Texas Hold’em is arguably the most famous of all poker games. If you are new to the game of poker, Texas Hold’em Poker is a great place to start. Hold ’em consists of two cards (“hole cards”) being dealt face down to each player and then five community cards being placed face-up by the dealer — a series of three (“the flop”) then an additional single card (“the turn”) and another additional card (“the river”) – with players having the option to check, bet, raise or fold after each deal; i.e., betting may occur prior to the flop, “on the flop”, “on the turn”, and “on the river”.
Texas Hold’em Rules:
Texas Hold’em Poker is a community card game that can be played anywhere from 2-10 players.
Why aggression is important in heads-up poker. Concepts to bear in mind on each street; Heads-up No-Limit Hold'em requires the mastery of all the classic elements of poker - maths, psychology, hand reading and heart. For players craving action and the ultimate test of their skills, heads-up poker has always been the game of choice. The earlier he raises, the more he can bet. The main differences between Heads Up Hold 'Em and Ultimate Texas Hold 'Em are in the former the player may raise only 3x his Ante bet before the flop, but the game includes bad beat bonuses for losing with a straight or higher. Following are the rules for Heads Up Hold 'Em.
- One player acts as dealer. This position is called the button and it rotates clockwise after every hand.
- The two players to the left of the dealer are called the small blind and the big blind, respectively.
- These two positions require forced bets of a pre-determined amount and are the only players to put money in the pot before the cards are dealt (if no ante in place).
- Every player then receives two cards face down. These are called “hole” cards.
- Once all hole cards have been dealt, the first betting round begins with the player sitting immediately to the left of the big blind. This player can fold, call (match the amount of the big blind) or raise.
- Betting then continues clockwise, with each player having the option to fold, call the amount of the highest bet before them, bet or raise.
- When the first betting round is completed, three community cards are flipped face up on the table. This is called the flop.
- The betting resumes, clockwise, with each player having the option to check (if no bet is in front of them), bet (or raise if a bet is before them), call or fold.
- When the second round of betting is finished, a fourth community card is flipped face up on the table. This is called the turn.
- The third round of betting commences with the first remaining player sitting to the left of the button.
- When the third round of betting is over, a fifth community card is flipped face up on the table. This is called the river.
- The fourth round of betting starts with the first remaining player seated to the left of the button. The betting continues to move clockwise.
The Details
Now here are some more detailed looks at aspects of Texas Hold’em.
A standard hold ’em game showing the position of the blinds relative to the dealer button.
Hold ’em is normally played using small and big blinds – forced bets by two players. Antes (forced contributions by all players) may be used in addition to blinds, particularly in later stages of tournaments. A dealer “button” is used to represent the player in the dealer position; the dealer button rotates clockwise after each hand, changing the position of the dealer and blinds. The small blind is posted by the player to the left of the dealer and is usually equal to half of the big blind. The big blind, posted by the player to the left of the small blind, is equal to the minimum bet. In tournament poker, the blind/ante structure periodically increases as the tournament progresses. After one round of betting is done, the next betting round will start by the person after the big blind and small blind.
When only two players remain, special ‘head-to-head’ or ‘heads up’ rules are enforced and the blinds are posted differently. In this case, the person with the dealer button posts the small blind, while his/her opponent places the big blind. The dealer acts first before the flop. After the flop, the dealer acts last and continues to do so for the remainder of the hand.
Play of the Hold’em hand
Each player is dealt two private cards in hold ’em, which are dealt first. Play begins with each player being dealt two cards face down, with the player in the small blind receiving the first card and the player in the button seat receiving the last card dealt. (As in most poker games, the deck is a standard 52-card deck containing no jokers.) These cards are the players’ hole or pocket cards. These are the only cards each player will receive individually, and they will only (possibly) be revealed at the showdown.
The poker hand begins with a “pre-flop” betting round, beginning with the player to the left of the big blind (or the player to the left of the dealer, if no blinds are used) and continuing clockwise. A round of betting continues until every player has folded, put in all of their chips, or matched the amount put in by all other active players. Note that the blinds in the pre-flop betting round are counted toward the amount that the blind player must contribute. If all players call around to the player in the big blind position, that player may either check or raise.
After the pre-flop betting round, assuming there remain at least two players taking part in the hand, the dealer deals a flop, three face-up community cards. The flop is followed by a second betting round. All betting rounds begin with the player to the button’s left and continue clockwise. After the flop betting round ends, a single community card (called the turn or fourth street) is dealt, followed by a third betting round. A final single community card (called the river or fifth street) is then dealt, followed by a fourth betting round and the showdown, if necessary.
