In case you haven"t noticed, and unless you have been living in a cave somewhere for the past four years you probably have, the poker game Texas Hold "em has taken the world by storm.
The game itself nothing new, especially the World Series of Poker. Texas Hold "em and the World Series of Poker have been around for decades. Usually reserved for the likes of some of the shadiest people in the underground poker world, Texas Hold "em became a household name back in 2004 when a rookie accountant from Tennessee named Chris Moneymaker shocked the world.
In 2004 Moneymaker defeated and outlasted every single opponent there was in the World Series of Poker to become the world champion of Texas Hold "em and claim a one million dollar prize.
Now, because of his win, tens of thousands of people enter the World Series of Poker in hopes of achieving that same feat. Poker websites have popped up all over the Internet creating an even more buzz around the recreation.
According to the latest statistics from the US Census Bureau, Texas Hold "em accounts for nearly $20 billion dollars in business around the world. All you need to do is turn your TV sets on and see the various tournaments going on over multiple TV stations to gain a better understanding of how popular Texas Hold "em has become.
If you are not sure how to play, here are the basics. Texas Hold "em plays with the same rules as far as card hierarchy as regular five card poker. The difference in Texas Hold "em is that each player will receive two cards then make a hand with their own two cards and the five community cards that will be dealt at the center of the table face up.
The five community cards are dealt in the following fashion. After every player has received their two cards, the dealer then places three cards face up in the center of the table. This is known as the “flop”. After each player goes around and decides whether or not they want to stay in, another card is then dealt face up in the middle of table. This card is most commonly known as the “turn”. Finally after another round of betting the dealer displays the final card face up in the middle of the table. This final card is most commonly known as the “River”.
Betting is different from tournament to tournament in Texas Hold "em but here are the basics. First you have the big and small blinds. These are bets that are rotated around the table that everyone eventually will have to put in. For example, if the table minimum is $5, the big blind would be $5 and the small blind would $2.50. This bet is to prohibit anyone from sitting at the table for free, continually passing until everyone else beats each other up and knocks some people out of the game.
The next round of betting occurs after everyone receives their first two cards. Most players will make a decision to fold at this time if their cards are extremely weak. The third round of betting happens after the “flop”, then followed by the “turn”. Once all the cards are on the table betting can continue until someone calls. This means they match the opponent"s bet and everyone still in the game reveals their cards to determine the winner.
Albeit it is not a complicated game, however the real skill comes when you can read your opponent to know if he has anything in his hand or he is just bluffing.
Bluffing is the process by which you have nothing of value in your hand yet convince your opponent that you have something really good, forcing them to fold their better hand so you can win the pot.
In 2004 it was a bluff that put Chris Moneymaker on the map when he convinced his opponent Sammy Farha that he had a better hand when in fact Moneymaker had nothing. That is poker at its best and it is what makes poker, specifically Texas Hold "em, a household name these days.
