More about Poker

The origins of Poker are not fully known, however, it is generally accepted that poker evolved and developed from a number of different card games, originaly coming from France, Persia, Germany and England. The early 20th century would seem to be when the vast majority of modern day poker variations developed and gained popularity. With the rapid acceptance of online poker and televised poker tournaments, poker has experienced an unprecedented global rise in popularity.

Poker games can be found online, in 'real world casinos' (or bricks and mortar; B&M) pubs, clubs, as well as poker games at home. The top poker online rooms regularly attract thousands of players daily, and often thousands of players are playing poker online at any given hour. Online poker rooms have the benefit of offering players a greater variety of betting options (limits), from as low as $0.01 and often above $1000. Texas Holdem (Texas hold'em) has emerged as the most popular style of poker, this may be due in part to televised tournaments preferring this particular version of poker.

The huge increase in the number of online poker rooms, land casinos and global poker tournaments has ensured the continued success and growing global presence of poker, both online and off. For some poker online players, it is a relaxing hobby to play online poker games for free, for others poker online is a means to practice at times to suit themselves, in the hope of becoming a great poker player, and for others who have years of practice and strategy behind them, it has become a means to earning an income. Whatever your reason to play poker online, Chino Poker aims to give you relevant and up to date information so that you can make informed choices about your poker play.

Poker Environments

The ability to play poker in the comfort of one's home at any time of the day or night has proven to be a huge plus for online poker rooms. A computer and internet access is usually all that is required to compete in online 'play' money rooms, where players can practice and sharpen their poker skills before graduating to 'real' money poker play. With great deposit bonuses offered online poker players, especially at sign up, the benefits to a new player who graduates to ‘real money’ tables are vast.

Bricks and Mortar or 'land' poker rooms are also increasing in numbers, in an attempt to accommodate and cash in on interest of this popular game.  These poker rooms play at a much slower pace compared to online poker rooms, as a dealer has to manually shuffle and deal the cards, whilst players spend more time manually counting out and moving chips. Limits are often far bigger than the micro limits offered online, but many casinos and poker rooms also conduct beginner/novice nights, where introductory lessons and tutorials are conducted.  When a player is unsure of his strategy, facing real live opponents can seem intimidating, which is why many players start off in the safer environment of an online poker room before moving to the 'real world'.

Regular poker nights are also hosted in many places (such as pubs and clubs). Some people find that a pub provides a more relaxed and less intimidating introduction to casino based poker. Beginners also welcome and less intimidated as many of the players will be new to the game too, making 'pub poker' fertile ground to develop your poker game.   The number of players in any game of poker ranges from two (also known as heads-up) to ten (seated at a single table) regardless of where it is played.

Poker can be played in tournaments (single or multi-table) or in cash (ring) games. Poker tournaments can be structured over a multiple number of tables (multi-table tournaments; MTT), meaning that the possible number of competitors in a given tournament is virtually unlimited.   Tournaments typically involve a set buy-in (entrance fee) and each player begins with the same amount of chips. The buy-in is comprised of an amount that contributes to the overall prize pool and an administrative fee that goes to the poker room. All players then compete until there is only one player remaining, with the prize money distributed amongst players. For example, in a ten person single table tournament, the prize pool distribution is usually set at 50% for first place, 30% for second and 20% for third. The distribution can vary greatly depending on the tournament being played.

Cash games operate on a single table and continue for as long as there are players seated. The blinds  are kept constant (blinds are the forced bets before play begins). The key feature here is that players can join and leave whenever they desire, making this game structure ideal for players who may not have the time to slug it out for hours in a multi-table tournament. Players can bring as little or as much money with them to cash games (although a minimum amount usually applies).

There are also sit-n-go tournaments. These single table tournaments begin as soon as all seats at a table have been filled and finishes when only one player remains (the winning player). This type of game appeals to players who do not wish to play cash games, but do not have the time to play in lengthy multi-table tournaments. In sit-n-go tournaments and multi-table tournaments, the blinds will go up at regular intervals (known as levels). This is to speed play along, which is especially necessary in large multi-table tournaments.

Betting limits generally fall into three categories; Fixed Limit, Pot Limit or No Limit. In the first case, a player may only bet a fixed amount every time they raise. Pot Limit betting is capped at the size of the pot, which can grow exponentially depending on the number of bets made. No Limit, as the name implies means that players are free to bet almost any amount (including their whole chip stack). Betting minimums are usually set at the same amount as the big blind. In tournaments, the big blind (and betting minimum) steadily increase over time, to ensure a result. At a certain point within a given tournament structure, an ante may be introduced. An ante is a blind bet that all players make prior to the cards being dealt for each hand.

The above describes the betting process for Texas Holdem; other varieties such as Stud Poker and Draw poker follow slightly different rules.

Now that you learned how to play poker, what are you waiting for? Sign up to Pokerplex and start playing one of the world's most popular games.