At the turn of the century, the advent of tiny hole-card cameras turned Poker into a spectacle, and today Poker tournaments can be watched on TV in many areas, and online around the world. Tournament play is part and parcel of the world of Poker, with the World Series of Poker beginning in 1970 and gaining popularity throughout casinos. With the explosion of online Poker at the start of the 21st century, more and more players found games at the tips of their fingertips.

There are four main variants of Poker including myriad games. The variants are grouped according to the betting and dealing rules. Straight Poker is the oldest of the Poker families. In Straight Poker, a complete hand is dealt to every player and players bet over the course of one round, with raising and re-raising permitted according to the rules.

Stud Poker is the next oldest family of Poker games after Straight Poker. In Stud Poker, players are dealt cards in pre-set combinations of face-down and face-up rounds (also called streets), with a betting round immediately following.

In Draw Poker, each player is dealt a full hand of cards face-down. Players have the opportunity to improve their hand by discarding cards and adding new ones.

The final variant is called Flop Poker, where players are dealt an incomplete hand of cards which they can complete with face-up community cards dealt to the entire table. Texas Hold ‘Em, widely considered the most popular game of Poker around the world belongs to this group of games.

One notable thing about Omaha Hold ‘em Poker, is that in casinos, dealers never actually play the game, even though it all starts with the dealer shuffling the standard 52-card deck.

Following that, the first and second players to the left of the dealer will make blind bets before the cards are dealt. These players put up the minimum bet, which is predetermined. This is called “posting the blinds” and it ensures there is something to play for in every hand.

Following the first blind bets, players are given four cards, face down. These are called their hole cards.

A standard poker betting round then begins. As with other variations of poker, players can choose to raise, call or fold in the betting round. In the betting round, the player to the left of the players that posted the blinds is the first to go.

Once the first betting round is finished, the dealer discards the top card to prevent cheating, then puts three cards in the middle of the table, face up. These are called community cards, which can be used by any player. Following the distribution of the first three community cards, another betting round takes place. This time, the player directly to the left of the dealer starts the betting round.

Following the previous betting round, the dealer will once again discard the top card before putting the fourth community card onto the table. Another betting round then begins.

The fifth and final community card is then handed out, after the top card is discarded once more.

At this point, players choose three community cards as well as two of their hole cards to form a five-card poker hand. The final round of bets are then placed.

Players then show their hands, starting with the last one who raised the last. The winner is the player who has the best hand.

If placing a ‘pair plus’ bet the results are given on the hand that the player holds.  The hand that the dealer has is not relevant.  The player must have at least a pair; a hand with nothing wins nothing.  Odds may be as high as 40-1 for a straight flush and as low as evens for a pair.

With an ‘ante and play’ bet the cards are dealt before the bet is made.  Once the cards are dealt the player is able to fold and lose the money that has already been wagered, or play and add additional monies to the bet already placed.  If the play bet is chosen then the dealer’s hand will also be revealed.  A queen high in the dealer’s hand will qualify and the outcome depends on both the dealer’s hand and the player’s hand and the type of bet that has been made.  For example, if the dealer’s hand does not qualify and the ante bet was placed then the payout is usually even money, while if the play bet has been played then the result is push.

If the player has at least a straight then a bonus may be paid on the ante bet that is not dependent upon the hand of the dealer or if the player has won or lost.  These bonuses depend upon the individual casino but can be as high as 5 to 1 for a straight flush or even-money for a straight.

The decision to extend the WSOP across the Atlantic was taken after Harrah’s Casinos purchased the rights to the brand in 2004. The company subsequently purchased London Clubs International, which owned three leading casinos in the London area, paving the way for the inaugural elite series in 2007 at the Empire in Leicester Square casino. Three events took place between September 6th to 16th of that year and 18 year old Annette Obrestad was the big winner after taking down the £10,000 No Limit Hold’em Main Event for a £1,000,000 jackpot and coveted gold WSOP bracelet.

A fourth event was added to the schedule twelve months later. John Juanda followed Obrestad into the record books after beating 362 players to secure a £868,800 top prize. The series continued to grow in 2009, as a fifth tournament was introduced and notable pros J.P Kelly, Erik Cajelais and Barry Shulman all tasted success. James Bord, the most recent Main Event winner, landed a £830,401 jackpot in 2010 after besting Fabrizio Baldassari in heads up play, to become the first British player to triumph in the showpiece tournament.

The Majestic Barriere Cannes and Le Croisette Casino Barriere are set to host the action in 2011, after a decision was made to move the series from its traditional home in London. Seven events, covering No Limit Hold’em and Pot Limit Omaha variants, will take place in addition to a €550 NLHE Ladies (Non Bracelet) Event. It will also be the first time that events at the WSOPE count towards the prestigious WSOP Player of the Year Award.

