The game of poker has many variants, the most popular of which are, “draw poker”, “stud poker”, and “community poker”.

Texas Hold’em is part of community poker and is the most popular of all the Poker games of the modern era. It is played extensively at off-line as well as online casinos and poker rooms. This has also been called the “Cadillac of poker games”, by the once world champion, Doyle Brunson. This game seemingly originated in Texas and is said to have been spread first to Vegas by the Texan gamblers.

This thinking man’s game, as it is called, is a seven card poker game that is said to be deceptively simple and even beginners can pick up the rules. The simplicity of the game should not fool anyone, as it involves skill and practice and is a game that is difficult to master. In this world where patience is no longer a virtue, Texas Hold’em takes the pride of place for its quickness.

In the game of Texas Hold’em, some cards, called the community cards, are dealt face up in the middle of the table and are available for all players. Each player is dealt two hole or pocket cards which should be considered with the community cards to make the best five-card combination.

This game typically requires nine or ten players; and playing with less is called short-handed. In a short-handed game, a minimum of two people are needed and the idea is to put together the best five-card combination using the two hole cards and the five community cards. A single card is dealt to each player and the player with the highest card will be the first dealer.

The position where the player sits is also considered to be important, with the dealer position being the best as being on the “button” means that the dealer acts last and has the most information, as they get to see all the moves of the opponents before making their moves. This helps in making the correct decision whether to check, raise, call or fold and the game of poker is all about making the correct decisions.

Texas Hold’em is said to have increased in popularity with the advent of the web and online casinos, where people are allowed to try out games without investing any money with the free games provided online. They can also begin by playing the Low Limit Texas Hold’em games. This attracts beginners to the game.

Matthew Smith is a poker expert and has played many variations of poker. He offers is experience to new players at http://www.freeonlinepokergame.co.uk