Section II: Part 2 Rules of the Game, Texas Hold'em, Omaha

Texas Hold'em

Texas Hold'em is the most played poker game in the US and around the world today. Most poker tournaments as well as the World Championship of Poker are Hold'em tournaments. Texas Hold'em is by far the best game for beginners to learn because of its simplicity and because of the fact that calculating odds for each player is much easier than in other games such as Seven-Card Stud. One can learn to play Hold'em very quickly and can be playing fairly well with just a few hours of practice.

Unlike most poker games, there is no Ante in Texas Hold'em. Instead, at the beginning of each round, two players "line the pot" with what is called a blind bet. The blind bets are placed by the two people to the left of the dealer, who is designated by the "dealer button" or simply "the button". After each hand is completed, the button will move clockwise to the next active player who will then be considered to be the dealer. The dealer is the last to act in each round of betting. The player one seat to the left of the dealer posts the "small" blind, and the player two seats to the left of the dealer posts the "large" blind (which is generally double the value of the small blind).

There are four betting rounds in each round of Texas Hold'em. The first round happens after the players are dealt their "pocket cards" (these are two cards that each player is dealt face down). Once all bets are placed for the first round, three cards are dealt in the middle of the table face up. This is called the "flop" and the cards in the center of the table dealt face up are called "community cards". Another round of betting begins after the flop is dealt. Most players who fold do so after the flop simply because 5/7 of each players cards have been revealed to them at this point, and one usually has a good idea of whether they will have a solid hand or not. Once this round of betting is completed, a third community card is dealt face up in the center of the board, called the "turn". After the turn, there is a third betting round. Once the third round is completed, a final community card is dealt in the center of the table. This card is called the "river". After the river is dealt, the fourth and final betting round ensues before the "showdown". At the showdown, all remaining players must compare their hands. Each player uses five of the seven cards available to him/her (two pocket cards and five community cards) to make the best possible hand.

Each bet during the first two rounds is set at the lower limit of the betting structure. In a $5/$10 game, all bets and raises are $5 for the first two rounds after pocket cards are dealt. For the last two rounds the stakes double, and all bets and raises are $10 until the round is completed. Before any bets are placed, players have the option of checking. Although it is relatively rare, every player at the table can check as long as no one bets or raises. Some players check in order to wait and see if other players are confident enough to bet. Another popular (but sometimes frowned upon) strategy that some players use when they have a strong hand is called "check raising". This is when a player checks in order to make his opponents think he has a weak hand, waits for them to bet, then raises again. This leaves the other players with the decision of whether to continue betting and protect their previous bet or to cut their losses. This is a great way to "line the pot" if you have a very strong hand.

An initial bet, plus three raises are the maximum amount of bets allowed during any betting round. During a betting round, there can be 1) a bet 2) a raise 3) a re-raise and 4) a cap. The word cap refers to the final raise in a betting round. Once the betting has reached the cap, the players are only allowed the option of calling or folding.

By the end of a round, two things can happen. More often than not, at least half of the players will fold (especially in a game with experienced, selective players) before the final round of betting is complete. If all but one player has folded, the last player left wins the pot without having to show his/her pocket cards. If two or more players have not yet folded when the final round of betting is complete, they must have a "showdown" where the hands are compared to reveal the winner. If two players tie (which is fairly rare) then they split the pot.

Omaha Hold'em

Omaha Hold'em is a variation of Texas Hold'em, but nine cards are available to each player instead of seven. Players' hands consist of four cards dealt face down to each player and five cards dealt face up to the board, which are shared by all players in the game. Players must construct their final hands using exactly two cards from their own hands and three cards from the board. A player wins by having the highest-ranking hand of five cards.

The basic differences between Omaha and Texas hold'em are these: first, each player is dealt four cards to his private hand instead of two. The betting rounds and layout of community cards are identical. At showdown, each player's hand is the best five-card hand he can make from exactly three of the five cards on the board, plus exactly two of his own cards. Unlike Texas hold'em, a player cannot play only one of his cards with four of the board, nor can he play the board, nor play three from his hand and two from the board, or any other combination. In high-low split, each player, using these rules, thus makes a separate five-card high hand and five-card ace-to-five low hand (eight-high or lower to qualify), and the pot is split between the high and low (which may be the same player). To qualify for low, a player must be able to play an 8-7-6-5-4 or lower (this is why it is called 8 or better, or simply Omaha 8). A few casinos play with a 9-low qualifier instead, but this is rare. Each player can play any two of his four hole cards to make his high hand, and any two of his four hole cards to make his low hand.

The betting rounds for Omaha Hold'em are identical to the Texas Hold'em rounds. Although the betting rounds follow the same structure, there are generally more bets placed and there is usually more money in a pot during an Omaha game because there are more possible hands since more cards are involved in the game.