
Texas Holdem
Fundamentals
What every player should keep in mind all the time |
