Poker

The name Poker likely descended from the French poque, which also descended from the German pochen which means 'to knock' or 'to brag' in Dutch. And so is the game very much like its name as Poker is a card game, the most popular in fact in the vying games, where the players with fully or partially concealed cards make wagers into a central pot. This pot is then awarded to the player or players with the best combination of cards or to the one who makes an uncalled bet. The game and jargon of poker have become important in American and English cultures that its phrases become everyday lingo. These includes: ace up one's sleeve, beats me, blue chip, call one's bluff, cash in, high roller, ace in the hole, pass the buck, poker face, stack up, up the ante, when the chips are down, wild card, and more that are used in everyday conversation, even by those who are remotely interested of what happens in a poker table.

David Sklansky introduced the fundamental theorem of poker which states that: “every time you play your hand the way you would if you could see your opponent's cards, you gain, and every time your opponent plays his cards differently from the way he would play them if he could see your cards, you gain.” At any time during a poker’s betting round, if a player makes a bet, opponents are then required to fold, call or raise. If one player bets and none of the opponents choose to match the bet then the deal ends immediately and the bettor is awarded the pot even if no cards are required to be shown.

There are many reasons to raise in a poker game. Unlike calling, raising will give you an extra way to win, which is to let opponent(s) may fold. David Sklansky gives seven reasons for raising as summarized below.

To get more money in the pot if a player has the best hand: If a player has the best hand then raising for value enables him to win a bigger pot.

• To drive out opponents especially when a player has the best hand: If a player has a made hand then raising may protect his hand by driving out opponents with drawing hands who may otherwise improve to get a better hand.


• To bluff or at least semi-bluff: If a player raises with an inferior or drawing hand then the player may induce a better hand to fold. In the case of semi-bluff, if the player is called he can still have the chance to improve to a better hand and also win a larger pot.


• To get one free card: If a player raises with a drawing hand then his opponent may check to him on the next betting round which gives him a chance to get a free card to improve his hand.


• To gain more information: If a player raises with an uncertain hand then he gains information about the strength of his opponent's hand when called.


• To drive out worse hands especially when a player's own hand may be second best: At times, if a player raises with the second best hand with cards to come then raising to drive out opponents with worse hands may increase the expected value of his hand by giving him a higher probability of winning in the event if his hand improves.


• To drive out better hands when a come bets: If an opponent with an apparent come hand bets before a player, then if the player raises his or her opponents behind him who may have a better hand may fold rather than call for a bet and raise. This is a type of isolation play.

By the end of the last betting round if there are more than one player, there is a showdown where the players reveal their previously hidden cards and evaluate their hands. The player with the best hand per according to the poker variant being played then wins the pot.