In all casinos, the dealer will “burn” a card before the flop, turn, and river. The burn occurs so players who are betting cannot see the back of the next community card to come. This is done for historical/traditional reasons, to avoid any possibility of a player knowing in advance the next card to be dealt.
Survivor Poker Tournament Rules
The Showdown
If a player bets and all other players fold, then the remaining player is awarded the pot and is not required to show his hole cards. If two or more players remain after the final betting round, a showdown occurs. On the showdown, each player plays the best poker hand they can make from the seven cards comprising his two hole cards and the five community cards. A player may use both of his own two hole cards, only one, or none at all, to form his final five-card hand. If the five community cards form the player’s best hand, then the player is said to be playing the board and can only hope to split the pot, because each other player can also use the same five cards to construct the same hand.
If the best hand is shared by more than one player, then the pot is split equally among them, with any extra chips going to the first players after the button in clockwise order. It is common for players to have closely valued, but not identically ranked hands. Nevertheless, one must be careful in determining the best hand; if the hand involves fewer than five cards, (such as two-pair or three-of-a-kind), then “kickers” (the highest other card) are used to settle ties. Note that the card’s numerical rank is of sole importance; suit values are irrelevant in Hold’em. The last player to bet is the first player to show his hand.
Now that you know how to play Texas Hold’em poker, you are ready to hit the tables! Sign up today to get started and win real money!
On This Page
Introduction
Official Poker Tournament Rules
Heads Up Hold 'Em is an Ultimate Texas Hold 'Em variant by Galaxy Gaming, based on Texas Hold 'Em. The player may raise his bet one time, and has three opportunities to do so. The earlier he raises, the more he can bet. The main differences between Heads Up Hold 'Em and Ultimate Texas Hold 'Em are in the former the player may raise only 3x his Ante bet before the flop, but the game includes bad beat bonuses for losing with a straight or higher.
Rules
Following are the rules for Heads Up Hold 'Em. For those used to the terminology in Ultimate Texas Hold 'Em, what is called the Blind there called the Odds bet here.
- The game is played with a single ordinary 52-card deck.
- The player must make an equal bet on both the Ante and Odds.
- Two cards are dealt face down to the player and dealer. The player may look at his own cards.
- The player can check or make a Play bet equal to three times the Ante.
- The dealer turns over three community cards.
- If the player previously checked, then he may make a Play bet equal to two times his Ante or check again. If the player already made a Play bet, then he may not bet further.
- Two final community cards are turned over.
- If the player previously checked twice, then he must either make a Play bet equal to exactly his Ante, or fold, losing both his Ante and Odds bets. If the player already raised he may not bet further.
- The player and dealer will both make the best possible hand using any combination of their own two cards and the five community cards.
- The dealer will need at least a pair to open.
- The following table shows how the Ante, Odds, and Play bets are scored, according to who wins, and whether the dealer opens.
Scoring Rules
Winner Dealer Opens Ante Play Odds Player Yes Win Win See rule 12 Player No Push Win See rule 12 Dealer Yes Lose Lose See rule 12 Dealer No Push Lose Lose Tie Yes or No Push Push Push - Winning Ante and Play bets pay 1 to 1. Winning Odds bets pay according to value of the hand and whether it wins or loses. The following pay table shows what winning Odds bets pay.
Winning Odds Bet Pay Table
Hand Pays Royal Flush 500 Straight Flush 50 Quads 10 Full House 3 Flush 1.5 Straight 1 All Other Push Galaxy Gaming, the game owner, has four different pay tables for losing blind bets, as follows.
Losing Odds Bet Pay Table
Hand Pay Table 1 2 3 4 Straight Flush 500 500 500 500 Quads 50 50 50 25 Full House 10 10 10 6 Flush 8 6 5 5 Straight 5 5 4 4 All Other Loss Loss Loss Loss - In addition, there are two side bets, that pay based on the player's cards only, the Trips Plus and Pocket Bonus. These side bets are explained after the analysis of the base game.
Strategy
The player should make the 3X raise with any pair except deuces. Otherwise, use the following table shows when to make the large 3X raise.
The strategy for the medium and small raise are the same as in Ultimate Texas Hold 'Em, as follows:
Medium Raise: Make the 2X raise with any of the following:
- Two pair or better.
- Hidden pair*, except pocket deuces.
- Four to a flush including a hidden 10 or better to that flush
* Hidden pair = Any pair with at least one card in your hole cards (thus the pair is hidden to the dealer).
