Texas Hold’em Rules: Everything That Happens in a Hand

By PokerCraft Lab Editorial · Published Jan 12, 2026

A single hand of Texas Hold’em moves through a fixed sequence: post blinds, deal hole cards, then four betting rounds wrapped around three deals of community cards. Once you know the order — and the handful of rules that govern raises, all-ins, and showdown — nothing at the table should surprise you.

The button and the blinds

Every hand starts with the dealer button, a disc that marks who is “on the button.” It moves one seat clockwise after each hand, which rotates the order of play so no one keeps a positional advantage forever. The button matters because it determines who pays the blinds and who acts last.

To the button’s immediate left sit the two forced bets:

• Small blind — posted by the player directly left of the button.
• Big blind — posted by the next player left; usually double the small blind.

These exist so there’s always money to play for. In a heads-up game (two players), the button posts the small blind and acts first before the flop, which trips up a lot of newcomers. If you want a deeper look at why seating matters so much, see our guide to position in poker.

The four betting rounds

After both blinds are posted, each player receives two private hole cards. The hand then unfolds across four streets:

1. Pre-flop — betting opens with the player left of the big blind (the big blind acts last).
2. The flop — three community cards are dealt face up; betting reopens.
3. The turn — a fourth community card; another round of betting.
4. The river — the fifth and final community card, then the last round.

From the flop onward, the first remaining player left of the button acts first. Your final hand is the best five-card combination from your two hole cards and the five community cards — and you don’t have to use both hole cards, or even either of them.

Betting actions and the minimum raise

On any street, the action moves clockwise and each player chooses from a small menu:

The key rule that causes confusion is the minimum raise. A raise must be at least the size of the previous bet or raise on that street. If someone bets 100 and you want to raise, your raise must add at least another 100, making it 200 total. In no-limit games there’s no ceiling — you can move all-in at any time — but the floor is fixed. Betting rounds end when every active player has either matched the largest bet or folded.

All-ins and side pots

When a player bets every chip they have, they are all-in and can’t be forced out of the hand. But they can only win the portion of the pot they contributed to. That’s where side pots come in.

Suppose three players remain. Player A goes all-in for 50, while B and C each have far more and keep betting. A is eligible only for the main pot — 50 from each player. Everything B and C wager beyond that 50 forms a side pot that A cannot win. If B and C keep raising, additional side pots can stack up. At showdown each pot is awarded separately, starting with the last side pot and working back to the main pot. Tracking who can win what is exactly the kind of math that overlaps with pot odds.

Showdown: who shows first

If two or more players are left after the river’s betting, the hand goes to showdown. The order isn’t arbitrary:

• If there was a bet or raise on the river, the last player to bet or raise shows first.
• If everyone checked, the first active player left of the button shows first.

Players may muck (fold without showing) if they know they’re beaten, but anyone wanting a share of the pot must table their cards. The best five-card hand wins; identical hands split the pot, with any odd chip going to the worst-positioned player. If you’re shaky on which hand beats which, keep the poker hand rankings handy until it’s second nature.

Practice the full sequence

Rules stick fastest when you watch them play out hand after hand. Running through deals on a trainer like DEEPFOLD lets you see the button rotate, the blinds post, and side pots form in real time — until the whole sequence feels automatic and table arguments become easy calls.