Beginner guides
Learn Poker
Learn poker hand rankings and Texas Hold’em, find live home and pub poker games, and prepare for your first in-person game.
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Your first steps at the table
You don’t need to know every poker term to get started. Learn which hands win, what happens on your turn, and how to follow a round of betting. These guides begin with standard Texas Hold’em.
Start with the hand rankings, then work through a complete hand. Keep the guides nearby while you practise with chips that have no cash value.
A pair of aces. Five cards make a poker hand.
Start here
Find your first live poker game
Ready to meet other players at a table? Use these guides to find a local game, ask about the format and confirm a place with the host.
Find live poker games near you
Search by location, compare home and pub games, and confirm the details before travelling.
Read the guideFind and join a home poker game
Choose a home game that fits your experience and send the host a useful introduction.
Read the guideFind pub poker nights
Compare pub and club listings, check registration, and plan your first poker night.
Read the guideYour first live poker game
Prepare for an in-person table with a practical checklist and questions for the host.
Read the guideThree things to know first
You can win in two ways
Have the strongest hand when the remaining players show their cards, or be the last player left after everyone else folds.
Your hand always has five cards
In Hold’em, choose the best five from your two private cards and the five shared cards. You may use both, one or neither of your private cards.
Folding is part of the game
You can give up a hand instead of adding more chips. You do not have to play every hand or call every bet.
A few words you’ll hear
- Pot
- The chips everyone has contributed during the hand.
- Hole cards
- Your private, face-down cards.
- Board
- The community cards in the middle of the table, shared by all players.
- Blinds
- Required bets made by two players before the cards are dealt.
- Kicker
- A side card that can settle a tie between otherwise similar hands.
- Draw
- A hand that needs another card to become a straight, flush or other combination.