Texas Holdem is the most popular card game in the world right now. It’s everywhere you look; your buddy is running a home game, large tournament winners are mentioned in the news, games are shown on TV and poker is available in brick and mortar casinos, on your phone and online.
Poker is huge, no doubt about it. Everyday new people are signing up online to play their first hand of Texas Holdem. Possibly even turn it into a career.
Poker Beginners Guide: Introduction to Texas Hold'em This guide will teach you the basics in a number of small, interactive steps. The best way for beginners to start to the game is to master Texas Hold'em. Over the past 10 years this has become the most popular form of poker in the world. Texas Hold’em is often described as a game that takes minutes to learn but a lifetime to master. The game itself is quite simple to learn. It is based on the old school poker game of Seven Card Stud. Players must make the best five-card hand possible using two hole cards and five community cards. Texas Hold’em Poker You can find which hand outranks another from the hand rankings guide. The dealer deals two cards at the start of each hand (round), which are not meant to. Welcome to our Texas Holdem guide. The idea behind this guide is to walk you through the basic rules and strategies to Texas Holdem. While a lot of sites have articles written on the same topics, they’re not as easy to understand as ours. Play Poker At The Right Times. Okay, I must admit, this one might seem obvious.
So because the game is so popular and people are signing up everyday to learn how to play, we thought we’d create a guide to help beginners get started. Take them by the hand and teach them the rules, lingo and basic strategies to help them become profitable faster. I think we’ve accomplished that. Take a look at our guides below and see for yourself.
Texas Holdem Guides
Below are our 4 guides to Texas Holdem. These guides were written with the beginner in mind. We wanted you to be able to read these, not knowing a thing about Texas Holdem, then being able to sit down at your first game and act as if you’ve been playing for years.
These guides aren’t in any particular order, although I do recommend starting with Part 1 since that contains the rules, betting options and formats. Other than that, take your time and take notes, and I’m sure you’ll catch on quickly.
Texas Holdem Guide Part 1 – Texas Hold’em Rules & Betting
The absolute basics are covered in the first part of our holdem guide. The idea is to take someone new to Texas Holdem and give them just enough information so that they can play their first game. The topics I cover in this guide include the rules to Texas Holdem, what hands win in Texas Holdem, betting formats & actions and betting basics.
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Texas Holdem Guide Part 2 – Understanding poker math and table image
Our second guide builds on the first one. Now that you already know the rules it’s time to learn how to start playing poker profitably. The first thing I cover is table image aka how your opponents perceive you, how you perceive them and how this will affect your strategy. After that I cover poker math. This is basic math, like addition, multiplication and division. So if you finished grade school math you should be fine. You’ll want to learn this math so you know how to draw to hands profitably, and so that you can see why drawing to gut-shot draws is nearly always a bad idea.
Texas Hold’em Guide Part 3
Part 3 of our Texas Holdem guide focuses on a few areas that new players get wrong — very wrong. To start, I talk about table position, where you sit in relation to your opponents and where you sit in relation to the dealer button. More importantly, I explain why table position is the most important concept to understand in poker and how it affects your strategy. I then move into playing from the blinds, which is an extension of table position. Last, I talk about bluffing, including what makes a successful bluff and how to make sure your bluffs work more often than not.
Read Part 3 Now
Texas Hold’em Guide Part 4 – Best Starting Hands & Variance
In our last guide I cover a few more topics I feel are important for new poker players to learn and understand. I first cover starting hands, including why having a static chart is a bad idea and what you should do instead. I then discuss a big leak that new (or bad) players have — always calling instead of raising — and why it’s costing you money. I then talk about dealing with bad beats and why you shouldn’t let them bother you. I finish off the guide with 10 tips that will improve your poker game.
History of Texas Holdem
The history of origin of Texas Holdem is unclear. However, it’s been said that holdem originated in Robstown, Texas, back in the early 1900s. That’s where the “Texas” in Texas Holdem comes from.
The game didn’t stay there long though. It made it’s way to Las Vegas in the late 1960s, instantly becoming a favorite of professional poker players. They liked holdem because there were more betting rounds compared to games like 5-card draw, creating more opportunities to outthink and outplay their opponents.
Texas Holdem started to increase with popularity with the start of the World Series of Poker (WSOP). Originally the Gambling Fraternity Convention, Benny and Jack Binion acquired the rights to the convention and renamed it the World Series of Poker in 1970.
The early days of the WSOP would shock most players today. For example, take a look at these Main Event stats:
- The first WSOP Main Event tournament had 7 players. The buy-in was $5,000.
- The first 6-figure prize pool was in 1973.
- The first time the tournament had 100+ players was in 1982.
- The first place winner didn’t start receiving 1 million dollar prizes until 1991.
- The Main Event field didn’t exceed 1,000 players until 2004.
This is pretty shocking given the thousands of players that enter the tournament nowadays, or the millions of dollars that first place earns.
But the WSOP (and the Main Event) just didn’t take off until the 2004 season. This was after the 2003 Main Event where Chris Moneymaker, your average accountant, won a seat to the Main Event for $39 on PokerStars and parlayed that into a Main Event win. That win was good for a bracelet, $2.5 million dollars and overnight celebrity status.
