Hello, welcome to PokerStars Learn. I'm James Hartigan and this is
the only 'How to Play Poker… for Beginners' guide you need to
start your poker journey. After watching this video, you will know the basics and be
able to play your first hand of poker. And if you want to learn more, please
don't forget to subscribe to our channel. So, when we talk about poker, the
most popular version of the game – which you see in movies, on TV, and
on live streams – is No Limit Texas Hold'em, and that's what we are going to
learn to play in this video. The aim of Texas Hold'em is simple:
make the best five-card poker hand… from the two cards you've been dealt
and the five shared cards… in the middle of the table. Or act like you have the best
five-card hand! So what beats what? Well, let's run
through the official hand rankings, starting at the bottom
and work your way to the top.
The worst you can have is a high
card. No two cards are the same, and the five cards don't connect
in any other way. Ideally, you'd like to have at least
one pair: two cards of the same value. Aces are the highest pair. A pair of twos
is the lowest. Two pair is better. Pretty self-explanatory. In this example, a pair of Kings
and a pair of Sixes. Three-of-a-kind is also pretty
self-explanatory, and it beats two pair. Next up, a straight: Five cards
in a row of different suits. An ace can be high or low but
no wraparounds are allowed. Queen-King-Ace-Two-Three
is not a hand! Then a flush: Five cards of the
same suit, doesn't matter what… order they're in. A full house – also known as a boat –
It's where you have three-of-a-kind plus a pair, That is a very strong hand, but it's
still beaten by quads, officially known as four-of-a-kind.
A straight flush is an incredibly
rare hand. Five cards in a row, all of the
same suit. And the Royal Flush is unbeatable.
It's a straight flush – Ten to the Ace. Please note your chances of being
dealt this hand are roughly 30,000 to 1! And those are the hand rankings.
To recap: It goes high card, one pair, two pair, three-of-a-kind,
a straight, a flush, a full house, four-of-a-kind, straight flush,
and the Royal Flush. There's also a downloadable hand
rankings guide in the description. This is really useful to have by
your side for easy reference, when you're starting to play the
game. So, how does a hand of
poker play out? Let's start with three important
positions at the table… The button, sometimes referred to
as the dealer button, and to their immediate left, the small
blind and the big blind. Before any cards are dealt,
they have to put chips in, they are…
Literally forced to bet blind.
Hence, the name. the player in the big blind posts
the current minimum bet, with the player in the small blind –
to their right – posting half that amount. The cards will then be dealt in
a clockwise order, starting with… the player to the left of the button.
Now, if you play online or at a casino, you won't have to worry about dealing. But if your playing privately with
friends, it's standard for the… player with the dealer button to
actually deal the hand. Once everyone has been dealt two
cards, known as their 'hole cards,' it's time for the first betting
round. Now, because the players in the
small blind and big blind have…. already been forced to bet, the action
starts with the player to their left. This player has a decision to make
based on the two cards they've been dealt. They can fold and wait for the
next hand, but if they want to stay in, they
can 'call', in other words, match… the amount of the big blind, or they can raise and
set a new bet… that every other player has to
match.
The minimum raise is double the
big blind. And the maximum? Well, it depends on the
type of game, but if you're playing No Limit,
there isn't a maximum! At any point a player can go
'all in' and bet everything… in front of them. If a player raises and everybody
else folds, the hand is over. But for the sake of argument, let's
assume someone raises and… one or more players match
this bet. That means we move to the next
round and we get to see the 'flop:' three cards dealt face-up in the
middle of the table. These are often referred to as
community cards, because…
They are shared by all the players. So, everyone now has a five-card poker
hand with more cards… still to come. We then have the second
betting round. The action starts with the first
active player to the left of the dealer. And because there are no longer
any forced bets, this player doesn't… have to put chips into the pot.
They can check for free. This means the action passes to
the next player… who can also check or bet. Let's recap the basic actions in
a round of betting. 'Check' means I'm not betting,
but I'm staying in the hand. I'm passing the action along to
the next player and I will react… to whatever they decide to do.
'Bet' means I'm putting chips into
the pot. 'Call' means I'm matching the bet. 'Raise' means I'm increasing
the size of the bet. And 'fold' means I don't want
to call the bet. I'm throwing my hand away and
surrendering the pot. Remember, you can't check
once there's a bet in front of you. If you're not willing to commit
any more chips, you have to fold. So, if we make it to the end of
the second betting round with… at least two players still in, another
card is dealt face-up… in the middle of the table. This is called the 'turn.' Each player now has six cards to
choose from when trying… to make a good five-card
poker hand. There's then another round of
betting before the 'river' card… is dealt face-up next to the
flop and turn. Now everyone has seven cards
available to them. Remember the aim of the game is
to make the best five-card hand. This could be a combination of
two hole cards and three… community cards, one plus four,
or it could be the five cards…
In the middle of the table. This is known as playing the board. After one final betting round,
once all the bets are matched, it's time for 'showdown.' This is where you finally show
your hand. And if it's better than everyone
else's, you win all the chips in the pot. Once a hand is over, the dealer button
is moved one spot to the left, meaning the small blind and
big blind positions also rotate… clockwise, and the next hand begins. And you start again.
So, now you know how a hand
of poker works. I'm James Hartigan, and this
has been the guide on… 'How to Play Poker for Beginners’
from PokerStars. Don't forget to like and comment
on the video, and subscribe for more
poker content. Thanks for watching..