Poker
Poker is a card game, the most popular of a class of games called vying games, in which players with fully or partially concealed cards make wagers into a central pot, which is awarded to the remaining player or players with the best combination of cards. Poker can also refer to video poker which is a single-player game seen in casinos much like a slot machine.
In order to play, one must learn the basic rules and procedures of the game,
the values of the various combinations of cards (see hand),
and the rules about betting limits (see
betting). Some knowledge of the equipment used to play (see
poker equipment) is useful. There are also many
variants of poker, loosely categorized as draw poker, stud poker,
community card poker (a.k.a. "widow game"), and miscellaneous poker games.
The most commonly played games of the first three categories are
five-card draw, seven-card stud, and Texas hold 'em, respectively; each being a common starting point for
learning games of the type. Dealer's choice is a way to play poker where the dealer chooses what type of
poker to play.
History
The history of poker is a matter of some debate. The name of the game likely descended from the French poque, which descended from the German pochen ('to knock'), but it is not clear whether the origins of poker itself lie with the games bearing those names. It closely resembles the Persian game of as nas, and may have been taught to French settlers in New Orleans by Persian sailors. It is commonly regarded as sharing ancestry with the Renaissance game of primero and the French brelan. The English game brag (earlier bragg) clearly descended from brelan and incorporated bluffing (though the concept was known in other games by that time). It is quite possible that all of these earlier games influenced the development of poker as it exists now.
English actor Joseph Crowell reported that the game was played in New Orleans in 1829, with a deck of 20 cards, four players betting on which player's hand was the most valuable. Jonathan H. Green's book, An Exposure of the Arts and Miseries of Gambling (G. B. Zieber, Philadelphia, 1843), described the spread of the game from there to the rest of the country by Mississippi riverboats, on which gambling was a common pastime.
Soon after this spread, the full 52-card English deck was used, and the
flush was introduced. During the American Civil War, many additions were made, including
draw poker,stud poker (the five-card variant), and the straight. Further American developments followed, such as the
wild card (around 1875), lowball and split-pot poker (around 1900), and
community card poker games (around 1925). Spread of the game to other
countries, particularly in Asia, is often attributed to the U.S. military.
The game and jargon of poker have become important parts of American culture and English culture. Such phrases as ace in the hole, ace up one's sleeve, beats me, blue chip,call one's bluff, cash in, high roller, pass the buck, poker face, stack up, up the ante, when the chips are down, wild card, and others are used in everyday conversation even by those unaware of their origins at the poker table.
Modern tournament play became popular in American casinos after the World Series of Poker began in 1970. It was also during that decade that the first serious strategy books appeared, notably The Theory of Poker by David Sklansky (ISBN 1880685000), Super System by Doyle Brunson (ISBN 0931444014), and The Book of Tells by Mike Caro (ISBN 0897461002).
Poker’s popularity has experienced an unprecedented spike in recent years, largely due to the introduction of online poker and the invention of the hole-card camera which finally turned the game into a spectator sport. Viewers can now follow the action and drama of the game, and broadcasts of poker tournaments such as the World Series of Poker and the World Poker Tour have brought in huge audiences for cable and satellite TV distributors.
Famous Poker Quotations
Poker is a microcosm of all we admire and disdain about capitalism and democracy. It can be rough-hewn or polished, warm or cold, charitable and caring or hard and impersonal. It is fickle and elusive, but ultimately it is fair, and right, and just. — Lou Krieger
If you can't spot the sucker within the first half hour at the table, then you are the sucker. — common poker saying, as spoken by Matt Damon in Rounders; originally attributed to Amarillo Slim
Whether he likes it or not, a man's character is stripped bare at the poker table; if the other players read him better than he does, he has only himself to blame. Unless he is both able and prepared to see himself as others do, flaws and all, he will be a loser in cards, as in life. — Anthony Holden (from Big Deal)
There are few things that are so unpardonably neglected in our country as poker... Why, I have known clergymen, good men, kindhearted, liberal, sincere, and all that, who did not know the meaning of a 'flush'. It is enough to make one ashamed of one's species. — Mark Twain
Nobody is always a winner, and anybody who says he is, is either a liar or doesn't play poker. — Amarillo Slim
They anticipate losing when they sit down and I try my darnedest not to disappoint one of them. — Amarillo Slim
Poker is a game of people... It's not the hand I hold, it's the people that I play with. — Amarillo Slim
Hold 'em is to stud what chess is to checkers. — Johnny Moss
The guy who invented poker was bright, but the guy who invented the chip was a genius. — Big Julie
Last night I stayed up late playing poker with Tarot cards. I got a full house and four people died. — Steven Wright
Cards are war, in disguise of a sport. — Charles Lamb, Essays of Elia (1832)
Poker is a godless game, full of random pain. — Andy Bloch
You call this one and it's all over, baby. — Scotty Nguyen, during the 1998 World Series of Poker. Down to him and one other player, he said this to his opponent who called, and it was all over.
Mae West: Is poker a game of chance? W.C. Fields: Not the way I play it. — My Little Chickadee
References
- Brunson, Doyle (1979). Doyle Brunson's Super System, Cardoza. ISBN 1580420818.
- Sklansky, David (1989). The Theory of Poker (3rd Ed), Two Plus Two Publications. ISBN 1880685000.
- Vorhaus, John (2002). Killer Poker, Lyle Stuart. ISBN 0818406305.
- Ernest, James; Selinker, Mike; Foglio, Phil (2005). Dealer's Choice: The Complete Handbook of Saturday Night Poker, Overlook Press. ISBN 1585676543.
- Caro, Mike (1978). Caro's Book of Poker Tells, Cardoza. ISBN 1580420826.