From there Texas Holdem exploded, being dubbed the Moneymaker Effect. The following WSOP (2004) saw a 300% increase in attendance, doubling the first place prize for first place.
The WSOP has only grown since then. Every WSOP since 2006 has seen over 6,000 players, with a couple Main Events exceeding 7,000. First place prizes have been as high as 12 million, with the average being right around 8 million.
It’s not just live poker that exploded as a result of Moneymaker either. Online poker has, too. There are half a million players (if not more) online everyday, playing for fun and for real money. Hundreds of thousands, if not millions, are wagered everyday.
Because the internet enables players to play lots of hand, dive into the math and play multiple tables, players are getting better at breakneck speeds. No longer does it take a dedicated player years of his life to become a great player. It’s now possible to become a great player, earning 6 and 7-figure incomes annually, in just a matter of months, weeks or even days.
So that leaves me one question; if they can do it — if Moneymaker can do it — then why not you?
6 Max Poker
6 Max poker or short-handed poker is the most popular form in cash games. It’s popularity has surged in the last 10-15 years. This is probably due to the fact it combines the appeal of fewer opponents with rewarding a looser playing style. Look on any poker site cash game lobby and you will see the numbers – players prefer 6 max to full ring.
The sharks tend to prefer this format too and will prey on weak opponents who do not make the necessary adjustments when moving from a nine or ten handed game. This article is dedicated to those of you new to 6 max or considering playing it. This 6 max poker strategy guide is mostly focused on cash games but can also be applied to tournament poker.
You Must 3 Bet More
There are some schools of thought that advocate a 3 bet or fold playing style. I do not subscribe to that theory being the best way but there’s no question you must 3 bet more in shorthanded games. You need to be aggressive, particularly in position. You will be playing more hands and you only connect on 1 in 3 flops so it is necessary to mix in some 3 betting to ensure you have the aggression. You can’t be reliant on hitting the flop to win.
Looser Hand Selection
If you are uncomfortable playing more than the very best hands, 6 max isn’t for you. You will lose too much in blinds and antes if you are not prepared to play more hands. Throw away your hand charts, as you won’t need them for 6 max. With fewer opponents, you are less likely to walk into premium hands as often. In a full ring game, you are folding your ace ten from under the gun, not in 6 max. Remember, if you open under the gun in 6 max, you only need three folds to your left to be playing in position.
Bluff More
Playing short-handed affords a lot more bluffing opportunities. You will quickly realise that weaker hands will win at showdown. In a full ring table with multi-way pots, a strong hand is often needed to win. Not so for 6 max games – one pair will often be sufficient. This means you can run more bluffs and try more moves to win. I am not suggesting you go crazy and re raise every flop bet but feel free to some flop check raises against those who c-bet too much or 4 bet the LAG who keeps 3 betting you. Bluffing effectively is a must for 6 max poker so look for opportunities.
Learn Continuation Bet Strategy
A shameless plug for our continuation bet course but it’s true, you need to c bet properly in 6 max. In most low stakes games, there are 2 types of mistakes players are making. They’re either not c betting enough or c betting far too much! Don’t fall into either category. Consider the opponent, flop texture, your hand strength and position before firing a c bet. You need to identify whether it’s a c-bet that is likely to work. This is not easy to do, in an instant. With our course, you will learn all this and more and it will become intuitive.
Texas Holdem Poker Guide
Thin Value Betting
Value betting is absolutely essential to winning poker. After all, you need to extract more from your opponents than they do from you, when you have the better hand. You need to value bet a lot thinner in 6 max poker games. A softly softly approach will not do you any good. If you’re checking back rivers in spots when your hand is best, you’re probably making a mistake. A thin value bet can be a small bet or an over-bet. If you are on unsure which is appropriate, err on the side of caution and value bet small. This will protect you from the bigger mistake of overplaying your hand. As you gain experience, you will be able to identify scenarios where a larger value bet will work.
Take More Notes
As you’re playing against fewer opponents, there’s even more reason to know them better. Watch them closely, pay attention to the hud stats, and take notes diligently. If you have more information, you are more likely to make better informed decisions. You will know their strengths and weaknesses and can react accordingly. They fold to 3 bets a lot? Great! Three bet them like there’s no tomorrow. They fold overpairs to wet boards? Fantastic, an over bet bluff is likely to work! They don’t 4 bet bluff? Don’t stack off with pocket jacks! As you can see, note-taking will significantly impact your decision making. It may seem tedious to type up notes but trust me, it’s for your benefit and your bankroll too.
Play Fewer Tables
Texas Holdem Guidelines
Short handed poker is going to take more of a mental toll. You’ll be involved in more pots, taking more notes and in more awkward situations. This is in contrast to the monotonous nature of full ring poker which affords you the chance to play more tables. One of the first tips I offer players I mentor is to find the right balance of game type and number of tables. Most prefer 6 max but are handicapping themselves by playing too many tables. This varies player to player but suffice to say, you will play better with fewer tables. This doesn’t mean you have to one table, perhaps you’re intelligent enough to play 8 tables and maintain a high win rate (rare). The key thing to remember is that each table you add on, the less concentration on each table on average.