There is rarely a person who hasn’t heard of one of the most well-known games, poker, and there is rarely a person who hasn’t played at least once in his life. It is a game that differs from other casino games because it does not require luck, but rather knowledge.
Many historians believe that poker originated in the 10th century from a game of dominoes and cards played by the Chinese emperor. Poker, on the other hand, did not make an appearance on European soil until the 17th century, when it appeared in France under the name Poque. This game eventually spread to North American expatriates, including present-day New Orleans and surrounding areas.
Poker gained its popularity in the early twentieth century as an activity enjoyed by a small group of men, but it quickly became more appealing, and everyone began to participate. People eventually began to organize tournaments with huge million-dollar payouts for the best.
There are numerous variations of the game today, including a five-card draw, a seven-card stud, and the recently popular Texas Hold’em poker.
Poker Rules
Hand Values
This is the first poker rule. To play, you must understand the winning hand values, which one is best, i.e. ranked highest, and which one is worst.
Royal Flush – This is the best hand in poker and is unbeatable. It is made up of the Ace, King, Queen, Jack, and Ten of the same suit.
Straight Flush – A straight flush is made up of five cards in consecutive order, all of which are of the same suit. If two players have a straight flush, the player with the higher card wins.
Four of a Kind – A four-card hand with “equal” value. If two players have four of a kind, the player with the higher value card wins.
Full House – consists of three cards of the same value plus two other cards of the same value, 3+2.
Flush – A flush is made up of five cards of the same suit that can be in any order, not just consecutive.
Straight – A straight is made up of five cards in consecutive order that are not all of the same suit.
Three of a Kind – Three cards that are all the same value.
Two Pairs – Consists of two cards of the same value plus two other cards of the same value, 2+2.
Pair – A pair is two cards of the same value.
When a player has five cards of different suits and values, he or she is said to have a high card. If no one has any of the above-mentioned combinations, the player with the highest card wins. Ace is the highest card of all.
Playing Options
The player can select one of the following options at any time:
Fold – When a player decides not to play the current hand. The player loses the bets placed thus far but is not required to continue betting during that hand.
Call – If the player before you decides to bet more, each player can “call,” which means to equal the amount wagered by the player who raised.
Raise – If a player has a good hand, he can increase his initial bet and wait for other players to match his amount before continuing to play.
Check – If no one else raised the bet and you don’t want to raise as well, you can simply choose “check,” and the next player takes a turn.
Online Poker
As the name implies, online poker is poker played online. Online poker is largely responsible for the significant increase in the number of poker players worldwide. The fact that online poker earnings increased from $82.7 million in 2001 to $2.4 billion in 2005 speaks volumes.
Because online casinos, virtual gambling games, and poker are now an integral part of gambling, the development of online poker was a logical continuation of the game’s evolution. Until only thirty years ago, a poker game required a group of people to gather around a table with a deck of cards.
That same society can now play poker from the comfort of their own homes, provided they have a good internet connection. It was unthinkable that you could place a bet, withdraw it, leave the game, or join a new one with just a few clicks.
Traditional casinos can be a hostile environment for new players, and they are frequently inaccessible to them. A very important point to note is that traditional casinos are not eager to promote poker because it is difficult for them to profit from it. The cost of maintaining a poker room is quite high, and casinos make more money by removing poker rooms and replacing them with more slot machines. It has even been determined that poker contributes only 1% of total revenue to traditional casinos. On the other hand, having an online casino and poker room is much cheaper. For example, unlike traditional casinos, adding a poker room to an online casino does not necessitate physically taking up additional space.
Online casinos, on the other hand, are more vulnerable to certain types of scams. However, all online gaming sites are capable of detecting such scams, which do not exist in traditional casinos.
Online Poker Variants
Straight Poker is the most traditional form of poker. Players are dealt five face-down cards. Betting is done in one round, and players can raise or re-raise their bet in response to another player’s bet.
Draw Poker is a type of poker in which each player is dealt five face-down cards. After the first round of betting, players can discard cards they don’t need and draw new ones.
Community Card Poker is the most popular variant nowadays. In this variant, players are dealt two cards and must have a total of five in order to win. The “community” cards are dealt face up in order to use them to combine the entire hand. They are combined with the cards in the hands to form a complete hand, and the best one wins. The most well-known community card poker game is Texas Hold’em.
