A very popular saying is that Texas Hold’em takes a minute to learn and a lifetime to master. Learning how to play poker and the Texas Hold'em rules is simple but it will take practice and study to become a profitable player.

My book, Internet Texas Hold’em: Winning Strategies from an Internet Pro, and this website ought to help you improve your poker game by grasping the poker rules to become a profitable player of Texas Hold’em.

Texas Holdem is the most popular form of poker played in casinos worldwide and on the Internet. Watching a poker program on television can help you learn how to play poker like the pros but realize that it will take months and years to try and reach their levels. You will enjoy watching poker a lot more with a better understanding of the rules of poker, especially Texas Holdem rules.

Now, how to play poker: Texas Hold’em poker games use a 52-card deck. You will notice a white round disk sitting in front of one of the players. This disk is known as the dealer button and will rotate to the next player on the left each hand. The “dealer” is important because it designates who must post the blinds and act first on each betting round.

As per the poker rules, the player immediately to the left of the dealer button must post the small blind which is somewhere between ˝ and 2/3 the minimum bet. The player to the left of the small blind is the big blind and must post an amount equal to the minimum bet. Without blinds, players could simply wait for AA every hand since they would be losing nothing for their patience.

Each player is dealt two cards face down and the first betting round takes place. The first player to act is the player sitting to the left of the big blind. In this first betting round, players have the option of calling, raising, or folding. If the pot is not raised, the big blind can raise or has the option of checking since he has already posted the minimum bet. In Limit games, each bet or raise is equal to the minimum bet. For example, as per the Texas Hold'em rules, in a $1-$2 Limit Texas Hold’em game, one player could bet $1 and another player could raise to $2.

Three cards will then be dealt face up in the middle of the table. These are community cards which every player can use to make their best poker hand. This betting round is known as the flop. The poker rules state that, the first player to the left of the button begins the betting on this round and all subsequent rounds. Players may bet, check, call, raise, or fold in turn. Once again, the bets are equal to the minimum bet which would be $1 in the example above.

A 4th card will then be dealt face up which is known as the turn card. The bets on this round are equal to the maximum bet. For example, in a $1-$2 Limit Texas Hold’em game, one player could bet $2 and another player could raise to $4.

A 5th card is then dealt face up which is known as the river card. Again the bets on this round are equal to the maximum bet. The winner is the player who can make the best five-card poker hand using his two hole cards and five community cards. Players can use one, both, or none of their hole cards to make the best hand. If two players use the five community cards in the middle of the table they would split the pot regardless of what their two hole cards are.

Now you can see how easy it is to learn how to play poker but it will take a lifetime to master all of the rules of the poker and nuances of strategy. You have taken the first step in learning the poker rules, now it is time to take the plunge. Start out with some free bonus money from the top poker sites. Good luck!