There are countless variations of Poker, but it is essentially a simple game. We
will explain the rules by concentrating on 5-Card Draw. This is the easier
version for beginners to learn.
You play with a standard deck of 52 playing cards. They are ranked from high
to low in the following order: Ace, King, Queen, Jack, 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3,
2. Aces are ALWAYS high. Aces are worth more than Kings which are worth more
than Queens which are worth more than Jack, and so on. The cards are also
separated into four suits. The suits are:
• Clubs: 
• Spades: 
• Hearts: 
• Diamonds: 
The suits are all of equal value, meaning that no suit is more valuable than
another. It's a very democratic game. Each player is dealt five cards. The
object of the game is to end up with the highest-valued hand. From best to
worst, hands are ranked in the following order:
Royal Flush - composed of 10, Jack, Queen, King and Ace, all
of the same suit. It's the toughest hand to get.
Straight Flush - five cards in numerical order, all of the
same suit. It's not allowed to "wrap around," such as Q-K-A-2-3. This is also
very rare.
Four of a Kind - Four cards of the same numerical rank. If
there are two or more hands that qualify, the hand with the highest-ranking Four
of a Kind wins.
Full House - three cards of the same numerical rank,
followed by two cards of the same numerical rank. So Q-Q-Q-7-7, but Q-Q-Q-A-A
will beat it.
Flush - comprised of five cards of the same suit, regardless
of their numerical rank. In a tie, whoever has the highest-ranking card wins.
Straight - five cards in numerical order, regardless of
their suits. A Straight cannot "wrap around."
Three of a Kind - three cards of the same numerical
rank.
Two Pair - two sets of paired cards
One Pair - one pair of cards
High Card - If none of the players have anything of value,
then the player with the highest value single cards wins.
Basic Rules
1) First, each player places an ante or "token bet" into the pot before
the cards are even dealt � anything from a few coins to wads of banknotes.
2) The dealer then distributes the cards to the players, handling one
card to each player and repeating this until everyone holds 5 cards.
3) The players look at their cards and start to place bets. Novices to
the game are advised to let somebody else start the betting.
4) For the first round of betting there are several options:
Open : If no betting has begun when your
turn comes, you may "open" the pot with a first bet.
Check : It means that you don't
want to open the betting, but want to see what happens.
See : You match another player's bet in order to stay in the
game.
Raise : This goes beyond See, by increasing your bet amount.
Fold : You give up and place your cards face down on the
table (if your hand is weak). You lose whatever you've bet so far.
Assuming you stay in the game, you can exchange up to 3 of your cards. All
new and exchanged cards are passed face down.
5) After every player draws 0 to 3 new cards, the betting begins again.
Various people will say See, Raise or Fold. When there are no more bids, the
game ends.
6) Everyone turns their cards over. The player with the highest hand
wins the pot. You can only stay in the game if you don't fold. If you get a
good hand, it is important to hide your feelings about it. The trick is to make
everyone else bet a lot, and win even more money. It's all about being a good
liar and a good actor.
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