Small Raise: Make the 1X raise with any of the following, otherwise fold:
- Hidden pair or better.
- Less than 21 dealer outs beat you.
For a more powerful small and medium raise strategy, I recommend the James Grossjean strategy card for Ultimate Texas Hold 'Em.
Analysis
The following table shows all possible outcomes of each hand, what it pays, the probability, and contribution to the return under the losing Odds bet pay table number 1 (the one that goes 500-50-10-8-5). The lower right cell shows a house edge of 2.36%.
Return TableExpand
| Player | Raise | Dealer Qualifies | Winner | Pays | Combinations | Probability | Return |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fold | -2 | 5,498,078,560,920 | 0.197674 | -0.395349 | |||
| Less than pair | 1 | No | Dealer | -2 | 60,518,663,424 | 0.002176 | -0.004352 |
| Straight flush | 1 | Yes | Dealer | 498 | 20,279,100 | 0.000001 | 0.000363 |
| Four of a kind | 1 | Yes | Dealer | 48 | 1,726,735,980 | 0.000062 | 0.002980 |
| Full house | 1 | Yes | Dealer | 8 | 10,082,720,220 | 0.000363 | 0.002900 |
| Flush | 1 | Yes | Dealer | 6 | 49,072,032,216 | 0.001764 | 0.010586 |
| Straight | 1 | Yes | Dealer | 3 | 47,952,010,720 | 0.001724 | 0.005172 |
| Less than straight | 1 | Yes | Dealer | -3 | 3,006,630,550,164 | 0.108098 | -0.324295 |
| Anything | 1 | Y/N | Push | 0 | 455,081,939,824 | 0.016362 | 0.000000 |
| Royal flush | 1 | No | Player | 501 | 6,914,880 | 0.000000 | 0.000125 |
| Straight flush | 1 | No | Player | 51 | 279,004,320 | 0.000010 | 0.000512 |
| Four of a kind | 1 | No | Player | 11 | - | 0.000000 | 0.000000 |
| Full house | 1 | No | Player | 4 | - | 0.000000 | 0.000000 |
| Flush | 1 | No | Player | 2.5 | 43,096,215,600 | 0.001549 | 0.003874 |
| Straight | 1 | No | Player | 2 | 145,034,240,580 | 0.005214 | 0.010429 |
| Less than straight | 1 | No | Player | 1 | 816,981,676,824 | 0.029373 | 0.029373 |
| Royal flush | 1 | Yes | Player | 502 | 46,580,760 | 0.000002 | 0.000841 |
| Straight flush | 1 | Yes | Player | 52 | 2,023,968,588 | 0.000073 | 0.003784 |
| Four of a kind | 1 | Yes | Player | 12 | 964,337,328 | 0.000035 | 0.000416 |
| Full house | 1 | Yes | Player | 5 | 46,108,374,192 | 0.001658 | 0.008289 |
| Flush | 1 | Yes | Player | 3.5 | 202,016,746,236 | 0.007263 | 0.025421 |
| Straight | 1 | Yes | Player | 3 | 421,268,280,080 | 0.015146 | 0.045438 |
| Less than straight | 1 | Yes | Player | 2 | 1,600,861,520,204 | 0.057556 | 0.115113 |
| Less than pair | 2 | No | Dealer | -3 | 11,023,268,784 | 0.000396 | -0.001189 |
| Straight flush | 2 | Yes | Dealer | 497 | 16,724,460 | 0.000001 | 0.000299 |
| Four of a kind | 2 | Yes | Dealer | 47 | 311,575,460 | 0.000011 | 0.000527 |
| Full house | 2 | Yes | Dealer | 7 | 18,705,932,580 | 0.000673 | 0.004708 |
| Flush | 2 | Yes | Dealer | 5 | 27,615,003,664 | 0.000993 | 0.004964 |
| Straight | 2 | Yes | Dealer | 2 | 21,031,977,440 | 0.000756 | 0.001512 |
| Less than straight | 2 | Yes | Dealer | -4 | 1,979,644,169,384 | 0.071175 | -0.284699 |
| Anything | 2 | Y/N | Push | 0 | 214,144,135,720 | 0.007699 | 0.000000 |
| Royal flush | 2 | No | Player | 502 | 11,938,680 | 0.000000 | 0.000215 |
| Straight flush | 2 | No | Player | 52 | 397,598,400 | 0.000014 | 0.000743 |
| Four of a kind | 2 | No | Player | 12 | - | 0.000000 | 0.000000 |
