Poker Games: Explanation and History

Poker is a game that can be played by anybody, male or female, whatever their age may be. From kitchen tables in private homes - where parents, grandparents and children partake of the activity using candy as chips - to the palaces of gambling around the world such as the Bellagio in Las Vegas and the Aviation Club in Paris, poker is a game that has seemingly seized the collective consciousness of everybody in the 21st century. Whether playing for fun, charitable reasons or the Darwinian purpose of "survival of the fittest" and the mounds of cash on the table, the game of poker is something that can appeal to most any person on the planet.

But where did poker come from? How many types of poker games are out there and which one is right for me? What are the particular nuances of the different poker games and what do I need to know to be able to play the game right? We'll attempt to answer some of those questions and give you enough background to be able to play any poker game proficiently.

History of the Game of Poker

The history of poker is reminiscent of a phrase that you will hear around the table of most every poker game - "It depends."

Particular forms of a card game similar to poker date back as early as the 15th century, where the denizens of what we now call Germany played a game called pochspiel. From some accounts, this was the first game that took into account betting, hand ranks and bluffing as essential elements of the game. Some believe that Persia was actually the birthplace of poker with a game called As Nas. Throughout the 20th century, As Nas was considered as the forerunner of the modern poker game but, by the end of the 1990s, this notion was even being challenged as there is no history of the game prior to the 1890s.

Other nations have introduced their particular national variations as to being the creator of the game of poker. The Irish game poc, the regional French game poque, and the English game brag each seem to have some of the elements that make up poker today, including betting, bluffing and card rankings. There is also the possibility that exists that today's deck of cards and the playing of poker is a mutation of tarot cards, which were banned by many European countries because of their alleged mystical properties of foretelling the future. It is possible that what we look at as a poker game today is an amalgam of all of the games and situations mentioned above, but the game of poker did not become the popular until the game reached the newly-created United States.

A form of poker, in which four players used a twenty card deck comprised of four suits and rankings of tens through Aces, emerged in the gaming halls of New Orleans - which was a French holding at the time - in the early 1800s. The poker game then expanded upwards through the middle of the growing United States on the riverboats of the Mississippi River, where gamblers would ply their trade against farmers and travelers who were less skilled in the game than they were. It then began to extend its tentacles both east and west from that point, with two historical circumstances building its popularity even more.

The Civil War in the United States allowed soldiers from both sides of the conflict to have a leisurely poker game between the bloody battles that they were attempting to live through. It is also thought that the deck was expanded at this time to its current 52-card version and such card rankings as the flush and the straight were included. Emerging at this time also was the stud poker game, in which each player bet on streets as their cards were dealt rather than on what they held in their hand from the start.

Also adding to the growth of poker was the United States' expansion to the western half of the country. Perhaps because of the roughneck, maverick personality of those who colonized that area, poker was the game of choice from gambling halls to saloons of the time. As the country continued to expand, the number of poker games that could be played evolved along with it.

The usage of wild cards in poker games is a purely American invention, added into poker around the mid-1870s. Lowball poker and split pot games (normally called High-Low) emerged on the scene around the turn of the century. The form of poker that most players are quite familiar with, the community card games, seem to have had their development around the time of the Great Depression.

Since roughly the 1970s, poker has seen its profile expand, not only in America but also around the world. Conflicts in which the American armed forces have participated led to Asian cultures being exposed to the game. The preeminent poker tournament in the world, the World Series of Poker, began in 1970 and has seen monumental growth since its inaugural playing. Finally, televised poker events and Internet poker games have exposed those who are either too removed from a physical casino or card room or cannot enter these gaming arenas due to age to make poker, in this new century, the game of choice.

As you can see, the history of poker offers almost as many variants as the actual playing of poker games does. Now that we have covered its convoluted history, its time to learn what to do when you step to the table for a poker game.

Poker Disciplines - Which Poker Game Is Right For You?

