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History of Poker
The history of poker is a matter of debate. It closely resembles the Persian game of as nas, and may have been taught to settlers in New Orleans by Persian sailors. The name of the game likely descended from the Irish Poca (Pron. Pokah) ('Pocket') or even the French poque, which descended from the German pochen ('to brag as a bluff' lit. 'to knock' ). Yet it is not clear whether the origins of poker itself lie with the games bearing those names. It is commonly regarded as sharing ancestry with the Renaissance game of primero and the French brelan. The English game brag (earlier bragg) clearly descended from brelan and incorporated bluffing (though the concept was known in other games by that time). It is quite possible that all of these earlier games influenced the development of poker as it exists now.
Harry Truman's poker chips
English actor Joseph Crowell reported that the game was played in New Orleans in 1829, with a deck of 20 cards and four players betting on which player's hand was the most valuable. Jonathan H. Green's book, An Exposure of the Arts and Miseries of Gambling (G. B. Zieber, Philadelphia, 1843), described the spread of the game from there to the rest of the country by Mississippi riverboats, on which gambling was a common pastime. As it spread north along the Mississippi River and to the West during the gold rush, it is thought to have become a part of the frontier pioneer ethos.
Soon after this spread, the full 52-
The game and jargon of poker have become important parts of American and English culture. Such phrases and clichés as ace in the hole, ace up one's sleeve, beats me, blue chip, call one's bluff, cash in, high roller, pass the buck, poker face, stack up, up the ante, when the chips are down, wild card, and others are used in everyday conversation, even by those unaware of their origins at the poker table.
Modern tournament play became popular in American casinos after the World Series of Poker began, in 1970. Notable champions from these early WSOP tournaments include Johnny Moss, Amarillo Slim, Bobby Baldwin, Doyle Brunson, and Puggy Pearson.
Later in the 1970s, the first serious strategy books appeared, notably Super/System
by Doyle Brunson (ISBN 1-
In 1987, community card poker games were introduced in California, home of the largest poker casinos in the world. These games proved far more exciting to players than the draw poker variants that were played up until that time.
In the 1990s, poker and casino gambling spread across the United States, most notably to Atlantic City, New Jersey.
In 1998, the poker-
In 1999, Late Night Poker debuted on British television, introducing poker for the first time to many Europeans.
Poker's popularity experienced an unprecedented spike at the beginning of the 21st
century, largely because of the introduction of online poker and the invention of
the hole-
Major poker tournament fields have grown dramatically because of the growing popularity
of online satellite-
Poker Trivia
Three Kings
"King Farouk had an unbeatable way with cards and no one ever won against him because he would put his cards down and say, 'I have won. I have better cards.'
He was once in a game of poker and an opponent had the effrontery to declare that he had three queens. Farouk retorted that he had three kings, and when someone turned up the cards to reveal only two kings, Farouk snarled, 'I am the third.'"