Betting Round 2 – The Flop

The second betting round begins after the dealer has placed three cards from the deck face up in the middle of the table. These three cards are named the flop and they are shared by all players. Cards shared by all players are generally referred to as community cards or board cards. By combining the cards on the table with the pocket cards, each remaining player attains a complete hand of five cards.

The first player to act in the second round is the player to the left of the dealer and this is the way it will be in round three and four as well. The following actions can be taken:

►Check: Passing on the turn to the next player while remaining in the hand. This option is only available if no bet has been placed. If all players choose to check it means the round is over.
►Bet: Placing the first bet of the round.
►Fold:
►Call: This option is only available after the first bet has been made.
►Raise: This option is only available after the first bet has been made.  

The second round of betting continues until all players have either checked, called or folded. If everyone checks, then the hand moves on to the next betting round. If a player makes a bet or raise that all subsequent players fold to, then the hand ends prematurely and the betting player wins the pot. If all non folding players call a bet or raise, then the hand moves on to the next betting round.