Online Poker for Beginners

If you are new to online poker, have no fear, it’s a very easy game to learn and can
be fun and profitable. Texas Hold ‘Em is by far the easiest game for a beginner to
learn, but the saying goes: “It takes 5 minutes to learn and a lifetime to master.”

There are a number of poker sites who claim the title of “best online poker
room,” but in the end none are too different. You can’t go wrong registering an
account at any of the big three: Full Tilt Poker, PokerStars, and Party Poker. These
sites all offer a wide variety of play and real money tables where you can practice
until you ready to move up to higher stakes.

Depending on the betting structure and limit of your Texas Hold ‘Em game, the
game play generally unfolds as follows:

• Players place out their blinds and antes so there is an initial pot to get started
• Each player is dealt two cards face down (known as your “hole” cards or
“pocket” cards)
• There is then a round of betting starting with the player immediately to the
left of the blinds. This is known as the “preflop” betting round.
• In any betting round, a player has five options: check, bet, call, raise, or fold.
A check is essentially a pass – you are not betting but you are staying in the
round until someone else bets you out of the hand
• After the first betting round ends, the dealer discards the top card of the deck
(known as the “burn” card) and then deals the next three cards face up on
the table. This is called the “flop” – these three cards and communal and can
be used in any combination with your two hold cards to form the best hand
• After the initial flop, there is a betting round, followed by a fourth card dealt
(known as the “turn”)
• After another round of betting the dealer flips the final card (known as the
“river”) – giving you a total of five communal cards to be used to make the
best hand.
• After this round of betting, we have the showdown, in which all players
remaining in the hand reveal their cards.
• The winning hand wins all bets that have been placed into the pot during
each betting round.

This is the basic game of Texas Hold ‘Em. Nice and easy on the surface, but it takes
a great deal of studying, practice, and most importantly, patience to become a truly
good poker player. Another important factor in becoming a profitable poker player
is selecting a game. Before you sit down at an online poker table, you’ll want to
observe the action for a few minutes to get a feel of how everyone is playing and
whether or not you think you have a competitive edge. Selecting the best online
poker room for you will help you make more money and avoid being labeled the
“fish” or “donkey” of the table (the worst player and easiest to win money from).
Good luck!