Flop
The flop is the first three community cards dealt face up together in Texas Hold'em, followed by the second betting round of the hand.
The flop is the first three community cards, dealt face up at the same time after preflop betting ends. It is followed by the second betting round. With five of your seven final cards now visible, the flop is where most hands take shape, which is why players say a hand is defined on the flop.
How the flop works
Once preflop action is complete and at least two players remain, the dealer burns one card and turns three cards face up. Betting then starts with the first active player to the left of the button, and continues clockwise. Players may check, bet, call, raise or fold. From the flop onward the button acts last, which is a large advantage.
Useful flop numbers
- There are 19,600 possible flops from the 50 cards you cannot see.
- With a pocket pair, you flop a set or better about 11.8% of the time, roughly 1 in 8.5.
- With two suited cards, you flop a flush draw about 10.9% of the time and a made flush about 0.8% of the time.
- With two unpaired cards, you pair at least one of them about one third of the time. Most of the time, you miss.
Example hand
You raise preflop on the button with A♠ J♠ and the big blind calls. The flop comes J♦ 8♣ 3♠. You flopped top pair with the best possible kicker. The big blind checks. This is a good spot for a bet: you are often ahead, and you want calls from worse jacks, eights and draws. Compare the flop 9♥ 8♥ 7♣: your ace-high now faces a board full of straight and flush draws, and you would bet less often.
Notice that the same two hole cards can be strong on one flop and weak on another. That is why good players think about the whole board rather than just whether they made a pair.
Strategy tips for the flop
- Read the texture first. Ask which hands the board helps. High, disconnected boards favour the preflop raiser; low, connected boards often favour the caller.
- Count your outs when drawing. A flush draw has 9 outs; an open-ended straight draw has 8. Compare that to the price you are offered.
- Use the continuation bet thoughtfully. A continuation bet works well on boards your range hits hard, but betting every flop automatically is easy to exploit.
- Respect multiway pots. Against three or four opponents, someone is far more likely to have connected, so marginal hands lose value.
Frequently asked questions
How many cards are on the flop?
Three. They are dealt face up together after the first betting round.
Who acts first on the flop?
The first player still in the hand to the left of the dealer button acts first, and the button acts last.
What are the odds of flopping a set?
With a pocket pair you flop a set or better about 11.8% of the time, close to 1 in 8.5.
Related poker terms
- Community Cards — Community cards are the five shared cards dealt face up in Texas Hold'em: the flop, turn and river. Every player combines them with their own hole cards.
- Turn — The turn is the fourth community card in Texas Hold'em, dealt alone after the flop betting round. It is also called fourth street.
- Continuation Bet — A continuation bet is a bet on the flop by the player who made the last preflop raise, continuing the aggression whether or not they hit.
- Flush Draw — A flush draw is four cards of one suit needing one more to make a flush. It has 9 outs: about 35% to hit by the river from the flop.
- Set — A set is three of a kind made with a pocket pair plus one matching card on the board. It is stronger and better disguised than trips.