Online Casinos With Texas Hold'em Games Top Texas Hold'em Casinos

Welcome to our guide of official rules of one of the most popular games in the world – Texas Hold em. As our site is not all about slots, but generally about casino games, we thought that we have to introduce this amazing game for our visitors. Note, that the rules presented here are exactly the same for this poker game, no matter where you play. The options of how to play Texas Hold em poker are many:

• at casinos online in Poker lobby,
• against random number generator, when playing Casino Texas Hold em games,
• in Live Casino section,
• at Live Tables at real casinos,
• at home with your friends

Texas Hold em players go H2H with the dealer with the goal of forming a 5-card hand that ranks higher than the hand that the casino dealer has. This hand is being formed out of their own two cards and three of the five community cards. Note that in RNG poker games and video pokers the dealer is replaced by software and, therefore, is a virtual dealer. In some languages and casinos this role is being called croupier.

Texas Hold em dealer must have at least a pair to qualify. Before the Flop, the River and, finally the dealer’s two cards are revealed, players must place an equal Ante and Blind bet. Then they have three opportunities to make one raise with the Play bet. The earlier they raise, the more they can risk and win. Adding even more interest is the optional Trips bonus bet.

Ultimate Texas Hold em Game Rules

In this guide we will focus on the rules of the most popular type of the poker game – the version called Ultimate Texas Hold em. It differs from Texas Hold em in that it is played against the house rather than against other players.

The aim of this game is just the same as described above for the classic version of Texas Hold em. An unlimited number of players can play simultaneously at one Ultimate Texas Hold em table. Each and every one of those who play this casino game are allowed to take only one seat. The game is played with one standard card deck, jokers excluded, containing 52 cards. The deck that is being in use by casino dealer has to be shuffled after every poker round.

At the beginning of the round, you place a bet in the Ante spot. When your Ante bet has been placed, a matching Blind bet is automatically placed by the system.

The croupier deals the first and the second card face up to the player - you. After that he or she continues by dealing two more cards, this time face down to the dealer him or herself. Then it's time for a short pause, after which the dealer deals three so called community cards face up. They are being placed in the middle of the poker table. That's what's called the Flop. After another short pause, the dealer deals two final community cards. Those cards are being called the Turn and the River in poker context.

You and the dealer can use the cards in your hand and the community cards to comprise the best five-card hand. During the pauses in the game, you can decide to Play or Check. To find a winner, the best paying hands are formed and compared for you and for the dealer, using five out of seven available cards.

Side Bets in Texas Hold em

Trips Bet

The Trips bet is an optional side bet that you can place before the round begins. You win on your TRIPS bet when your final five-card hand is three-of-a-kind or better.

The Trips bet is placed in the blinking betting spot, after your Ante bet has been accepted. You win on your Trips when your best hand is three-of-a-kind or better. You must place your bet before the time expires and the casino dealer starts to deal. During the game round, you will be offered decisions, but these decisions will not affect the outcome of your Trips bet. At the end of the round, the croupier will turn all his cards face up and announce the outcome of the game.

Guide on Poker Winning Hands

It is extremely important to know the winning cards, when you play poker. These are ranked in descending order from Ace to 2. Note that an Ace can be both the highest value Texas Hold em card in a Straight of A-10 or the lowest one in a Straight of 5-A.

Here comes the list of all possible poker winning hands, starting from the highest payout to the lowest one:

• Royal Flush - same as Straight Flash (see below), but all of the same suit. Best combination you can get in Ultimate Texas Hold em.
• Straight Flush is a poker hand of 5 cards of the same suit in sequence, for example: 2,3,4,5,6 spades.
• 4 of a Kind is yet another great winning hand in poker, containing 4 cards of one rank plus any other card. 4 Kings and a 7 is an example of that hand. 4 cards of a higher ranking poker card wins over 4 cards of a lower. This means that 4 Queens beat 4 10's.
• Full House is a hand with only 3 matching cards and the remaining ones being 2 of the same rank. An example for Full House is 3 Aces and 2 9's. The same rules apply here if two or more poker players have Full House. In Texas Hold em the highest card wins over the lowest.
• Flush - 5 cards not in sequence, but of the same suit, for example all hearts. If two or more players have Flush, the one with highest ranking card wins. In case both have a card of same rank, the rank of the second one determines the winner, etc.
• Straight - same as Straight Flush, but without all cards belonging to the same suit.
• Three of a Kind - 3 cards of the same rank plus 2 others that would not bring any winnings without those three.
• Two Pairs - 2 pairs of the same rank plus any other card.
• Pair - 1 pair of cards of the same rank plus three other cards.
• High Card - if no winning combinations are recorded, than the poker player with higher card wins.

Texas Hold em Game Outcomes

The casino dealer must have a pair or better to qualify for competing with the Texas Hold em player. If that's the case, then his hand is getting compared to your hand:

• If he has a better hand, the APB-bets - Ante, Play and Bet bets - and any side bets are lost.
• If the player has a better hand, the ANTE and PLAY bets pay 1:1, while the BLIND bet is being settled, based on BLIND payout rules.
• If both you and the casino dealer tie, the ANTE, PLAY and BLIND bets are returned to you. This situation is being called Push.

If the dealer's hand does not qualify, there is a Push situation and the ANTE bet is returned to you. Your hand is being compared to the hand the dealer has, in order to see whether you are eligible to receive PLAY and BLIND payouts.

• If your hand ranks higher than the dealer’s, your ANTE bet is returned to you as Push, and you receive PLAY and BLIND payouts according to payout tables.
• If the dealer’s hand ranks higher than your hand, your ANTE bet is returned to you as Push, but you do not receive PLAY and BLIND payouts.
• If both your poker hand and the one that the dealer has are of exactly the same rank, the APB bets of yours are being returned to you.

Note that the Trips bet settles after the Texas Hold em hand  of the dealer has become revealed. Your payout from th Trips bet you made will be based on the rank of your very best hand. The exact sum you receive depends on the Trips payout table of the specific casino. Note, that the final actual result of the game round - whether you win or lose against the dealer - will not affect the payout from Trips bet in any way. This means that you can win on Trips, no matter what your decision was - to Play or to Fold.

Texas Hold em Payouts

BLIND Hand Payout

• Royal Flush 500:1
• Straight Flush 50:1
• Four of a Kind 10:1
• Full House 3:1
• Flush 1:5:1
• Straight 1:1
• Three of a Kind or less Push

TRIPS Hand Payout

• Royal Flush 50:1
• Straight Flush 40:1
• Four of a Kind 30:1
• Full House 8:1 Flush 7:1
• Straight 4:1
• Three of a Kind 3:1
• Ante bet payout is 1:1.
• Play bet payout is 1:1.

Return to Player in Texas Hold em Poker

The theoretical Return-To-Player is the money that you on average get back from the casino or the house. In Texas Hold em Poker, assuming perfect play, the Return to Player is as follows:

• Total main bet: 99.47 per cent
• Initial main bet: 97.82 per cent
• Trips bonus bet: 96.50 per cent