RULES FOR

TEXAS HOLD’EM POKER

DEFINITIONS

In these rules –

• “Action” means a player acting in turn

• “All-in” means a player has invested all of his/her remaining chips in the
outcome of a hand. His/her wager cannot be more than a legal bet or a legal
bet and raise, if a raise is an option.He/she can only win that portion of the pot
in which he/she contributed chips plus an equal amount of chips from each
player remaining in the pot.
• "Ante wager" means a predetermined contribution to the pot by all players
before any cards are dealt in a hand.
• “Bet” means a wager that is made during the course of play which contains
no real or legal monetary value whatsoever.
• "Betting round” means a complete cycle from the time the Dealer deals the
cards and the first bettor makes his/her wager, to the last person to call.
• "Blind” means a designated bet placed before the first card is dealt. The
blind is a live bet which can win the pot if not called or raised.
• “Boxed Card” means a card found face-up in the deck.
• “Burn” means the Dealer removing the top card from the deck before the
start of a betting round.
• “Burn card” means a card which is removed from the top of the deck by the
Dealer without exposing its value and placed facedown, separate from the
discards before the start of a round.
• “Button” means an object used in the game of Poker to identify a particular
action or function including, but not limited to designating seat or player status
at a Poker table. Each button will be distinctly designed and marked to denote
its purpose.
• “Call” means placing a bet equal to the highest legal bet in that round, or
going all-in if remaining chips are less than the size of that bet. In games
where there are blind bets, the first player to act after the initial deal will call by
placing a bet equal to the last blind bet. A player will be bound to a call if they
announce their intention to do so.
• “Check” means not initiating a bet but retaining all rights to act in the event a
bet is made. A check will only be an option if no blind is placed or bet made.
• “Chemmy Shuffle” means cards mixed face-down on the table with a
circular motion of the hands.
• “Chips” means the tokens that are used to place bets on the table. Chips
have an arbitrary value and cannot be converted to real legal tender.
• “Community cards” means cards dealt face-upward which can be used by
all players to complete their best possible hand.
• “Cut” means to divide the deck into two face-down stacks and then reunite
them by locating the bottom stack on the former top stack without changing
the order of cards within each stack.
• “Cutting card” means a card which cannot be construed as a playing card to
be placed under the bottom card of the deck before dealing.
• “Deal” means the distribution of playing cards to the players.
• “Dealer Button” means a button placed to indicate the designated player
who will receive the last cards in each round of play. The player to the
immediate right of the Dealer will receive the button for the first round of play.
The button will be moved in a clockwise direction around the table at the
conclusion of each round of play. Also known as ‘the button’.
• “Dealer” means the person responsible for the operation of the game.
• “Down card” means a card dealt face-downward.
• “Flop” means three community cards dealt face-downward and turned face-
upward simultaneously.
• “Fold” means to surrender a hand or refuse to call a bet.
• “Forced bet” means a mandatory bet for the purpose of starting a pot.
• “Funny Money” means the props that are produced custom to the event to
mimic real currency. Funny money has no monetary value to it whatsoever.
• “Hand” means one game in a series, one deal, the cards held by a player,
cards retained by a player entitling him/her to participate in the action, or the
combination of cards necessary to win a pot.
• “Head to Head” means where only two active players remain in the betting
round.
• “Holdem” means a type of Poker.
• “Hole cards” means a player’s concealed cards.
• “Limits” means the range or structure of the betting.
• “Main Pot” means the first pot created in a hand of Poker.
• “Misdeal” means a hand dealt incorrectly or the action of dealing a hand
incorrectly.
• “No limit” means no constraint is placed on the maximum size of any bet or
raise.
• “Open” means making the first betting action.
• “Opener” means the person who makes the first betting action.
• “Pot” means the sum of the ante wagers, blinds and called wagers.
• “Raise” means a bet within the table limits that is an implicit call, plus an
amount in excess of the previous bet or raise by at least as large an amount,
except in the case of an all-in raise. A player will be bound to raise if they
announce their intention to do so.
• “Round” means a period of play that usually consists of up to 9 “Rounds of
Play”. A full round will see the Dealer Button make its way around the table
once.
• “Round of Play” means from the time the Dealer deals the first card until the
time the pot is pushed.
• “Side pot(s)” means a separate pot(s) created in a game of poker due to one
or more players being all-in.
• “Substantial action” means an action by two or more players. An action may
consist of betting, checking, folding, calling or raising.
• “Suit” means a group of similarly coloured and like-symbol cards.
• “Wager” means an action by which a player places gaming chips into the pot
on any betting round.
EQUIPMENT

• Cards” The game will be played using a standard full deck of 52 cards
without jokers, with backs of the same colour and design and one cutting card
• “Layout” The table layout will be marked in a manner similar to that shown in
Diagram A.
• Poker will be played on a table having places for seated players and a place
for the Dealer.

