• Estimates from the World Poker Tour suggest that at least 100 million people enjoy playing poker based on online playing data.
• The original variation of poker as known to have been played in the Wild West used decks consisting of only the picture cards, aces and 10s.
The game of poker is a hugely popular pastime around the world. Estimates from the World Poker Tour suggest that at least 100 million people enjoy playing poker based on online playing data.
This equates to more poker players than there are tennis players, golfers, or billiards players. The majority of modern-day poker players reside in the United States, although the game is enjoyed in all corners of the globe.
The origins of poker are thought to date back as far as 1,000 years and the modern game could have come from a number of sources. A domino-card game from the 10th century AD played by Chinese emperors has been cited as one possible origin. Other sources suggest that poker originated from a game called As Nas, which is a card game developed in Persia sometime in the 16th century.
The closed predecessor to poker recorded in European history is the French game of Poque, or its German equivalent pochen. Both of these games are loosely based on an earlier Spanish card game, primero, in which players were dealt three cards each and would often rely on bluffing techniques to try and win each hand.
Today, poker is played in almost every country in the world in one variant or another. The advent of online poker websites helped to encourage a whole new demographic to enjoy the ancient game.
Players today can access poker websites and learn the rules of the game and the best hands, spend time practising bluffing, and develop new strategies for free, before depositing money in their accounts and playing against real opponents for money.
The Wild West is an iconic part of American history. The area known as the Wild West is located somewhere between California, Texas, and Canada, and was known as such in the years between the end of the American Civil War and the start of the 20th century.
Poker, albeit in a form perhaps unrecognisable to today’s online players, was a popular pastime in the Wild West. It was also known for being relatively inclusive for the times. There is plenty of evidence to show that there were poker players of Hispanic, black, or Asian origins joining in games with their white counterparts. There were even occasionally female players seated at the table.
The original variation of poker as known to have been played in the Wild West used decks consisting of only the picture cards, aces and 10s. Players were stuck with the hands they were dealt until the concept of “draw” poker was introduced. Texas Hold’em is the most popular variant of poker played today and can trace its origins back to the first draw poker games in the US in the 19th century.
The modern rules for Texas Hold’em are thought to have been initially developed in the early years of the 20th century in Robstown, Texas. Earlier poker games involved each player being dealt a hand of five cards, with no or limited options for switching.
However, in Texas Hold’em, players are dealt with only two cards each. The rest of the cards are community cards, which are dealt out in stages in between each round of betting. Each player can use any of the community cards, plus either of the two cards in their hand, to make the best possible hand of five from the seven possibilities.
A game of Texas Hold’em provides each player with the possibility of up to four rounds of betting before the end of each hand. Players are dealt two “hole” cards, which they then use to place the first round of bets. Once each player has bet, checked, or folded, the dealer turns over three more cards, called the flop. All players can use any of the cards turned over in the flop as part of their hand, and at this point, they know they have two more possible cards to come.
A second round of betting ensues after the flop, following which the dealer turns over one more community card, called the turn. There is then a third round of betting before the final card, the river, is turned over.
This represents the last chance to reach players still in the hand to place bets or to fold. If all but one player folds at any point during the game, the remaining player has won the hand and does not have to show their cards.
However, if there is more than one player in after the final round of betting, all players still in the game are required to show their hands. The best hand wins the round.
Bluffing is a large part of poker and can be used effectively in many hands. However, the aim of players that are bluffing to pretend they have a better hand than they do is to eventually get all other players to fold.
Weaker hands do not often hold up if they are taken all the way to the showdown. Players may also bluff to pretend they have a weak hand when they really have a strong hand – the aim of this is to get other players to put more money in the pot.
The complexity of Texas Hold’em makes it the most popular variant of poker played around the world today.