All holdem games begin with the introduction of blinds. This ensures that at least two players are actively involved in every pot.

You will often find ten seat cash game tables. These games are commonly referred to as ring games. You can walk onto the table when there is a seat available, you can walk away when you feel like it or run out of chips. Games which seat between three and six players are called shorthanded games. If you see a game with only two seats, this is known as a heads-up match.

Holdem is all about positional play. You will see a little white dealer button moving in a clockwise position around the table. This button indicates the dealer. This white button dictates the order of play at the table.

Once the first round of betting is completed, the player on the button will be last to act. This position is ideal as he gets to see what the other players have done beforehand. He will have more indicators available to him over the strengths or weaknesses of his opponents' hands before he decides what course of action to take.

The two players in the blinds positions are forced to contribute to the pot before the cards are dealt. The small blind is positioned directly to the left of the white button. The big blind is positioned directly on the left of the small blind.

You will generally find two different types of blind structures.

1) The two-three chip blind structure.

2) The two-four chip blind structure.

When you are playing in a game with a two-three chip blind structure, the big blind enters three chips into the pots and the small blind contributes two chips. In a two-four chip scenario, the big blind will add four chips into the pot while the small blind adds two.

Your strategy should be adjusted slightly according to the blind structure being used at the table. The two-three blind structure will cost you proportionately more each round. This results in a slightly looser style of play. To overcome this, you should aim to get involved in slightly more hands than you would in a two-four blind structure.

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