Texas Holdem is one of the most popular variants of poker that has been around since the early 20th century. The game is played with a standard 52-card deck. The objective of the game is for players to collect the strongest possible five-card hand using the two hole cards they can privately view and the five community cards dealt in the center of the table.
In Texas Holdem, the first two players to the left of the dealer must place forced bets known as ‘blinds’. The person directly left of the dealer places the small blind and the next player to the left of the dealer places the big blind. After the blinds are posted, the dealer deals two cards (these are called hole cards) to each player at the table, one at a time, beginning with the player to the left of the big blind.
Once all the hole cards have been dealt, the first betting round begins, starting with the first player to the left of the big blind. Each player has the option to check (pass on making a bet), bet, raise, or fold (discard their cards) at this point. When every player has either checked or matched the maximum bet of the round, the dealer then procedes to deal three community cards face up on the table, which are available to all players. This is known as the ‘flop’. Following the flop, another betting round takes place.
The dealer then deals a fourth community card, known as the ‘turn’, followed by another betting round. Finally, the dealer deals the fifth and final community card, known as the ‘river’, followed by the last betting round. At the end of the betting round, players still in the game reveal their hole cards. The player with the strongest five-card hand wins the pot.