Learning the Basics of Poker
Poker has developed many variants through the years, and some of the rules change with each variant. For novice players, we will outline the basic game of poker here.
Poker uses the standard deck of 52 playing cards. These are dealt in a clockwise direction by the dealer. Players bet on who among them is holding what is called the best hand, meaning the card combination with the highest value. All the players' bets are gathered in the pot.
In the opening round, the opening player can make a check, meaning passing on the opening of the bet to the next player and taking the last position in the game.
Once the opening bet is made, the next player is required to match the previous bet and has the choice of raising the stakes. The succeeding player then has to match that player's total bet and then may or may not further raise the stakes.
If a player does not wish to match the previous player's total bet, the only option left is to fold. This means withdrawing from the game and surrendering all previous bets made to the pot.
A round is done once all players have either made a bet or have folded. All remaining players then have a showdown or show of hands, putting their cards face up on the table. The one with the highest hand or combination wins the pot.
If all players have folded except one, that remaining player wins the pot. Sometimes the winning player in such cases does not necessarily hold the highest hand but has succeeded in bluffing.
Most poker games recognize the following ranking of hands, from highest to lowest:
1. Straight Flush or a sequence of five cards in one suit, using the Ace as either the highest card or as a one; 2. Four of a Kind or of the same rank plus any other card; 3. Full House or three cards of the same rank plus two cards of the same rank; 4. Flush or any five cards in one suit; 5. Straight or five cards in sequence in any combination of suits; 6. Three of a Kind or of the same rank plus two other cards; 7. Two Pair or two sets of matching ranks plus another card; 8. One Pair of the same rank plus three other cards; and 9. High card or the highest value card in no special combination.
In cases of players holding the same hand, the one with the higher value card in the significant portion of the hand wins. For example, in a Full House, KKK22 wins over QQQAA because the triples are scored first before the doubles.
This most basic poker game is the type usually played in homes. Beginners can learn the principles of the game from it and then easily move on to the more sophisticated poker variants.