Poker Texas Holdem rules

Cards

An standard English deck of 52 cards (without jokers) is used.

Each player receives two cards, and another five cards are placed face up in the center of the table.

Participants play with their best combination of five cards between the seven cards (their own two cards and the cards in the center).

Combinations

This is the hierarchy of combinations:

If two of more players have the same kind of combination, the best of them is evaluated according to the rank hierarchy As, K, Q, J, 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2.

If they still have the same combination, the highest kicker (remaining card) is considered.

Comparing full houses, the three of a kind is considered.

Stakes

Some compulsory stakes, whose value increases during the game, are made before dealing the cards:

• Small blind. It must be put by the leader in the current hand.
• Big blind: it must be put by the next player to the leader, and its value is the double of the small blind.
• When the game progresses and the small blind reaches a high value, the other players also must put a lower stake named ante.

Four betting rounds are made during each hand:

• Preflop: immediately after dealing the two cards to each player, before starting to show the cards in the center.
• Flop: after showing the first three cards.
• Turn: after showing the 4th card.
• River: after showing the last card.

These are the options that players have in their turns:

• Fold: retreat from playing the hand.
• Check: pass without betting (this can only be made if there is not any previous stake during the same round).
• Bet: launch the first bet of the round.
• Call: match the highest stake.
• Raise the highest stake.
• All in: bet the full amount available.

The minimum amount to open each betting round is the blig blind value, and successive raises must be at least as high as the previous one.

Prizes

After finishing the four betting rounds, the accumulated pot is awarded to the player with the best combination. If two or more players have the same combination, they share the pot.

When one player bets all the available amount without reaching the maximum stake, a side pot is left with the part of every stake up to the same amount. The parts above that limit are accumulated in another pot.

During the hand there could be as many pots as players are at the table.

At the end of the hand each pot is resolved between the players who brought their bets on it.

The player who folds loses the option to win any of the pots, even pots that could be put aside before folding.

Playing in Ludoteka

Poker is frequently played in open tables, where successive hands are played and each player can leave at any moment, or join the table when there are gaps.

This is not the case in Ludoteka, where games start with a fixed number of players who have a fixed amount (1000), and are always decided by successive eliminations of players who are left with nothing.
To avoid long games, the minimum bet is progressively increased after a fixed amount of hands.

Players are classified in reverse order of their elimination. If two or more players are eliminated at the same time, they are classified according to the amount they had before being eliminated.

According to the number of players and the betting limits, you have three availbale modes to play in Ludoteka.

No Limit Mode Play

6 players take part in the game, and they can bet all their available amount at any moment (play All-in).

Heads Up Mode Play

Only 2 players take part, and they can also play All-in at any moment.

Fixed Limit Mode Play

4 players take part int the game. The main difference in this mode is that raises are fixed:

• Their value is always the Big Blind during the preflop and flop.
• Their value is the double of the Big Blind during the turn and river.

The game ends after 24 hands.