| Full house | 2 | No | Player | 5 | - | 0.000000 | 0.000000 |
| Flush | 2 | No | Player | 3.5 | 45,718,738,920 | 0.001644 | 0.005753 |
| Straight | 2 | No | Player | 3 | 53,068,201,380 | 0.001908 | 0.005724 |
| Less than straight | 2 | No | Player | 2 | 1,207,385,216,712 | 0.043410 | 0.086819 |
| Royal flush | 2 | Yes | Player | 503 | 147,692,880 | 0.000005 | 0.002671 |
| Straight flush | 2 | Yes | Player | 53 | 3,016,851,612 | 0.000108 | 0.005749 |
| Four of a kind | 2 | Yes | Player | 13 | 20,440,911,312 | 0.000735 | 0.009554 |
| Full house | 2 | Yes | Player | 6 | 320,575,227,408 | 0.011526 | 0.069155 |
| Flush | 2 | Yes | Player | 4.5 | 183,447,763,404 | 0.006596 | 0.029680 |
| Straight | 2 | Yes | Player | 4 | 158,035,798,360 | 0.005682 | 0.022728 |
| Less than straight | 2 | Yes | Dealer | 3 | 2,415,318,761,280 | 0.086839 | 0.260516 |
| Less than pair | 3 | No | Dealer | -4 | 66,873,993,600 | 0.002404 | -0.009617 |
| Straight flush | 3 | Yes | Dealer | 496 | 14,499,400 | 0.000001 | 0.000259 |
| Four of a kind | 3 | Yes | Dealer | 46 | 316,891,120 | 0.000011 | 0.000524 |
| Full house | 3 | Yes | Dealer | 6 | 13,387,474,080 | 0.000481 | 0.002888 |
| Flush | 3 | Yes | Dealer | 4 | 20,484,007,080 | 0.000736 | 0.002946 |
| Straight | 3 | Yes | Dealer | 1 | 22,371,396,720 | 0.000804 | 0.000804 |
| Less than straight | 3 | Yes | Dealer | -5 | 3,136,124,565,400 | 0.112754 | -0.563771 |
| Anything | 3 | Y/N | Push | 0 | 223,641,379,520 | 0.008041 | 0.000000 |
| Royal flush | 3 | No | Player | 503 | 86,472,360 | 0.000003 | 0.001564 |
| Straight flush | 3 | No | Player | 53 | 180,911,880 | 0.000007 | 0.000345 |
| Four of a kind | 3 | No | Player | 13 | - | 0.000000 | 0.000000 |
| Full house | 3 | No | Player | 6 | - | 0.000000 | 0.000000 |
| Flush | 3 | No | Player | 4.5 | 41,791,833,360 | 0.001503 | 0.006762 |
| Straight | 3 | No | Player | 4 | 64,386,219,840 | 0.002315 | 0.009260 |
| Less than straight | 3 | No | Player | 3 | 1,317,173,128,560 | 0.047357 | 0.142070 |
| Royal flush | 3 | Yes | Player | 504 | 556,552,440 | 0.000020 | 0.010085 |
| Straight flush | 3 | Yes | Player | 54 | 1,444,036,640 | 0.000052 | 0.002804 |
| Four of a kind | 3 | Yes | Player | 14 | 21,003,399,360 | 0.000755 | 0.010572 |
| Full house | 3 | Yes | Player | 7 | 261,421,403,040 | 0.009399 | 0.065793 |
| Flush | 3 | Yes | Player | 5.5 | 199,160,655,360 | 0.007160 | 0.039383 |
| Straight | 3 | Yes | Player | 5 | 195,058,020,480 | 0.007013 | 0.035065 |
| Less than straight | 3 | Yes | Player | 4 | 3,140,424,343,760 | 0.112909 | 0.451635 |
| Total | 27,813,810,024,000 | 1.000000 | -0.023584 | ||||
As shown in the lower right cell, the house edge is 2.36%. This is the expected loss to the Ante wager only. For example, if the player bets $5 on both the Ante and Odds, then his expected loss would be $5 × 0.023584 = 11.79¢.
The average final wager per hand is 3.67 units. That makes the element of risk 2.36%/3.67 = 0.64%. This means for every dollar you wager in the game, on anything, other than the side bets, you can expect to lose 0.64¢.
By comparison, the element of risk in Ultimate Texas Hold 'Em is 0.53%.
The standard deviation, relative to to the Ante bet, is 4.56.
The next table shows the house edge and element of risk under all four losing Odds bet pay tables according to the pay table for a losing Odds bet.