There are several different poker games that you can play, but you have to be able to choose the one that best fits your abilities and, thus allows you to make the best use of your time and money. For our purposes, we will break the different poker games down into four categories: community card games, non-flop poker games (also called non-community card or Stud games), draw poker games and wild card games. Hopefully in this breakdown, you should be able to find the best game for you and will choose your next game accordingly.

Community Card Games

In this 21st century world of poker, these are now the games where people first get their exposure to playing poker. This differs from approximately two or three decades ago, where most poker players weaned themselves on the non-flop poker games such as Five Card or Seven Card Stud. There are several reasons why this particular variation of poker has earned the prominence that it has.

First off, what television programs - from the WSOP to the World Poker Tour to the various made for television productions that are out there - are showing are community card games and, in particular, the ever-popular Texas Hold'em. The reasons for this are simple: there are few rules that a player has to memorize, betting is simple and, especially in the No Limit variety of poker game, there is high drama to be played out.

Secondly, it is an arguable point that the community card games offer the best mental and strategic challenges that poker presents. Because of the lack of information that a player has - the opposite of what is seen in other games - there is more bearing placed on a well timed bluff or a strategically planned play. It is often stated that No Limit Hold'em is more of an art than a science, and this is evident to all who have seen this style of poker game in action.

Finally, the community card styles of poker lend themselves to a large gathering that is clamoring for a poker game. Whether you are playing Texas Hold'em or its sibling, Omaha, you can have as many as ten people playing at the table. This is perfect for that large family reunion or a get-together of the people in your office. The community card games are also good for small (four to six) player outings, but the more people that play make for a more competitive poker game.

Texas Hold'em - The Most Famous Poker Game

For those that have little experience or players who appreciate the psychological, strategic and mental aspects of poker, Texas Hold'em is the poker game of choice. It is, as poker professional Mike Sexton has stated on the WPT, "a game that takes minutes to learn and a lifetime to master." There is a great deal of truth in that statement as there are different nuances that confound even those players who have a strong background in this particular variation of poker.

Every player gets two cards and two players - the small blind (half of the stake of the table) and the big blind (the full stake) - place mandatory bets to initiate action. Each player has to determine whether they want to play their hand by, at the minimum, calling the big blind, raising the bet or declining to play and folding. For those that remain in the hand after this round of betting is completed, the first of the community cards come down with a three-card display called the "flop." This is followed by another round of betting and, if any players still remain, another card is dealt, called the "turn" or Fourth Street. Another round of betting ensues and, if there are still players contesting the hand, the final card called the "river" or Fifth Street is dealt. A final round of betting occurs and, once this is completed, if there are players still in play for the hand, they display their cards. The best five-card hand takes what is in the pot and the poker game moves on to the next hand.

This is a community card game because there are five cards on the table that all players use - players can use one, both or neither of their two hole cards to make their best five-card hands. Through strategic play, bluffing at the pot or even table talk, players use every part of their capabilities to try to win the hand. The game can be played in different styles - Limit, Spread Limit (rarely seen nowadays), Pot Limit (where betting is limited to what is in the pot) and No Limit - and different people will excel in different forms of this game. What makes community card games the best is that there is something for everyone.

Most every poker room around will offer a form of Texas Hold'em, as it is currently the most popular game around. With that in mind, every online poker room will offer Texas Hold'em as its bedrock of poker games. For anyone who wants to take an initial dive into the world of poker, Texas Hold'em is the route to take.

Omaha Hold'em

Omaha Hold'em is a game that has enjoyed a great deal of success in Europe and, in the last part of this decade, is beginning to become more popular around the world. The game's popularity is such that some live poker rooms will spread it if there is enough players requesting that action and most online rooms also will offer it to their patrons.

The game is very similar to Texas Hold'em but differs in a couple of aspects: a player is dealt four cards (instead of the two in the Texas version) to be able to build their best five card hand; and a player MUST use two of the four cards in their hand to make the five cards they plan to play. This proves problematic for newcomers who make the mistake of only playing one card or, worse yet, playing the board. The betting is exactly the same as Texas Hold'em, but there are variations that draw players to this brand of poker game.

