The Basics of Poker
The game of Poker uses a standard pack of 52 cards, with some variants using multiple packs, or adding jokers. Each card is ranked from Ace high to Ace low, and the five cards that make up a hand are known as the hands. In a standard game, all hands consist of five cards. Wild Cards may appear in a hand and can take any suit. Some games do not use wild cards, but when they do appear, they must be dealt face up.
Many variations of the game of Poker have evolved over the centuries. Three-Card Monte and Spit-in-the-Ocean are examples of games involving less than five cards. The rules of all Poker variants will be discussed later in this chapter. For more than ten players, two separate games may be organized. The first game in this family involves two players each holding a hand of cards. A winner is declared after each round.
When a player is unable to win a hand, they can raise their bet. This will make the next hand possible. In the second hand, if both players have a pair of kings, the hand becomes a flush. If all players have a flush, the winner is the player with the highest rank. In a single-player game, a flush is the lowest card. In a high-low combination, the hand with the highest pair wins.