Beginning Texas Holdem Part I of VI
A BEGINNER'S COURSE IN TEXAS HOLD'EM - PART 1
By: Lou Krieger©
This is the first in a series of articles aimed squarely at beginning
hold'em players. My goal is to introduce new players to this exciting
game and give them enough background to make them feel comfortable
playing casino poker.
Texas hold'em is among the most popular game played in casino poker
rooms. Although playing expertly requires a great deal of skill,
hold'em is easily learned and deceptively simple. It is a subtle
and complex game, typically played with nine or ten players to a
table, and is a faster, more action-filled game than stud. Texas
hold'em is also the fastest growing poker game in the world, and
is the game used to determine the world champion at the World Series
of Poker.
In the next few issues, we'll present a short course in Texas hold'em,
designed for beginning players. You won't be an expert when at this
series' conclusion, but you'll have enough information to allow
you to hold your own in most lower-limit games.
If You've Never Played Hold'em Before
While hold'em may look like seven-card stud, it is a different game
altogether. Because hold'em players form the best poker hand by
combining exposed communal cards in the center of the table with
two hidden cards that are theirs alone, it is more difficult for
an opponent to draw-out on you than is in a game like 7-card stud.
For example, if you were dealt a pair of jacks and your opponent
held a pair of nines, the presence of a pair of fives among the
communal cards gives each of you two pair. But you still have the
best hand. Unless one of those fives helped an opponent complete
a straight, the only player helped by that pair of fives would be
an opponent fortunate enough to have another five in his hand.
Blind bets
Before cards are dealt, the first two players to the left of the
"dealer" position are required to post blind bets, which
are used instead of antes to stimulate action.
In a $10-$20 hold'em game blinds are usually $5 and $10. Each blind
is considered live. Because blinds represent a forced, first bet,
each of the two blinds can raise (but only on the first round) once
the betting has gone around the table and it is their turn to act
again.
Unlike stud, where position is determined by the cards showing
on the board, the player with the dealer button acts last in every
round of betting - with the exception of the first one.
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The deal and betting structure
Two cards are dealt face down to each player, and a round of betting
takes place. On the first round players may either call or raise
the blind bet, or else they must fold their hand. Most casinos allow
a bet and three or four raises per betting round, with one exception.
When only two players contest the pot there is no limit on the number
of raises permitted.
When the first round of betting is complete, three communal cards,
called the flop, are turned face up in the center of the table.
That's followed by another round of betting. On this and each succeeding
round, players may check or bet if no one has bet when it is their
turn to act. If there is a bet, however, players may no longer check.
Once confronted by a bet, players may fold, call, raise, or reraise.
A fourth communal card called the turn is then exposed. Another
round of betting takes place. Then the fifth and final community
card known as the river is placed in the center of the table followed
by the last round of betting. The best five-card poker hand using
any combination of a player's two private cards and the five communal
cards is the winner.
That's all there is to the play of the game. Yet within this simplicity
lies an elegance and sophistication that makes Texas hold'em the
most popular form of poker in the world.
Knowing When to Hold'em and When to Fold 'em
While hold'em is exciting, exhilarating, and enjoyable, you ought
to know something before diving in and plunking your money down
- even if it's the lowest limit game in the house. Here are a few
of those somethings I wish I had known when first making the transition
from 7-card stud to Texas hold'em.
Hold'em only looks like stud. It plays differently
With a total of seven cards, some of which are turned face up and
others down, hold'em bears a resemblance to 7-card stud. But this
furtive similarity is only a "tastes like chicken" analogy.
One major difference is that 71% of your hand is defined on the
flop. As a result, your best values in hold'em are found up front;
you get to see seventy-one percent of your hand for a single round
of betting.
Staying for the turn and river demands that you either have a strong
hand, a draw to a potentially winning hand, or good reason to believe
that betting on a future round may cause your opponents to fold.
Because there are only two additional cards dealt after the flop,
along with the fact that the five communal cards play in everyone's
hand, there are fewer draw-outs in hold'em than stud.
The first two cards are critical
You'll frequently hear players say that any two cards can win. While
that's true as far as it goes, it doesn't go far enough. The whole
truth is this: While any two cards can win, they won't win enough
to warrant playing them. Like all forms of poker, you need starting
standards. Players who lack starting standards take the worst of
it far too often.
Position, position, and position
There's an old real estate bromide that says the three most important
features of any property are "…location, location, and
location." In hold'em, it's position, position, and position.
It's so important that some two-card holdings, which can't be profitably
played from early position, are cards you might raise with when
you're last to act.
In a typical nine-handed game, early position includes both blinds
and the two players to their left. The fifth, sixth, and seventh
players to act are in middle position, and the eighth and ninth
players are in late position.
The flop should fit your hand
No matter how sweet your first two cards may appear, an unfavorable
flop can render them nearly worthless. A key concept is that the
flop must fit your hand. If the flop doesn't strengthen your hand
or offer a draw to a very strong hand, you should probably release
it.
Suppose you called on the first round of betting with Ad-Jd and
the flop is Qd-5d-3c. You don't have a strong hand at this point.
What you do have, however, is a hand with extremely strong potential.
If another diamond falls on the turn or the river, you'll make a
flush. Not any flush, mind you, but the best possible flush, since
your ace precludes any of your opponents from making a higher one.
Even if you don't make a flush but were to catch a jack or an ace
instead, that might be enough to win the pot.
Beyond the flop
As a general rule, you shouldn't continue beyond the flop without
a strong pair and a decent side-card or kicker, or a straight or
flush draw with at least two opponents to ensure that the pot is
big enough to make it worthwhile.
Game texture - the relative aggressiveness or passivity exhibited
by the players is also important in determining whether to call
bets or raises. But a feeling for the game's texture and how it
should influence your play can only be obtained with experience.
In the absence of that experience, err on the side of caution. It
costs less.
Success at hold'em demands that you be patient, pay close attention
to position, and take comfort in the knowledge that good hands are
run down less often than the best seven-card stud hands.
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