Since I made the decision to learn how to play Texas Hold'em I have been sharing my experiences with you.In part five I will tell you about the free casino lesson I took.

I always recommend that anyone who wants to learn a new casino game takeadvantage of the free lessons offered by the casinos. During the lessonsyou are given a brief description of the game and the procedures involvedin playing. Sitting in on a lesson will give you a chance to play the gameusing non value chips to practice the protocol and procedures you need touse in a real game. The instructor will point out if you make a mistake andadvise you how to play correctly. Players can gain confidence before eversitting down in a real game.

I wanted to sit in on a Texas Hold'em lesson before I ventured into the pokerroom. I visited in Connecticut. Foxwoods is the world's largest casino and hasa first class poker room. They also are one of the casinos that offer freepoker lessons. It was a Saturday morning and I sat down at the training tablewith five other people that were interested in learning Texas Hold'em. Ourinstructor was a fellow named Jerry who is a regular dealer in the pokerroom.

Jerry handed out a stack of play chips to everyone and then proceeded todescribe how Texas Hold'em isplayed. He then went on to tell us a little about the betting procedureof the game. Casino poker is played for table stakes. This means the moneyyou buy in with and have on the table is the money you play with. Your arenot allowed to reach into your pocket in the middle of a hand for more money.If the bet is more money than what you have on the table you can go AllIn which means that you will be playing for the pot your money is in. Therest of the players can continue betting. This money is put in a side potand will be given to the player with the winning hand of those involved inthe side pot. Players may purchase additional chips in between hands.

After his explanation of the game he discussed a little strategy advisingus to play only strong starting hands especially from the early positions.He told us that he sees too many players who sit down at the table and expectto bet every hand they are given. He said these are the players that go brokereal quick.

Now it was time to play a few hands to get the feel of the game. One personwas selected as the dealer and the players to the left of the dealer buttonposted the small and big blinds. Jerry explained that a new player sittingdown to a game that is in progress has to either post a bet equal to thebig blind or wait until the big blind gets around to his position beforeentering the game. He also explained that the big blind is a live bet. Ifother players call without raising the big blind has the option to checkor raise. Too often a new player will inadvertently throw their hand in withoutrealizing that they have already bet that round. We played a few rounds untileveryone felt comfortable with the procedures involved in playing the game.

Not all casinos offer poker lessons. If you are planning on visiting a casinoyou can call ahead to the poker room and see if they have lessons available.I was recently in Las Vegas and sat in on a lesson at the.Their lessons are offered each weekday at 10 am. If the casino you visitdoesn't offer lessons you can get a feel of the game by watching from therail and observing the players.

After the lesson was over Jerry suggested that we might want to practiceby playing in the low limit tournament that is held weekly on Saturday morning.The entry fee was only $20 and it would be a great way to get the feel ofthe game. That sounded like a good idea and I will tell you all about itin an up coming feature

Before leaving, I asked Jerry if he could tell me some of the common mistakesmost beginners make. He told me that most new players make several mistakes.

Next pageCommon Mistakes Page2,

Until next time, remember:
Luck comes and goes...Knowledge stays forever.

NOTE: This is the original series ofarticles that was written in 2000 as I learned to play the Texas Hold'em. Itdocuments some of my experiences during my first year of playing casino poker. Ihave tried to keep the links to outside sites updated where possible. This series of articles is not part of my book,