House Edge Summary
| Hand | Losing Odds Bet Pay Table | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | |
| Straight Flush | 500 | 500 | 500 | 500 |
| Quads | 50 | 50 | 50 | 25 |
| Full House | 10 | 10 | 10 | 6 |
| Flush | 8 | 6 | 5 | 5 |
| Straight | 5 | 5 | 4 | 4 |
| All Other | Loss | Loss | Loss | Loss |
| House edge | 2.36% | 3.06% | 3.73% | 4.55% |
| Element of Risk | 0.64% | 0.83% | 1.02% | 1.24% |
This is full table cloth.
Trips Plus
The Trips Plus bet will pay according to the poker value of the player's hand regardless of the value of the dealer's hand. Following is an analysis of the most common pay table.
Poker Tournament Director Rules
Trips Plus Return Table
| Hand | Pays | Combinations | Probability | Return |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Royal flush | 100 | 4,324 | 0.000032 | 0.003232 |
| Straight flush | 40 | 37,260 | 0.000279 | 0.011140 |
| Four of a kind | 30 | 224,848 | 0.001681 | 0.050420 |
| Full house | 8 | 3,473,184 | 0.025961 | 0.207688 |
| Flush | 7 | 4,047,644 | 0.030255 | 0.211785 |
| Straight | 4 | 6,180,020 | 0.046194 | 0.184775 |
| Three of a kind | 3 | 6,461,620 | 0.048299 | 0.144896 |
| All other | -1 | 113,355,660 | 0.847300 | -0.847300 |
| Total | 133,784,560 | 1.000000 | -0.033363 |
The next table shows four known pay tables for the Trips Plus.
Trips Plus Pay Tables
| Hand | Pay Table | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | |
| Royal flush | 100 | 100 | 100 | 100 |
| Straight flush | 40 | 40 | 40 | 40 |
| Four of a kind | 30 | 30 | 30 | 30 |
| Full house | 9 | 8 | 8 | 7 |
| Flush | 7 | 6 | 7 | 6 |
| Straight | 4 | 5 | 4 | 5 |
| Three of a kind | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 |
| All other | -1 | -1 | -1 | -1 |
| Total | -0.74% | -1.74% | -3.34% | -4.34% |
Pocket Bonus
The Pocket Bonus bet will pay according to the value of the player's two hole cards. The follow tables show what each two cards pays, the probability, and contribution to the total return for each known pay table for the Pocket Bonus.
Pocket Bonus — Pay Table 1
| Hand | Pays | Combinations | Probability | Return |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pair of aces | 30 | 6 | 0.004525 | 0.135747 |
| Ace & face suited | 20 | 12 | 0.009050 | 0.180995 |
| Ace & face unsuited | 10 | 36 | 0.027149 | 0.271493 |
| Pair 2s - Ks | 5 | 72 | 0.054299 | 0.271493 |
| Loser | -1 | 1,200 | 0.904977 | -0.904977 |
| Total | 1,326 | 1.000000 | -0.045249 |
Pocket Bonus — Pay Table 2
| Hand | Pays | Combinations | Probability | Return |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pair of aces | 25 | 6 | 0.004525 | 0.113122 |
| Ace & face suited | 20 | 12 | 0.009050 | 0.180995 |
| Ace & face unsuited | 10 | 36 | 0.027149 | 0.271493 |
| Pair 2s - Ks | 5 | 72 | 0.054299 | 0.271493 |
| Loser | -1 | 1,200 | 0.904977 | -0.904977 |
| Total | 1,326 | 1.000000 | -0.067873 |
Pocket Bonus — Pay Table 3
| Hand | Pays | Combinations | Probability | Return |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pair of aces | 30 | 6 | 0.004525 | 0.135747 |
| Ace & face suited | 20 | 12 | 0.009050 | 0.180995 |
| Ace & face unsuited | 10 | 36 | 0.027149 | 0.271493 |
| Pair 2s - Ks | 4 | 72 | 0.054299 | 0.217195 |
| Loser | -1 | 1,200 | 0.904977 | -0.904977 |
| Total | 1,326 | 1.000000 | -0.099548 |
Acknowledgments
I would like to thank Charles Mousseau and Stephen How for their assistance, which confirmed my analysis. Thanks to Charles also for his advice on the medium and small raise strategy.
Internal Links
Detailed calculations on some starting hands.
Extneral Links
Play Heads Up Hold 'Em at the Galaxy Gaming web site. One click and you're playing.
Written by:Michael Shackleford