How To Play Fixed Limit Texas Hold Em

Texas Hold’em is the reigning champion in terms of popular poker games. No other poker variant comes anywhere close to matching the favoritism shown Texas Hold’em, claiming the majority of cash games, Sit’n’Go tournaments, Multi-Table tournaments and the biggest live poker tournaments around the globe.

Texas Hold’em is the reigning champion in terms of popular poker games. No other poker variant comes anywhere close to matching the favoritism shown Texas Hold’em, claiming the majority of cash games, Sit’n’Go tournaments, Multi-Table tournaments and the biggest live poker tournaments around the globe.

Texas Hold’em is played with a single, standard 52-card deck, allowing 2-10 players to join in a single table.

Object of Texas Hold’em Limit Poker

The object of the game is to develop the strongest 5-card poker hand from the 7 cards available to you. Each player has 2 Hole Cards that only he can see, and 5 Community Cards (dealt to the center of the table) that everyone can see. Using any combination of their own Hole Cards and the Community Cards, players strive to develop the strongest 5-card poker hand. Highest ranking hand wins the pot.

Betting Structure of Limit Texas Hold’em

Though Texas Hold’em can be played in all limits (Fixed Limit, No Limit and Pot Limit), this tutorial is based on the Fixed Limit betting structure of Texas Hold’em. “Fixed Limit” means just that – there is a set limit on the minimum and maximum bets/raises allowed by each player throughout the hand. These limits are based on the table stakes, and double after the second betting round.

For example, in $2/$4 stakes, during the first two betting rounds (Pre-Flop and Flop) all bets/raises must be $2, equal to the low-end stakes. For the final 2 betting rounds (Turn and River), all bets/raises are $4, equal to the high-end stakes.

The Fixed Limit stakes also determine the Small Blind and Big Blind. The Small Blind is equal to half the low-end stakes ($1), while the Big Blind is equal to the low-end stakes ($2).

Small Blind and Big Blind bets are forced bets that must be placed before any cards are dealt. The Small blind is placed by the player left of the Dealer Button; Big Blind by the player left of the Small Blind.

All other betting options are detailed below.

Check: A player may only Check when no player has Bet before him. A Check is to decline Betting, but stay active in the hand. Should another player Bet after you have Checked, you must Call (or Raise) to stay active in the hand.

Bet: The first chips placed in the pot in a single betting round is called the Bet.

Call: Once a Bet has been placed, you may Call the Bet by placing an equal amount of chips in the pot.

Raise: Once a Bet is placed, you may Raise by placing a higher amount of chips in the pot. For example, if Player-A Bets $2, Player-B may Call the $2, and Raise another $2.

Fold: To throw in your cards, forfeiting the current hand and any chips in the pot.

All-In: To Bet all of your remaining chips. All-In bets are kept in a separate chip pile because the player may only win as much from any player as his own All-In bet. Note that in a Fixed Limit game, because of the betting limitations, going All-In is only available if the player has just enough or too few chips to Call/Raise the current Bet.

How to Play a Hand of Texas Hold’em

For this example of how to play Texas Hold’em, we will be using a Fixed Limit betting structure with $2/$4 stakes.

The hand starts with the placement of the Small Blind and Big Blind bets. Each player is then dealt two face-down cards, called Hole Cards. Only the player dealt the cards may see them.

1st Betting Round – Pre-Flop: The first betting round begins with the player left of the Big Blind. Remember that all Bets/Raises must be $2 (the low-end stakes). This player must at least Call the Big Blind bet to stay in the hand. He may also Raise or Fold. Betting continues clockwise around the table in this fashion until everyone has Called or Folded. Note that the Small Blind Bettor may Call or Raise by adding enough chips to his Small Blind bet to equal the desired amount. If no player has Raised, the Big Blind may Check because he has already placed the Big Blind, equal to the current Bet. If the Big Blind Checks, the betting round is over.

2nd Betting Round – The Flop: The dealer will place 3 Community Cards face up in the center of the table. These cards are used by all players, in combination with their own Hole Cards. The second betting round begins with the player left of the Dealer Button. He may Check, Bet or Fold. (Note: Folding is pointless if Check is an option!) Again, all Bets/Raises must equal $2.

3rd Betting Round – The Turn: A fourth Community Card is dealt face-up, followed by another round of betting. This betting round is the same as the last except that for the remainder of the hand, all Bets/Raises increase to match the high-end stakes of $4.

4th Betting Round – The River: The fifth and final Community Card is dealt. A final round of betting commences, same as the last.

The Showdown: At this point in the game, it is not uncommon for all players (except the winner of course) to have Folded. If this occurs, a Showdown is not necessary. If two or more players remain active, the Showdown begins. Each active player will combine any 5 of the 7 cards available (2 Hole Cards and 5 Community Cards) to develop the strongest possible 5-card poker hand. The player with the highest ranking hand wins the entire pot.

Should an exact tie occur, the winners split the pot. (i.e.: 2 players have a Queen-High Straight.)

Fixed Limit Texas Hold Em Winning Hand Rankings

Poker Hand Ranks (highest to lowest)
Royal Flush (Ace-high straight suited)
Straight Flush (straight suited)
4 of a Kind (4 cards of the same value)
Full House (3 of a Kind + 1 Pair)
Flush (all cards suited)
Straight (all cards in sequence)
3 of a Kind (3 cards of the same value)
2 Pair (1 Pair + 1 Pair)
1 Pair (2 cards of the same value)
High Card (none of the above combinations)

Best Fixed Limit Texas Hold Em Poker Sites