Intro to NL Hold Em Cash Games

Cash games make the poker world go around. Televised tournaments like the World Series of Poker and the World Poker Tour draw a lot of attention and glory, but more poker by far is played in cash games than any other game type. Tournament poker is generally intended to be a bit of a loss leader. Although poker rooms make money by hosting tournaments, the real intention is to lure players into the poker room with the potential of big tournament payouts, only to find a seat at one of the many cash game tables when those players gradually bust out of the tournament.

Cash games are defined as games where the chips used have actual cash value. A player may enter or leave at any time, and the chips they have at that time may be exchanged for cash. In tournaments, a player pays a flat fee for a fixed amount of tournament chips that have no cash value. The player must register before the tournament starts, but may actually sit down or leave at their own leisure (their seat and chips remain in play though). Payouts in tournaments are determined by the order of finish, with first place receiving the largest prize, and most places receiving nothing.

Cash games include fixed limit, pot limit, and no limit versions of Texas Holdem, Omaha, Stud, Draw, and lowball, but the most popular, by far, is no limit Texas Holdem. This is a relatively new development on the poker scene. A few years ago, fixed limit Texas Holdem was the dominant game, and years before that, Stud and Draw ruled the poker world. It is impossible to predict where the focus will be in a few years, but for now, “NLHE” is king.

No limit holdem, when played with large stacks, is a very interesting game with many different ways to approach it. This guide is intended for players with little or no poker experience to understand the mechanics of the game, including .

Rules of No Limit Holdem

Two or more players sit at a poker table. Although the dealing may be performed by a house employee in a casino (or a computer dealer for online poker), players at the table take turns holding the dealer position. The dealer position has the advantage of acting last on most betting rounds, so the players must take turns having that advantage. The dealer for each hand is designated by the “dealer button” that is passed clockwise around the table after each hand.

As each hand begins, the two players to the left of the button put mandatory bets into the pot called “blinds.” These bets are called blinds because the players make them without knowing their hand strength. These bets serve to create the pot that the players will vie for. The player on the dealer’s (button’s) left puts in the small blind, and the next player to the small blind’s left puts in the big blind. In a $2/5 no limit cash game, the small blind is $2 and the big blind is $5.

The dealer then proceeds to deal two “hole cards” to each player. The player to the left of the big blind has the first option. That player may call the big blind, raise the bet, or fold. If the player thinks their hand is strong, they should usually raise. In a no limit game, the player may raise to any amount, limited only by the size of their stack (how many chips they have). The minimum raise is the size of the previous bet or raise. In this case (the $2/5 game) the minimum raise would be to $10. If the player thinks their hand is weak, they can fold, risking no money and sitting out the rest of this hand.

Each player takes turns clockwise around the table. Each player must then match the largest previous bet, raise, or fold. Once all players have matched the same bet amount or folded, the flop is dealt. Holdem is a community card game, meaning several cards are dealt face up on the table. All players use the best combination of their private hole cards and the community cards to make a five card poker hand. The flop consists of three cards. After the flop, there is another round of betting, beginning with the first player to the left of the dealer button that called on the previous round. That player may check (a waiting move), or bet any amount above the minimum (the big blind amount). Each player must call any previous bet before them, raise, or fold.

When all players remaining on the flop betting round have called the same bet, the turn is dealt. This is a fourth community card face up on the table. Another round of betting follows, then the river card, the fifth and final community card, is dealt. Another round of betting follows, then all players remaining have a showdown, comparing their hands. The pot is awarded to the best five card poker hand (pots can be split in case of a tie).

It is possible for one player to win the pot before showdown by making a bet that nobody else is willing to call. If that happens, the hand is over immediately.

No limit holdem is played for table stakes. That means that no player is committed (or allowed) to risk more than they have on the table in front of them. If a player does not have enough to match a bet, they can still call all-in. They can only win the portion of the pot that is equal to their total investment in the pot. The other players then compete for a side pot containing the extra chips.