A Texas Hold’em poker game goes as follows:

1. The betting structure can vary. Sometimes antes are used, but most games start with two players to the left of the dealer placing out a predetermined amount of money so there is an initial amount to get things started. This is called posting the blinds.

2. The dealer shuffles up a standard deck of 52 playing cards.

3. Each player is dealt two cards face down. These are called your hole or pocket cards.

4. Then there is a round of betting starting with the guy to the left of the two who posted the blinds. This round is usually referred to by the term preflop. The amount a player can bet depends on what kind of game it is.

Much like most games of poker, players can call, raise, or fold.

5. After the betting round ends, the dealer discards the top card of the deck. This is called a burn card. This is done to prevent cheating.

6. The dealer then flips the next three cards face up on the table. These cards are called the flop. These are communal cards that anyone can use in combination with their two pocket cards to form a poker hand.

7. There is another round of betting starting with the player to the left of the dealer.

8. After the betting concludes, the dealer burns another card and flips one more onto the table. This is called the turn card. Players can use this sixth card now to form a five card poker hand.

9. The player to the left of the dealer begins another round of betting.

10. Finally, the dealer burns a card and places a final card face up on the table. This is called the river. Players can now use any of the five cards on the table or the two cards in their pocket to form a five card poker hand.

11. There is one final round of betting starting with the player to the left of the dealer.

After that, all of the players remaining in the game begin to reveal their hands. This begins with the player to the left of the last player to call. It’s called the showdown. Players use a combination of their pocket cards and the community cards to form a poker hand. For more about that, go to our forming a five card hand page.

The player who shows the best hand wins! There are cases where players with equal hands share the winnings, this is called a split pot.