Best Bitcoin Poker Sites

Basic Poker Game Rules

The rules for poker vary depending on the type of game you play. Texas Hold’em is the most common type, so we’ll also go into detail about those rules to help you understand the game.

There are two key aspects to learn in poker. They are the hands that tell you the ‘score’ you get for your cards and the bets, which are a crucial part of the game’s structure. You’ll exchange your crypto for chips, which you’ll place on the virtual table when placing a bet. Another essential term you’ve probably heard is bluffing, as acting like you have the best hand can be a route to success.

Online poker is played with one deck of cards, and the site performs the role of the dealer. However, the position of the dealer is still significant as it dictates who will bet first.

Hands in Poker

In poker, you’ll receive your hole cards, which are dealt face down in front of you, and in Texas Hold’em, there are also five community cards, which are face up. The different hands you want to create in poker are:

• One Pair – One of the most common hand types, one pair is when two of your cards match in value, and the other three are all different. For example, 5, K, 9, 9, J, where the two nines make your pair.
• Two Pairs – A step up from one pair is when you have two sets of matching cards of different ranks. For instance, 5, 5, 9, 9, J. The fifth card is redundant. When competing with an equal hand of two pairs, the cards with higher ranks win.
• Three of A Kind – Moving up in value, the next hand involves three cards of the same rank, with the remaining two being different. For example, Q, Q, Q, 4, 8.
• Straight – A straight is a hand where all five cards make a sequence, although they don’t need to follow the same suit. For example, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, with a mix of clubs, spades, and diamonds.
• Flush – This hand is made up of five cards, all of the same suit, such as hearts or spades. They don’t need to form a sequence, such as J, 10, 7, 5, 4.
• Full House – This famous poker hand makes use of five cards. It combines two other poker hands, three of a kind and one pair. For example, you’ll have 6, 6, 6, A, A.
• Four of A Kind – A hand that scores more than a full house is four of a kind. An example is 7, 7, 7, 7, 3. The fifth card doesn’t matter, as long as you have four of the same rank.
• Straight Flush – The highest value hand for standard play. It combines a straight, which is a sequence of five cards, with a flush, where they’re all the same suit. For example, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2 of clubs. The highest-scoring version of this hand is the royal straight flush, A, K, Q, J, 10.
• No Pair – It’s not desirable, but no pair is the term for a hand where you can’t make any of the above sequences.

Types of Bets in Poker

It isn’t only the terminology for the poker hands that you’ll need to know. There are different structures and names for the bets and a particular order to follow. Depending on the type of poker, you’ll follow different rules. We’ve set out what you need to know to play Texas Hold’em, the most common variant.

• Ante – Some games require you to make a bet before the round starts; it’ll be a set amount and is known as the ante.
• Betting round – Betting rounds occur at several points in the game. For example, preflop (before the community cards are dealt), flop, turn, and the river.
• Small blind – In games without an ante, the player to the left of the dealer makes a small bet without having seen the cards, which is why the bet is blind.
• Big blind – The big blind is a bet made by the player to the left of the small blind and is double that amount. The cards are dealt, and betting starts from the player to the left of the big blind.