Playing poker is not as difficult as it may seem. Seeing how popular poker has become it is useful to know the basic rules for playing. Before you begin it's also important to know that poker has many variations.

Anyone interested in learning how to play poker should first read the general description on this page and when they feel confident that they understood the basics move on to the specific play types.

Dealing the cards to the players is usually done by rotation so all the players get to deal at least one hand. In casinos the house dealer is the person that deals all the hands for the players. In this case the order of betting is determined by a white plastic disc that is rotated clockwise among the payers. This disc determines which of the players is the nominal dealer and it helps to set the order of betting.

The players are required to make a forced bet so that they will have an initial stake to contest for. Once the forced bets are made, the dealer shuffles and cuts the cards and then deals one card at a time for each player until the number of cards required for the type of poker played is achieved. Also depending on the type of poker the cards are dealt face up or face down. When all the players were dealt the determined number of cards the first round of betting begins.

There can be several rounds of betting. After each betting round all the bets are put in the central pot. During betting rounds, if one of the players makes a bet the other players must fold, call or raise. The hands the players were initially dealt change in one way or another. The initial hands develop by being dealt additional cards or the players can replace the cards that they were initially dealt with.

However, if a player bets at any point in the game and none of the other players match the bet the hand ends then and there, the person who placed the bet taking the pot and doesn't even have to show the cards he is holding. The fact that one can win a pot without having to show his hand saw the start of bluffing.

Once the last betting round ends the players will have to show their hand in what is called showdown. The pot is won by the player holding the best hand.

As you know, there are a number of poker variants:

• Draw poker – each player is dealt a complete hand which the other players can't see. The initial hidden hand is then improved by replacing the cards that disadvantage them. If you want to learn draw poker i suggest you start with Five – card draw.
• Stud poker – in this type of poker the players receive cards, some face – up and some face down in multiple betting rounds. If you want to learn stud poker you might want to start with Seven card stud and Five card stud.
• Community card poker – community card poker is most common in casinos and poker tournaments. The players complete the hands they are dealt with the community cards. The community cards are shared and face – up.

Now that you know the basics of poker you can look into the other pages on this website. Everything you need to know about poker,and dare I say, much more, is right here.

Up next we'll take a look at a little something – something that will most likely increase your chances of becoming a top poker player.