Poker School · lesson 2 of 7 · 5 min
Blinds, preflop, flop, turn and river, and what you may do on each.
Before any cards: the blinds
Two players post forced bets so there is something to play for. The player to the dealer button's left posts the small blind, the next posts the big blind, usually double it. The button moves one seat clockwise each hand, so everyone pays both in turn.
A $1/$2 game means a $1 small blind and a $2 big blind. That is what the stakes in a room's lobby refer to, not the size of the bets later.
The four rounds
Preflop is the only round where the action starts to the left of the big blind rather than the button. That seat is called under the gun, and it is the worst one at the table - see the lesson on position.
| Round | What happens |
|---|---|
| Preflop | Two hole cards each, face down. Betting starts left of the big blind. |
| Flop | Three community cards, face up. Betting starts left of the button. |
| Turn | A fourth community card. Another round of betting. |
| River | A fifth and final community card. The last round of betting. |
| Showdown | Anyone still in reveals. Best five-card hand takes the pot. |
What you can do when it is your turn
- Fold. Give up the hand and anything already in the pot.
- Check. Pass the action along without betting. Only legal when nobody has bet.
- Call. Match the current bet.
- Bet. Put chips in when nobody has yet this round.
- Raise. Increase an existing bet. Everyone after you must call the new amount, raise again, or fold.
A hand ends the moment everyone but one player folds. Most pots never reach a showdown, which is why how you bet matters more than what you hold.
