How to Play Poker:

Read the rules for playing poker as well as general guidelines which can be applied to most poker variations. There are hundreds of poker variants that can have various rules and betting structures, but certain rules for playing poker are general for the majority of these games.

Who is the Dealer?

In poker games, the dealer normally is the casino employee, but some games also allow one of the players to be a dealer. This player is selected by a marker called button, which is rotated among the players. The dealer in a poker game usually has certain advantages, and if one of the players acts as a dealer he usually has to pay fees on his winnings to the poker room.

The Beginning:

In the beginning of a poker game, most betting structures require all or some players to place bets in the pot. This is done to avoid situations when the pot remains empty and to make the game more interesting. Such bets are called forced bets. Forced bets can be of three types: ante, blinds and bring-ins. Ante is the most common form of forced bets, which is paid by all players, while blinds and bring-ins are required by some betting structures and usually are paid in addition to ante by one or more players.

Betting Rounds

Most poker games have several betting rounds, in which they usually are dealt initial cards. If one of the players places a bet, all other players can call it (place an equal bet), raise (place a larger bet) or fold (leave the game forfeiting all bets the player has made). If one of the players raises, the amount of his bet is considered a new bet, and all other players must either place equal bets or add money to the bets they made previously, so in the end of the round all players who have not folded will place equal amount of money into the pot. To avoid any confusion, players must not throw their bets directly into the pot during the round, but to place them in front and take them all to the pot when the round ends.

A betting round ends when either all players have called or all but one have folded. In the letter case, the game ends immediately and the player who has not folded wins the pot. If the round ends with more then one player in the game, the game proceeds to the next betting round. If the last betting round ends and there are still several players playing online poker, they reveal their hole cards and compare the hands to determine the winner. This final phase of the game is called showdown.