Rules and how to play Poker: See Other for rules and how to play poker variants including

Omaha, Texas Hold'e m and Let it Ride. See also: Poker Site. Online Live Poker Rooms . How to join a live poker site - (Links open new window) The Basics Poker originated in the saloons of the Wild West and has probably the most game variants. It is played player against players and not just against the dealer as in Blackjack, and there is a lot of psychology involved during play. Poker take s a moment to learn and a lifetime to master. Poker is played from a standard deck of 52 cards. Some variant games use multipl e decks or add Jokers or Wild Cards. The cards are ranked in descending order starting from the highest; Ace, King, Q ueen, Jack, 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, Ace. Ace can be high or low. There are f our suits; spades, hearts, diamonds and clubs, but no suit is higher than anothe r. Each player is dealt five cards and is called a hand. The hand highest in ranks wins. In some games there are Wild Cards or Jokers, which can be labelled whatev er suit and rank the possessor wishes to. The Ranking of Poker Hands The ranking of poker hands based on probability starting from the highest are as follows. There are 2,598,960 possible combinations of cards in a poker hand you can be de alt. In brackets below next to the ranking of hands, are 1st the number of possi ble hands of that rank in 2,598,960 possible combinations, and 2nd your chances of getting one in percentage probability: Five of a Kind (with a Wild card or Joker) Royal Flush (4 possible hands in 2,598,960. Chance to get one: 0.000154%) Straight Flush (36 possible hands in 2,598,960. Chance to get one: 0.00139%) Four of a Kind (624 possible hands in 2,598,960. Chance to get one: 0.0240%) Full House (3744 possible hands in 2,598,960. Chance to get one: 0.144%) Flush (5108 possible hands in 2,598,960. Chance to get one: 0.197%) Straight (10,200 possible hands in 2,598,960. Chance to get one: 0.392%) Three of a Kind (54912 possible hands in 2,598,960. Chance to get one: 2.11% ) Two Pair (123,552 possible hands in 2,598,960. Chance to get one: 4.75%) Pair (1,098,240 possible hands in 2,598,960. Chance to get one: 42.26%) High Card (1,302,540 possible hands in 2,598,960. Chance to get one: 50.12%) Five of a Kind is only possible when using wild cards and is the highest possibl e hand. If more than one hand has five-of-a-kind, the higher rank wins; e.g. fiv e Aces beat five kings, which beat five queens, and so on. Straight Flush is the best natural hand. A straight flush consists of five cards in sequence and of the same suit. An Ace high straight-flush is called a Royal Straight Flush or Royal Flush and is the highest natural hand. Four of a Kind is a hand that contains of four cards of the same rank. The hand with the highest rank of four-of-a-kind beats other four-of-a-kind hands. If the re are many wild cards, as used in some game variants, there could be two four-o

f-a-kind hands with the same rank. In this case, the hand with the higher rankin g fifth card wins. This rule applies to hands that tie, such as a pair or two pa irs. Dead heats split the pot. Full House is a hand consisting of three-of-a-kind and a pair. Again, where Wild Cards are used, ties are compared first by the three-of-a-kind ranking, then th e pair. Flush is a hand consisting of cards that are all of the same suit in any order. Straight is a hand consisting of 5 cards in sequence, such as 5-6-7-8-9. An Ace may either be high (A-K-Q-J-10) or low (A-2-3-4-5). Three of a Kind is a hand similar to the four-of-a-kind hand, except that if the remaining two cards are a pair, then it becomes a Full House. Two Pair is a hand that contains two pairs only. Pair is a hand that contains one pair only. High Card is a hand that is none of the above and is a weak hand. If no player h as a pair or better, then the hand that contains the highest ranking card wins. If multiple players tie with the highest card, then the second highest card deci des, followed by the third and so on. Note on Wild Cards How the wild card can be used depends on the game you are playing and the rules. A wild card can be defined as a joker or standard card that, by player agreemen t and/or dealer's choice, can be used to represent any card desired. When a joker is in play, it usually can only be used as an Ace or to complete a straight or flush. It cannot be used as a true wild card, for example, as a king to make KK75X play as three kings. When playing for low, the joker becomes the lowest rank not already held, so 864AX is played as 8642A, with the joker used a s a deuce. Wild cards add an additional hand, five of a kind, which normally ranks above a straight flush. They can also cause confusion when two players hold the same han d composed of different wild card combinations. The standard rules of poker do n ot distinguish between such hands, but some players prefer to rank hands using f ewer wild cards above less 'natural' versions of the same hand. Playing Poker In most games players must 'ante' a nominal amount just to have the cards dealt. Once the cards are dealt, the betting starts. Players bet into the pot in the m iddle of the table and it is done in turn clockwise. The player with the highest rank showing, is the first to speak and to bet. He c an either bet or check. By saying 'Check', he passes the decision to bet to the next player who can also check. If all players check, then it is the end of the round. Everyone opens his cards and the highest hand wins. Only after one player places a bet the real betting starts. Each player in turn can either 'Call', 'Raise' or 'Fold'. To fold is to pass or drop out of the roun d and not play. To call means willing to match the bet, and the same amount must be placed on the pot. To raise means to match the bet and add an extra bet. Say you start with a $5 bet. If someone else raises $10, he puts $15 in the pot.

When your turn comes again you need to add $10 difference to the pot to stay in the game, and if you want you can also raise or even say 'Pot'. Pot is a raise to the maximum, which means to bet the same amount as the total money available in the pot. If there are no more raises and all the cards have been dealt, then it is the en d of the round. Everyone opens his closed cards and the highest hand wins the po t.