Let’s recap:
- The (dealer) Button has been placed in front of a player
- The Small Blind and Big Blind have put their chips in the pot
- The dealer has dealt each player their hole cards
- The first round of betting has completed
The Flop
Once all the players have acted, the dealer burns the top card in the deck (places it to the side so that it is not in play), then deals three cards to the middle of the table.
Community Cards
Community cards are the cards dealt face up in the middle of the table for everyone to see. A player uses the community cards in combination with his/her hole cards to make the best hand he/she can. The flop consists of the first three community cards. There will be two more community cards dealt.
The first three cards dealt are called The Flop.
After the flop is dealt another round of betting begins.
Second Round of Betting
This round of betting (and all rounds to follow) begins with the Small Blind and continues clockwise around the table. The Button is the last player to act. Players can fold, check, bet, call or raise.
Fold – Upon seeing the flop, you may decide that there is no way that you can make a hand that will give you a fighting chance to compete. If this is the case, and no one has bet or raised, check, and do not fold. Wait for the action to come to you again and only fold to a bet or raise.
Check – A check is indicated by a tapping of your hand on the table. Maybe its the fingertips, maybe it is the side of the hand. A check can be made verbally as well (“I check”). No extra chips are added to the pot and the action passes to the next player.
Bet – A player bets an amount of chips. Now each player who is still in the hand (has not folded) needs to match that amount of chips in order to stay in the hand.
Call – A player has bet or raised and you decide to stay in the hand and call the bet or raise. You put in the same amount of chips as the bet or raise.
Raise – A player has made a bet and another player raises the amount of the bet – or – it might be that a bet was made, a player raised the bet, and another player is re-raising the raise. In either case, the amount of chips it will cost each player to continue in the hand has increased, and each player who wants to remain in the hand must put in the new amount of chips.
Remember in NO Limit Texas Hold’em, players can go “All In” at any time.