In the casino, a game of video poker starts when you put the coins into the machine. Betting starts at this juncture, as the amount of coins you put into the machine at the outset dictates how much you will be paid for winning hands. In other words, paying more will get you paid more.

After your bet is placed, five random cards are assigned to you by the machine. After selecting which of these you want to keep, you discard the rest. The discarded cards are immediately replaced with other cards. The end result of this discarding and replacement determines whether or not you are paid out. A pair is the lowest payout you can get, and a royal flush the highest.

Though there are certainly variations of video poker, each with slight rule changes, the same basic concept is the same for all versions of video poker.

The most obvious difference is that players do not physically sit with one another around a table. Therefore, players cannot rely on watching the body language of others for tells. Instead, players must focus more on the game play techniques of others, for example, reaction times and speed of play, in addition to each player’s betting and folding statistics. Even slight variations in these can be tells as to what sort of hand a rival player has, or how they may be feeling in a certain round.

Rate of play also differs in online poker. In a physical game, either casual or in a casino, dealing and betting is slower. Cards must be collected, reshuffled and dealt. However, online play can be almost instantaneous, and some rooms allow players to pre-select their next move before a round is even dealt. Due to this, online poker rooms can play up to three times as many hands per hour as physical games.

A further issue is that of financial cost. In many casinos, a minimum bet of £1-2 is usually required, but in online play this can be substantially lower. As a result, online play can be an inexpensive way of playing poker.

Finally, many online rooms have facilities for teaching novices how to play, usually at no charge. This is an inexpensive way of accruing playing experience, as opposed to physical games where it is almost always necessary to place a monetary deposit.

1.    Once the dealer has dealt two cards to everyone, each player places an initial bet based on the cards they have been dealt.
2.    Three cards are then laid face up on the table which are known as the ‘flop cards’ and for players who wish to continue, everyone places another bet.
3.    The forth card is known as the ‘turn’ card, as your luck could change for better or worse, and it signals another round of betting.
4.    The ‘river’ card is the fifth and final card and a last bet is placed by those still in the game and wishing to continue.  This card is so called because it is down the river the player goes if they cannot make a winning hand by now.
5.    Once this stage is reached, everyone reveals their cards and the winner takes the prize money.

Draw

Draw is any variant where each player is dealt a complete hand before the first betting round. The hand is then developed for later rounds replacing, known as drawing, cards. The most common draw poker game is Five-card draw.

Stud

This is any variant where each player receives a mix of face-down and face-up cards, dealt in multiple betting rounds. The most common stud poker games are Five-card stud and Seven-card stud.

Community card

This is any variant where each player’s incomplete hidden hand is combined with shared face-up cards. The most common community card poker games are Omaha hold’em and Texas hold’em.

Some poker games don’t fit neatly into the above categories and have features of two or even all three variants.

Besides the game variations, there are also rule variations. Some of the more common are listed below.

•    Lowball is where the lowest hand wins the pot.
•    High-low split is where the pot is split between the player with the highest hand and the player with the lowest hand.
•    Roll your own is where players in a stud game can decide which cards are turned up and visible to other players.
•    Twist round is where players can buy another card from the deck.
•    Kill game is where the stakes are doubled after a player wins two pots in a row.

When is the best time to steal blinds?  As in bluffing, one of the best occasions to perform this sneaky trick is when you are in position.  This means you are to the right of the button, and the only players left to act are those that have posted the blinds.  As these chips are automatically forced into the pot the players could have any hand.  More often than not, the hand will be poor and an all-in bet will force the players to fold.  This can be dangerous, as there is a chance you are walking into a monster hand, but as your chip stack dwindles, and lady luck has deserted you, there are few options left.

In order to somewhat combat the danger, it is best to try to steal blinds when you have a fairly good hand – for example, one face card – so that if you do get a call, it is not a complete disaster, and with any luck, you will double up.

To call in poker is to match a bet or raise from another player.  The round of betting ends when players have each bet the same amount.  A player wins a pot if they bet and no one else calls.  Cold calling is the act of calling a raise when you have not yet invested any money in the pot during the round.  Smooth calling is a form of slow playing where a player only calls their opponent’s bet despite holding a strong hand.

A player can check if they do not wish to make a bet.  This action can only be used if no one has entered the pot previously during the betting round.  The big blind is the only player who can check his hand before the ‘flop’ if no one has decided to raise.

A raise in poker is the act of increasing the bet amount during a round.  For example, the big blind may be £1.  A typical raise is usually 3x the big blind.  The other players and the big blind must then meet the £3 bet or re-raise to remain in the hand.

Folding or mucking a hand ends a player’s interest in the round.  They are not required to meet any bets and cannot win the hand.  It is common for house dealers in the UK to turn over the two cards before discarding them.