Poker is basically a five-card game, where players bet on who holds the best card combination. The best card hand will of course win the pot money. Often played with many players, each player will have to either bet, raise the stakes if they feel that the hands they are dealt with are good or fold if they feel that another players hand is better.

The origin of the name Poker is still unclear. Many say that the name came from the French game Poque or the German game pochspiel. Others claim that it came from a Hindu word while others believe it to have evolved from the term hocus pocus.

It is also in poker that the term bluffing is used. Because there are cards that other players cannot see, some players who are expert in bluffing can make it appear that they have an unbeatable card and force other players to fold even if their cards are actually not so high. Poker has been associated with this kind of trick play that it has often been called bluff.

Through the years, poker has given birth to so many variations but still only one rule remains, only five cards can be played and the others discarded. These cards are then used to make different hand combinations. These are the straight flush, which consists of five cards in suit and sequence, including the Ace. The royal flush will have the Ace, the king, Queen, Jack and 10 of the same suit. Four of a kind, on the other hand, consists of four cards with same rank and one odd card.

The next in line is the full house, has three cards of the same rank with another two of the same rank. The flush consists of five cards in the same suit regardless of the rank while three of a kind must have three of the same rank and two who are odd cards. Two pair has two pairs with the same rank and one odd card while the one pair has two cards of the same rank with three odd cards. When there are no combinations formed, the one with the highest card will win the game.

Origins of the game

Poker, like all modern games, seem to have evolved from different games played around the world. One noted origin of poker is from the Chinese game, which makes use of domino cards. Egyptians have also been known to play a similar form of game during the 12th and 13th century. In the 16th century, there is also a game called Treasure cards, which is quite similar. A treasure card deck has 96 cards. As Nas, another game played by the Persians also have similar rounds of betting and hierarchical combination rankings.

The French game, Poque and the German game Pochen, which became immensely popular in the 17th and 18th centuries as well as the Spanish game Primero during the 16th century was supposed to also influenced the poker game. These games utilized bluffing and the same dealing of cards. In fact, Primero is actually referred to as the mother of the modern poker.

The Poker game purportedly started in the early periods of the 19th century in New Orleans, a former French Territory before being placed under the jurisdiction of the United States by virtue of the Louisiana Purchase. History traces its roots from the floating saloons in Mississippi. As early as 1843, there are already references made to poker in books and journals that were published.

Unlike the modern version of poker which makes use of a 52-deck of cards, early poker makes use of a 20-card deck. The top hand combination were four aces or four kings with an ace. The 52-card deck were however used in mid-1830s because it can accommodate more players with far longer betting rounds.