Basic Poker Lessons

These basic poker lessons cover everything you need to know before sitting down to play Texas Hold'em.

The first article touches on poker history, why the game is so fun to play and how it has become so popular. The next article, Texas Hold'em Rules, explains how to play the most popular type of poker: the objective, the betting structure and how to deal the cards. The third article, Poker Hand Rankings, demonstrates how to form poker hands and ranks them relative to the other types of poker hands. The fourth article helps you get started playing poker for free by practicing at PokerStars play money tables.

Once you have learned the basics, take the quiz. If you pass you are ready to start playing against real opponents in our Skill Based League.

The Exciting World of Poker Poker is a fun and exciting game. Find out what makes poker so popular and why PokerStars is the best place to play poker online.  Read more

Texas Hold'em Rules A complete explanation of the mechanics of Texas Hold'em. Blinds, hole cards, flops, turns and rivers: whatever the situation you will understand your options.  Read more

Poker Hand Ranking Video This video lesson explains which player has the winning hand at showdown, including how to determine who has the best kicker.  Read more

Poker Hand Rankings The player with the highest hand wins at showdown - make sure you understand how the different poker hands are ranked before sitting down at the table.  Read more

Practicing with Play Money Once you're comfortable with the basics, it's a good idea to practice at PokerStars' play money tables. Let this article be your guide to playing poker for free.  Read more

Overview of Texas Hold'em Video Team PokerStars Pro Joe Hachem provides a video primer on the popular game of Texas Hold'em.  Read more

Basic Quiz After reading the previous articles carefully, you should have no trouble answering the quiz questions.  Read more

After passing the Basic Course you'll be ready to move on to the Core Course and learn key strategic concepts. Both the Core and Basic courses must be completed and the Quizzes passed before you can compete in our monthly Skill League