Texas Hold'em
Like most types of poker, the goal of Texas hold 'em is to win the pot, or pots. A ‘pot’ is the sum of the money betted by yourself and the other players in a hand. A pot is won either at the showdown, where the players that are left compare their hands, or by forming the best five card poker hand out of the seven cards available, or by bluffing to cause other players to fold and give up their claim to the pot.
The major goal of winning players is not just winning individual pots, but also making mathematically correct decisions. By making these types of decisions correctly, winning poker players maximize their chance of winning and win more money than they lose in the long run.
Texas Hold 'em is usually played using big and small antes, also known as blind bets. These are called “forced bets’ and are made by two players. The small blind is anted by the player to the left of the dealer and is usually equal to half of the big blind. The big blind, is anted by the player to the left of the small blind, and is equal to the minimum bet.
When there are only two player’s left in the game, special rules are enforced and the blinds are posted differently than is normally done. In this case, the dealer posts the small blind, while his/her opponent places the big blind. The dealer is always dealt the last card, but makes his or her move first before the flop. After the flop, the dealer goes last for the rest of the hand.
No-limit Texas hold 'em is the form of the game usually seen on televised tournament poker and this is the game played in the main event of the World Series of Poker. In no-limit hold 'em, players may bet or raise any amount over the minimum raise up to all of the chips the player has at the table. In pot-limit Texas hold 'em, the maximum raise is the current size of the pot.
Many casinos that offer Texas hold 'em among the available games also allow the player to the left of the big blind to post what is refer to as an ‘optional live straddle’, This is usually double the amount of the big blind. No-limit games may also allow multiple re-straddles, in any amount that would be a legal raise.