Poker Articles Index

Origin of Poker

Where did it start?

 “Where did it all begin?” The origin of poker has been widely debated over the years. There are many different theories on how and where this classic card game began. One of the most popular theories is actually that the game of Poker was neither born nor created, but rather that it evolved.

The French connection – or perhaps German?

Some claim that poker is a European game, developed from the French game “Poque”. According to this theory, the four suits of playing cards used today, diamonds, clubs, spades and hearts, originally comes from this game that dates back to the late 1400’s. The German game “Pochspiel” is another possible origin.

Chinese/Persian/Indian origin

Many experts on the subject believe that poker dates back to 900 B.C China, when Mu-Tsung is said to have played a form of “domino cards” with his wife. Others claim that the game comes from Persia, stemming from a card game called “As Nas”. In this game, a 5 suited deck of playing cards was used. There is also an Indian game called “Ganjifa”, which had produced card fragments dating back to the 12th or 13th century.

Poker in America, Started on Mississippi river boats

In America, poker started on Mississippi river boats and was a compliment to 3 Card Monty.This early version of poker was played with a 20-card deck that only contained aces, kings, queens, jacks and tens. The game was played with two to four people; each player was dealt five cards and the best hand won. Sometimes it was referred to as “the cheating game”.

Poker Articles

• Origin of Poker
• Top Money Winners
• The Flop
• Be A Shark
• Short Stack Suicide
• Turning Rocks to Dust
• 10 Key Skills
• Playing High Stakes
• Slow Playing

Free Football
Picks
Maddux Sports offers NFL & NCAA football predictions
as well as articles to visitors throughout the football season
 

If you are looking for an honest online casino and accurate information about gambling on the Internet www.honest-casinos.com; is worth a visit.

The name poker is an extension of poke, a slang word used by pick pockets. From the riverboats, poker migrated via wagon and train routes. New games, such as stud, draw, and the straight poker was invented and became popular. Where and when poker chips and other accessories were introduced remains unclear but is has been established that Europeans added the joker to the deck sometime around 1875. The wild cards were born.

Nevada changes its position

The next big step in the evolution of poker was when the state of Nevada in 1910 made it illegal to run a betting game. In California, however, the attorney general declared poker a game of skill, and anti-gambling laws couldn’t stop the masses from playing poker. Stud poker was still illegal because it was considered to be a game of absolute chance. The growing popularity of poker and the California decision prompted Nevada to make casino gambling legal again in 1931. The rest is history, and today millions of people all around the world are sitting down at poker tables, online as well as in live games. Poker is probably more popular and accepted in the society than it’s ever been before.