Poker has been around for years, but the rise of online play poker over. The last few decades has undoubtedly contributed to making it one of the most popular card games in the world (or the biggest of them all).

Luxurious Poker rooms in the casinos, world tournaments with countless prizes in the millions, fierce disputes, incredible bluffs, famous poker players… Anyway, all this and much more are reasons why the game attracts so many fans and interested in learning it.

Learning how to play poker isn’t difficult, but there are some. Basic rules and fundamentals that a beginner (even an intermediate player) needs to know before sitting down at the table and starting the jingle of chips. Most of the time, it takes a good few years to master the game and become a pro.

That’s why we’ve prepared a manual with all the information you need to start your journey in the world of poker. Here, you will not only learn how to play poker in practice. But you will also get to know poker hands, how the game works, types of bets and their variants. Luck may or may not be on your side, but with this guide. You’ll be off to a good start.

How does a Play Poker game work?

If you want to find out how to play poker. The first step is to understand the basics of the game. It takes place between two or more people and, in general, a deck of 52 cards is used .

The objective and one of the basic fundamentals of poker is to get the highest value card combination in the rounds to collect chips. Such chips may or may not have a real cash value, and they must be used to bet on the combination of cards. Also called a hand. In addition to having numerous variations and types. Poker can be played in person or even virtual, by computer or cell phone, for real money or not.

Regarding the history of poker, many experts consider that the modern version of it was created in the 18th century, in North America. And was inspired by ancient card games, such as the French poche and Az-Nas , from Persia. As early as the turn of the 19th century. Poker spread across the Mississippi River region, with its popularity steadily growing to this day.

After all, how do you play poker?

Now, on to another aspect of poker basics: gameplay . If you’ve ever asked the question “how to play poker for beginners”. Then here we have a simple and clear answer to your question.

In Texas Hold’em , one of the most played variants in Brazil and in the world. The objective of each player is to use the two individual cards. Known as hole cards , and combine them with the community cards to form a valuable poker hand with 5 cards .

Individual cards are dealt by the table dealer as well as community cards. However, the distribution of community cards takes place as follows:

1. Flop: after the first betting round, 3 cards are presented to the center of the table;
2. Turn: 4th card is added to the table, after the second betting round;
3. River: 5th and last card is turned up on the table, followed by another betting round.

Throughout this process, you can collect chips or earn money in two ways:

• Best poker hand made up of 5 cards (2 individual and 3 community);
• Or making your opponents believe that your hand is the most valuable.

And, of course, this is what sets poker apart from other card games. The first thing to keep in mind when learning how to play poker. To win, you don’t always need to have the best hand . Bluffing is an essential feature of poker. And it can cause opponents to fold even when they have a strong card combination.

If all players at the table choose to fold. That is, fold, the winner will take the pot without having to show their cards. However, if two or more players reach the last round. At the time of showdown (the time to open the individual cards). The winner will be the one with the highest poker hand, that is, the most valuable combination of cards.

 

How many people do you need to play poker?

Traditionally, for a poker game to take place, between 2 and 8 people at a table is needed. And the ideal would be to have at least 4 players . However, depending on the type of variant. A table can have more than 7 players. At the beginning of big tournaments, for example, sometimes up to 11 people play together.

To help you better understand how many people need to play poker, let’s explain three most common types of tables:

Full ring

It is the table format that allows the participation of a maximum number of players , generally 10 people, but varies according to the type of game. If you are learning how to play poker online, know that this type is quite common in Texas Hold’em.

 

 

 

 

 

Short-handed

A short-handed table allows up to 6 players . As in the case of the full ring , the number can vary, with some games taking place with fewer people, sometimes up to three participants.

Heads-up

On the other hand, heads-up is the type of poker table with two participants. The format is quite popular in online poker games, but uncommon in live rooms, for example.

Differences between playing poker online and in a land-based casino

The basics of poker are valid for those who will play poker online or in person, as in physical casinos, championships and tournaments.

For many experts and professional players, the difference is that in online poker players will have to use much more math skills to win chips over the course of the game.

In face-to-face poker, often analyzing opponents’ moves and behavior or even the so-called timing tell , that is, how long a player takes to make a decision, ends up being a more essential skill.

Another important aspect that differentiates online poker from face-to-face poker is the fact that the former is much more convenient, as it allows access to online casinos via computer or cell phone. It is also worth mentioning that the online modality is a great option for beginners, as it allows you to play for fun and enter rooms with lower betting limits.

Basic poker rules for beginners

Now that you know more about how the game works, it’s time to know what the main rules of poker are . Although they can vary according to the type of game, in our tutorial the ones that are more basic in most of them are present. Knowing them will help you learn how to play poker simply and quickly, especially at the beginning.

It is worth mentioning that understanding the main aspects of the game is quite easy, but mastering it requires a lot of training, practice and experience.

Play Poker hand ranking

Poker hand ranking establishes one of the most important rules of poker as it determines the value of possible card combinations. Most of the time, the highest value hand is the winner, but there are games that reward the lowest, such as in low-ball poker .