Poker is a game that never goes out of style. It has been among the biggest games in the US more or less since it arrived on these shores in the early 19th century.
The blend of pure chance, psychology and strategic ability that good poker play requires is pretty unique and that accounts for a lot of its popularity. However, the creation of online casinos and the subsequent freedom to play the game on the internet has also helped.
That is much more convenient than having to commute to a land-based casino and convenience is important to people now. Plus, online poker comes with a wide range of variations.
From Texas Holdem to Omaha Hi and Seven-Card Stud, there are lots of types of poker you can play. In this post, we will examine each of them so you can figure out which would be best for you.
Texas Holdem
It is always wise to start with the most popular version and that is definitely Texas Holdem. That was not always the case though, as this variant only started to rise to the top during the 1990s.
Texas Holdem is a community card poker game. Every player gets two face-down cards dealt to them that are known as the “hole cards”. They are also each dealt five face-up that are called the “community cards.”
In between the dealing of the seven cards that make up your hand, there are betting rounds. Here you have to decide whether to fold, raise or call depending on the strength of your hand and your estimation of the strength of those held by the others. The overall goal is to build the best hand of five cards from your hole cards and any three community ones.
Arguably Texas Holdem is one of the easier versions of the game. That is because each player only has two hidden cards in their hand. That means it is a type that will appeal to newer players who want to get into the game in a reasonably accessible way.
Seven-Card Stud
Prior to being supplanted by Texas Holdem, Seven-Card Stud was probably the biggest form of the game. It is played by up to eight players and each gets one face-up card and two that are face down; these are known as the door card and the hole cards.
By the end of the dealing, every player will have seven cards, three of which are face down, with the other four being face up. There are no community cards in this game, but the goal is still to assemble the best hand of five from your available seven.
Seven-Card Stud is tougher than Texas Holdem, although the rules are straightforward. The difficulty lies in being able to accurately assess the strength of other players when a greater number of their cards are concealed.
That makes it a game that is best suited to people of real psychological acuity and those who want to show off their card playing skills.
Omaha Hi
The next popular version of poker is Omaha Hi. This has some elements in common with Texas Holdem, but not all of the rules are the same.
It is another community card game, but the players in an Omaha Hi game get four face-down hole cards rather than two. They also get three face-up community cards and must build the best hand from these by the final round.
Another big difference between Omaha Hi and other types of poker is that all of the players remain involved to the finale. The betting rounds work the same way as in Texas Holdem and the winner is the player who has the strongest high hand.
It is the easiest game for newer players because you have more cards available to create a good hand from. If you already enjoy Texas Holdem, Omaha Hi is the one to go for when you fancy something a little different but that does not require learning a completely new game.
Five-Card Draw
The last of the main poker games is Five-Card Draw. In some ways, the rules are the simplest all of them all. There are no hole or community cards here: every player is given five face-down cards and has to make the best hand out of them.
It is also the hardest in terms of the actual play though. You will not know any of the cards held by your opponents as they are all dealt face down.
So if you like the bluffing and deception aspects of poker, Five-Card Draw will be the most satisfying.
Each of these versions of poker has something different to offer the player, so choice is down to the individual.
