Get the Best Hand: A Beginner’s Tutorial to Poker
Playing poker requires a strategic combination of sheer luck and skill. The game’s element of chance and rewarding prizes make it one of the top favorite card games in many casinos around the world. For these reasons, many poker variations emerge in countless online and brick-and-mortar gaming platforms worldwide.
There are many kinds of poker games that you can play. While each type has its own set of rules, the basics of the game are the same. Learn how to play poker and understand how the game works, its basic rules, and more through this beginner-friendly online poker tutorial.
The Best Poker Hands You Should Know
Before knowing the basic rules of the game, you need to know first the basic poker hands. A poker hand consists of five cards that can be classified into different categories. In the game, whoever gets the highest value of cards wins the pot. Here are the types of standard poker hands that you need to know, ranked from highest to lowest:
- Royal Flush – This highest-valued poker hand features a combination of 10, Jack, Queen, King, and Ace, with matching suits.
- Straight Flush – This hand is composed of five cards with consecutive value and matching suits.
- Four of a Kind – This hand contains four cards of the same value.
- Full House – This hand has a combination of Three of a Kind and a Pair.
- Flush – A Flush hand has any five cards with the same suit, in any order.
- Straight – This hand has five sequential cards with different suits.
- Three of a Kind – This hand is composed of three cards of any suit, in matching values.
- Two-Pair – A Two Pair hand has two sets of One Pair cards.
- One Pair – This hand contains two cards of any suit with a matching value.
- High Card – This hand contains a set of five cards without any pair or sequence.
These poker hands hold different values and odds. Among all of them, Royal Flush holds the rarest possibility to hit but offers the highest payout you can get in a single hand. A High Card, on the other hand, is ranked from two as lowest to Ace as the highest. This hand is used when no player made any of the hands mentioned above. In that case, whoever holds the highest value of cards wins the game.
How to Play Online Poker
One of the most popular variations of poker is Texas hold ‘em. This game uses a standard 52-card deck, in four suits. Your objective in Texas hold ‘em poker is to have the best poker hand possible using your two hole cards, and any three of the five community cards. Here are the basic rules that you should keep in mind when playing the game.
- The Beginning: Select the Dealer and Place the Blinds
Before the game begins, a round disc button moves around the table in a counterclockwise direction to determine who will be the dealer. Two bettors to the selected dealer’s left are required to give the first two bets: Small Blind and Big Blind. These are predetermined wagers that set your minimum bet for the game. You will receive two hole cards thereafter.
- Pre-Flop: First Betting Round
This is where the betting game starts. The player to the left of the first two bettors will make the first play, which can be dealt with four options: fold or withdraw from the game, call or match the amount of the bet, raise or increase the bet, or go all in.
- The Flop: Second Betting Round
After the first round, the dealer will give the first three community cards and a new round of betting begins. You can still choose from the four betting options, but this time, you can check or pass without withdrawing from the game.
- The Turn: Third Betting Round
In the third round, the dealer will reveal the fourth community card or the Turn. Another betting session starts wherein you can choose whether to fold, call, bet, raise, or check.
- The River: Final Betting Round
For the final round, the fifth community card or the River is revealed and a new series of bets will ensue. After the bets are placed, the remaining players will show their cards. Whoever holds the best hand wins the game.
Poker is a battle of wits and luck. More than just calling passes or checks, you need to understand its basics, to take risks, and to enjoy the game. Using our tips, you can now maximize your experience and stay ahead of the game. For a more rewarding experience, you can play Texas hold ’em in online casinos. Test your poker skills by playing games in Free Play mode or with real money bets today.
Aside from playing online poker, you can maximize your online gaming experience by exploring and playing more online casino games. For more easy gaming tips, guides, and tutorials, you can visit the HappiStar Tips page.
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