You, ace bluffers, have found your game, Poker. For a nice evening with friends, learn to play Poker in its most popular variant: Texas Hold’em Poker. To win, you won’t have to show your emotions and be strategic… The goal of poker is to win all your opponents’ money, so be careful, it will take you time and concentration.

To play poker you need:

• Chips of different values for each player to bet.
• A deck of 52 cards.
• A minimum of 2 players

Organization of a poker game:

To begin, you must designate a dealer, in order to distinguish him from the others, the button must be placed on the table next to this player. The dealer is in charge of dealing the cards. In each round, the dealer changes clockwise.
The two players to the left of the dealer are called the small blind and the big blind. These two players are obliged to bet a set amount of money between all the players before the cards are dealt.
The players who are in the small blind and the big blind change at the same time as the dealer, i.e. every round.
The amounts bet for the small blind and the big blind increase over the course of the game. For example, the players can agree to increase their bets every half hour.
Example: Depending on the value you put on each chip, you might start with 5 and 10 for the small and big blinds, and then after half an hour, increase to 10 and 20.

Beginning of a poker game:

The dealer deals each player two cards, one at a time.
The first round of betting starts with the player immediately to the left of the big blind. This player, depending on the cards in his hand, may :

• Fold. He then discards his cards and retires from the game.
• Calling the big blind, i.e. putting the same amount into the pot as the big blind.
• Raise. He then bets more than the big blind.

Once the first player has made his or her decision, the player to the left of him or her does so, and so on. The small blind and the big blind can either match the bets of the other players or raise. If there is a raise, a second round of betting takes place.

When the first round of betting is complete, three cards are turned over in the center of the table by the dealer. These cards are called the Flop.
Note: The dealer must “burn” a card each time he has to lay down cards, i.e. he does not keep the first card of the deck.

The second round of betting starts with the player to the left of the dealer. In this new round each player has the option to say :

• Check, the player can check, which means that he does not bet any more money in the pot. He can only check if the players before him have not bet either.
• Betting, he decides to put in the pot the amount he wants.
• Raise, i.e. bet a larger amount if a player has already bet.
• Call, if a player has already bet, you match that bet in the pot..
• Fold. He then discards his cards and retires from the game.

When the second round of betting is complete, a fourth community card is turned over in the center of the table. This card is called the Turn.
The third round of betting can begin as the previous one.
When this round is over, a fifth community card called the River is returned to the center of the table. Once the players have finished betting, those who are still in the race (i.e. the players who have not folded) show their cards. The player with the highest card combination wins the round, taking the entire pot.
A second round can then begin.

Card combinations in poker:

The player who wins a round in poker is the one who has the highest combination of cards and/or five cards turned over on the table.
Here are the details of the combinations in poker from the smallest to the biggest:

• PAIR: If you have two identical cards.
  WARNING: If two players finish a round with a pair each, the player with the higher card wins the pot.
  Example: Between a pair of 6s and a pair of kings, the one with the pair of kings wins.
• TWO PAIR: If you have two pairs of cards.
• THREE OF A KIND: You have three of a kind, if you have three identical cards.
• STRAIGHT: You have a straight, if five cards of different colors follow each other.
• FLUSH: You have a suit if you have five cards of the same suit in your hand and the five cards on the table. This means five diamonds, five hearts, five spades or five clubs.
• FULL HOUSE: You have 3 identical cards and a pair.
• FOUR OF A KIND: You have 4 identical cards.
• STRAIGHT FLUSH: You have this combination as soon as you have five cards in a row (STRAIGHT) that are the same suit (FLUSH).
• ROYAL FLUSH: This is the strongest combination you can have. To have a royal flush you need the five highest cards in the deck in sequence, i.e. ace, king, queen, jack and 10, and these five cards must be of the same suit.

How to win a poker game:

The winner of a poker game is the one who has collected all the chips from all the other players at the end.

Playing poker online

No poker table or chips available? Your usual poker partners are not available? But you feel like playing poker? It’s possible with online poker! If you are a fan of classic poker, you should love the web version!

There are many sites where you can play poker online. And if you’re wondering how to play poker easily on the web, it’s very simple! The rules are the same as for the classic version. Of course, you will find variations depending on the sites you visit. It will also be an opportunity for you to discover other games that you would not play in their table or casino version: blackjack, roulette, slot machines. Most online casinos also offer mini-games. Each one has its own theme and is different from the classic slot machine. You can also win exclusive bonuses, including a welcome bonus and sometimes deposit bonuses.

And last but not least, you can play online anywhere, anytime!