Stud Poker is a card game in which players are dealt cards in turns. They are initially face down, and only in the subsequent rounds are they revealed. This style of poker is played in rounds, with bets placed after each round. The most popular stud game is Seven Card Stud, in which players are dealt seven cards each with the goal of putting together the top five.
Most Popular Online Poker Games
Texas Hold’em Poker
This is the most common and widely played online poker variant, in which you compete against other players. The number of players ranges from two to ten. Of course, the goal is to have the best winning hand possible. Texas Hold’em poker is a community card poker game, which means that the player is dealt two cards and must combine them with three of the five community cards to form the best hand. Since it is the most played variant, we prepared a separate article with everything you need to know before playing Texas Hold’em poker.
Casino Hold’em Poker
When it comes to rules and cards dealt, Casino Hold’em poker is very similar to Texas Hold’em. However, there is a significant difference in the number of players. While in Texas Hold’em you compete against other players, in Casino Hold’em you compete against the dealer, i.e. the house. This variant is much better for beginners until they learn all of the rules because you won’t have to bluff your way out of a bad hand in this game.
Omaha Poker
Omaha poker is a type of community card poker that is similar to Texas Hold’em. The number of hole cards dealt distinguishes Omaha poker from Texas Hold’em poker. Instead of two cards, the player receives four hole cards in Omaha poker. In practice, you will have nine cards to make the best hand (five community cards and four player cards). However, in order to win, you must use only two of your four cards to combine with the community cards. Assume you have four aces, which is a fantastic hand, but you can only use two of them. This is a little disappointing if you get a good hand, but it also opens up a lot of new opportunities if you don’t get a good hand right away.
Seven-Card Stud Poker
Seven-Card Stud Poker, as the name implies, is a stud poker variant. The main difference between Omaha or Texas Hold’em and Seven-Card Stud Poker is that there is no flop and no community cards. Instead, each player receives seven cards, dealt one by one. The first three cards are dealt face down, followed by four face up. The player must select the best five-card combination. It is critical to pay close attention to the cards of your opponents. You’ll have a better idea of what to expect or not expect.
Video Poker
Video poker is a game that is a combination of slot machines and poker. In this game, you play on a machine similar to slot machines, rather than a table as in the other variants. Another distinction is that you play against the machine rather than against other people. Because the payouts are fixed, each video poker machine will display a table with the payouts for each winning hand.
Pay attention to the payouts when choosing a video poker machine. The higher the number of winning combinations, the lower the winnings. The smaller the number of winning combinations, even though you can rarely win, but will always be a large amount.
Video Poker Types
Jacks or Better – This is possibly the most known type of video poker in the world, with all of the classic types of combinations, as well as a winning combination with two jacks and all of the other larger cards, as the name implies.
Deuces Wild – Another well-known version of video poker that does not have a joker card, but has deuces (2s) that are wild, and they substitute any other card on the deck to form a winning hand. As a result, the number of possible combinations is much higher than usual, and four deuces are the second most powerful combination in this poker.
Double bonus poker – video poker game similar to Jacks or Better. It is popular because of its increased wins for all Four of a Kind hands and big payouts on Four of Kind Ace.
Advantages of Online Poker
The most significant advantage of online poker is the abundance of free rooms where you can learn how to play without risking real money. With the introduction of online poker, the game has gained enormous popularity and a growing number of fans.
Another advantage is that you cannot be scammed, which is common when playing traditional poker. Online casinos are now licensed and have licenses from a variety of countries, ensuring the security of your invested funds through legal regulations.
The final advantage is that you get to choose where you want to play, how you want to play, and how long you want to play. It is entirely up to you to make this happen.
Play Online Poker in Kenya
There are a lot of casinos in Kenya where you can play online poker, but before you do that, you should know which casinos have the best odds and which ones have the worst odds.
For online poker in Kenya, we recommend 22Bet Kenya casino, as it has all poker variants available for you to choose from. In addition, you can also play poker in the Live Casino, where you will have the impression that you are playing in one of the big casinos in Las Vegas.
Coinbet24 Kenya is another great casino for playing poker, especially their Live Casino section which is solid. You can get a nice welcome bonus and start playing right away.