BEGINNING A NEW ROUND

1. At the beginning of a round, up to 9 players exchange 1 single funny money

note for $2000 worth of play chips.
2. Each of the players are given one colour each to differentiate bets.
3. Generally as many players are novices, the dealer will briefly go through the
rules of Texas Holdem’ Poker, focussing mainly of the structure of the game.
4. Once all explanations have been made and questions answered, the dealer
proceeds to announce that the players may place their bets.

DEALING THE GAME

1. To begin a round, the dealer will deal each player a card face up. The player
with the highest ranked card will designate the first position for the dealer
button. If there is a tie for the high card, the dealer will deal extra cards to
those players until there is a result.
2. The dealer will proceed to shuffle the cards and call for the small and big
blinds to be placed.
3. The dealer will then conduct the initial deal by dealing out 2 cards to each
player beginning with the player to the left of the dealer button.
4. After the initial deal, players in a clockwise direction commencing with the first
player left of the last blind will call, raise or fold.
5. Subsequent players in order will call, raise or fold until:-
• Only one player remains in the game. This player will win the pot; or
• Two or more players remain in the game
6. If two or more players remain in the game, the Dealer will burn a card before
the start of the betting round and deal three community cards (these are the
first three cards of a possible five community cards). These first three cards
will be called the flop and are dealt one at a time face-down and then turned
face-up in a pile and spread.
7. Players in a clockwise direction commencing with the first player to the
immediate left of the button will open the betting, check or fold.
8. Players in a clockwise direction from the opener will call, raise or fold until:-
• Only one player remains in the game. This player will win the pot; or
• Two or more players remain in the game
9. If two or more players remain in the game the Dealer will burn a card before
dealing the fourth community card.
10. Players in a clockwise direction commencing with the first player to the
immediate left of the button will open the betting, check or fold.
11. Players in a clockwise direction from the opener will call, raise or fold until:-
 • Only one player remains in the game. This player will win the pot; or
• Two or more players remain in the game
12. If two or more players remain in the game the Dealer will burn a card before
dealing the fifth community card.
13. Players in a clockwise direction commencing with the first player to the
immediate left of the button will open the betting, check or fold.
14. Players in a clockwise direction from the opener will call, raise or fold until:-
• Only one player remains in the game. This player will win the pot; or
• Two or more players remain in the game
15. If two or more players remain in the game, the player being called will then
expose his/her cards. All remaining players will, if holding a hand of equal or
higher value, expose their cards. Any player at the table may request to see
any or all hands involved in the final showdown. The Dealer will then
announce the winning hand(s) and distribute the chips amongst the winners.
CARD RANKING & ORDER OF POKER HANDS

• 52 card deck
o The rank of each card in descending order for a 52 card deck is: Ace,
King, Queen, Jack, 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, (Ace, when used in a small
straight).
• The order of Poker Hands for a 52 card deck in descending order is as
follows:
o Royal Flush - Ace, King, Queen, Jack, 10 of the same suit. No suit is
deemed higher than any other suit.
o Straight flush - Five cards of the same suit in numerical sequence. The
highest card in the hand designates the relative value of the straight
flush. No suit is deemed higher than any other suit
o Four of a kind - Four cards of the same rank, plus one other card. If the
four of a kind’s are the same, the remaining card is compared
beginning with the highest, then in descending order of rank.
o Full House - Three cards of the same rank combined with a pair of
another rank. The value of the three cards has priority over the pair in
comparing hands.
o Flush - Five cards of the same suit. The highest ranked card in the
hand designates the relative value of the flush, followed by the second,
third fourth or fifth ranked card if necessary in comparing hands. No
suit is deemed higher than any other suit.
o Straight - Five cards in numerical sequence. The highest ranked card
in the sequence designates the relative value of the straight. An Ace
may count high or low in a straight, e.g. 5, 4, 3, 2, Ace or Ace, King,
Queen, Jack, Ten.
o Three of a Kind - Three cards of the same rank, with any two
unmatched cards. If the three of a kind’s are the same, the remaining
cards are compared beginning with the highest, then in descending
order of rank.
o Two Pair - Two cards of the same rank combined with two cards of
another rank, plus one other card. The highest pair has priority when
comparing hands. If the high pairs are the same, then the low pairs are
compared, and then the remaining card.
o One Pair - Two cards of the same rank, combined with three
unmatched cards. A higher pair beats a lower pair. If the pairs are the
same, the remaining three cards are compared, beginning with the
highest, then in descending order of rank.
o High Card - Five unmatched cards, the highest ranked card in the hand
designates the relative value of the hand, followed by the next highest,
and so on in descending order of rank.
• Please refer to Diagram B for a more visual guide to hand rankings.
DIAGRAM A