Variants
Texas hold'em rules and where a beginner should start
Hold'em is the most played variant: most tables and nearly every major tournament run it. The rules are simple - 2 hole cards each, 5 community cards on the table - and the depth is enough for a lifetime.
- 2hole cards
- 5community cards
- 4betting rounds
- 3-1-1board pattern
Each player gets 2 hole cards face down. Then 5 community cards are dealt on the pattern 3-1-1 - flop, turn, river - with 4 betting rounds between the stages. The hand is the best 5 cards from your two and the five shared: both hole cards, one or none may be used.
A hand step by step
Blinds and cards
The two players left of the button post the small and big blind; everyone gets two cards.
Pre-flop
First betting round, starting left of the big blind. This is where a hand is judged worth money or not.
Flop
Three community cards. The first active player left of the button opens the betting.
Turn
The fourth card, third betting round.
River
The fifth card, last round, then showdown if more than one player remains.
Building the hand
The best 5 cards of seven. If the board holds a straight and your hole cards are junk, your hand is that straight - and so is everyone else\'s at showdown, so the pot splits. There is no obligation to use hole cards. The full order of hands: poker hand rankings.
Position beats cards
The button acts last on the flop, turn and river and sees every decision before making its own - the best seat. The blinds act first and play blind. A beginner\'s rule: the earlier the position, the stronger the hand needed to enter the pot.
Starting hands for a beginner
| Group | Hands | How to play |
|---|---|---|
| Premium | pairs from jacks up, ace-king | raise from any seat, re-raise a raise |
| Strong | pairs from sevens, ace-queen, suited king-queen | raise from middle and late position |
| Speculative | small pairs, suited connectors | call a cheap flop in late position, fold to a raise |
| Junk | weak offsuit cards | fold, even after a long dry spell |
Why hold\'em first
Two cards are easier to evaluate than Omaha\'s four; traffic is highest at every stake; the most learning material exists; and every GGPoker format - Rush & Cash, All-In or Fold, Spin & Gold - runs on hold\'em. Once it is comfortable, Omaha and short deck follow easily. Money management next: bankroll management.
Keep reading
Omaha
Omaha poker rules: four hole cards, a hand from exactly two of them plus three from the board, pot-limit betting, table sizes, PLO-5 and PLO-6, and the mistakes hold'em players make when they switch.
Hand rankings
Poker hand rankings from high card to royal flush: what beats what, how each hand is made, how ties and kickers work, and where the order changes in short deck.
Bankroll
Poker bankroll management: buy-in reserves for cash, tournaments and spins, when to move up and down in stakes, separating poker money from life, and the limits you can set in the client.
Rush & Cash
Rush & Cash at GGPoker: how fast-fold cash works, stakes from $0.01/$0.02, 5% rake capped at 3BB, the Cash Drop mechanic up to 600BB and how it differs from a regular table.
Hold'em at any stake
Open a GGPoker account: hold'em tables from $0.01/$0.02 and play chips for the first hands.