Omaha is mostly played either in a Limit or Pot Limit capacity and there is the added nuance of playing this poker game as a split pot, or High-Low, game. In this variation, players try to not only make the best hand available but also attempt to make the lowest hand. If one player holds the high and another player holds the low, then the pot is split evenly between the two players.

What makes Omaha many people's poker game of choice is that there is normally a great deal of action at the table. Because of the combinations that a player can make, there are usually very good odds for players to remain in a hand and, thus, build very large pots for the players to fight over. Omaha Hold'em isn't necessarily the best game for newcomers, however, as the rule of having to use two hole cards of the four dealt to them and the variety of possibilities on every hand can lead to confusion and, as a result, a significant loss of money in the game.

Non-Flop Poker Games

For older poker players, non-flop games such as Seven Card and Five Card Stud was their first experience in stepping into a poker game. Due to the explosion of Texas Hold'em, these poker games are a bit rarer in live card rooms. Because it does have its fans, however, most online rooms offer it as an option.

In the non-flop games, players attempt to build the best five-card hand from individual cards that they have, rather than building from a slate of community cards. To instigate the action at the table, all players place an ante - a standard amount according to the stakes - in the pot. In Seven Card, two cards are dealt face down and one is dealt face up (in Five Card, it is one down and one up) and the lowest card opens up the betting, called the "bring in." Players once again have the option of either calling the bring in, raising it to a predetermined amount or folding. Action continues until there is one player left or the seventh (or fifth) card is dealt, at which time the players show their cards and the best five-card hand takes the pot.

These non-flop poker games are normally played in a Limit format, but there was a time when there was a No Limit variation. As with Omaha, Seven Card can be played in a High-Low variation but not Five Card. Even though it may not be as popular as it once was, the non-flop world of poker still has a great deal to offer players.

The non-flop games are excellent for those that have good skills in memorization of what has been exposed at the table. Unlike the community card games, where you are working with a great lack of information, the exposed cards in the non-flop poker games can give the observant player a great deal of information as to the best hand a player can build as well as what an opponent is working on. While bluffing is still a part of these games, the non-flop poker games are usually more straightforward and, as such, are considered by some to be a more skillful test of poker ability.

Draw Poker Games

Draw games are a particular specialty that most players never will reach. For the most part, these games were popular long ago but have faded into the woodwork of poker games nowadays. Still, there are some variations that players will encounter that have charm to them.

Triple Draw is a variation that puts a tremendous premium on a player's skill in building a winning hand. Players are dealt five cards and after betting they can exchange up to four of the cards for new ones. Another round of betting ensues and another trading session occurs before final bets are taken in. In this game, you can either play it for the high hand or, as it is played as a bracelet event at the WSOP, the best low hand that isn't a straight (such as Deuce To Seven).

These poker games are usually only played by either the best poker players around or by those who enjoy the action that the game presents. Either way, if you are a newcomer to the poker world, you should probably get the nuances of the more popular games down before you attempt to take on the Draw games.

Wild Card Games

In home games around the world, wild card games such as One-Eyed Jacks or Deuces Wild are extremely popular because of the possibilities of building hands that will rarely occur in a non-wild card poker game. Even such variations as Baseball (where threes and nines are wild and fours earn a player another card) can be fun for a family game, but you will never see these games spread in a normal card room or on an online site.

Professionals will never play wild games because of the mathematical distortions inherent to these poker games. Using the game of Baseball above as an example, there are eight separate wild cards involved and there is no way that strong poker players can use the math - or the cards displayed in this particular Seven Card variation - to their advantage to decipher whether their hands are good. If you want to be a good poker player, it would be best to eliminate these types of poker games from your home game roster.

Summary

Poker, through its historical incarnations around the world and the variations that have been created in the United States, is arguably the most popular card game in the world. A poker game can offer many different things to different people and we are all drawn closer in some form or another because of this endearing pursuit. Through an understanding of its history and the nuances of each discipline, a person who is drawn to poker can find something that appeals to them and will provide them a lifetime of challenge and the camaraderie that appeals to the human spirit.