No. 1. _Sequence Flush_, or _Straight Flush_.--A sequence of five cards
of the same suit. In sequences the ace is the lowest card, and therefore
ace to five is the lowest possible sequence. Nine to king is the highest
possible sequence, and if a "flush," _i.e._ all the cards of the same
suit, is the best possible hand in Poker.
No. 2. _Fours_, or _Four of a kind_.--Four cards of equal value, and one
other card of no value. Four aces take precedence, then four kings, etc.
No. 3. _Full Hand_.--Three cards of equal value, and two [39] cards of
equal value (for instance, three queens and two aces). The relative values
of two or more "full hands" are fixed by the threes they contain, the
highest three taking precedence, without regard to the value of the other
two cards. Thus, a "full hand" consisting of three tens and two fours,
is better than a "full hand" consisting of three nines and two kings.
No. 4. _Flush_.--Five cards of one suit. The relative values of two
or more "flush" hands depend upon the value of the cards they comprise,
--the highest card taking precedence.
No. 5. _Sequence_, or _Straight_.--A sequence in value of cards,
not being all of one suit. Nine to king is the highest sequence,
and wins, of course, against any lower sequence.
No. 6. _Triplets_, or _Threes_.--Three cards of the same value,
and two other cards which are of no value. Three aces are highest,
then three kings, three queens, etc.
No. 7. _Two Pairs_.--Two sets of two cards each, of equal value (_i.e._
2 knaves and 2 fours for instance), and one card of no value. The relative
values of two or more "two pair" hands is decided by the highest pair. If
two hands have equally high pairs, the value is decided by the second pair.
No. 8. _A Pair_.--Two cards of equal value, and three of no value.
Two aces are the highest pair.
If, when the cards are exposed after a game, no player holds any of the
foregoing "hands," the player whose hand contains the card highest in value
wins the stakes. If two or more players hold cards equally high in value,
the player who holds the next highest card wins.
[40]
_THE JACK-POT_.
If all the players reject their cards, declining to play, ante's stake
remains in the pool; and the deal passes to him. Before he deals, however,
he and every other player must put into the pool a sum equal to the ante.
The next hand is called a Jack-pot, and the game cannot be opened by any
player unless he has at least a pair of knaves in his hand. Any better
hand entitles him to open the game of course, but he must have at least
two knaves. If there be no players in a Jack-pot, the stakes still remain
in the pool, every player again puts in a sum equal to the ante, and the
deal passes on as before. In this second Jack-pot, however, two queens
is the lowest hand with which the game may be opened. If there are again
no players, the pool is again replenished, and the next game cannot be
opened with anything less than two kings; then the Jack-pot comes down to
two knaves again, and continues the same series of minimum hands--2 knaves,
2 queens, 2 kings--until the game is opened by a player holding the
requisite or a better hand. A Jack-pot having been opened, the winner
takes the accumulated pool, and the succeeding game reverts to the ordinary
conditions, _i.e._ may be opened by any player in his turn and without
reference to his hand. If a player open a Jack-pot, and all the other
players pass, he must, before he can claim the pool, show, by laying
his cards face upwards on the table, that he really does possess the
minimum hand necessary to open the game with. If he have the minimum hand,
or better, he takes the pool; but if he have not, the next game is a
Jack-pot, just as if the previous game had not been opened, and the
player who opened the game improperly must pay a sum double that of
the ante into the pool as a penalty.
[41]
_MODIFICATIONS_.
Modifications of the game have been from time to time introduced,
but few have any claim to permanence or popularity. The best known in
this country are the Blaze and the Joker.
_The Blaze_ is an additional hand which consists of five court cards.
It takes precedence of two pairs, but is beaten by triplets.
The relative values of two or more blaze hands are fixed by the
highest card, a hand containing ace or aces being best.
_The Joker_ is an additional card, sometimes included in the pack, and to
which any value may be given by the player holding it. If for instance,
a player hold king, queen, knave, and ten of hearts, and the joker,
he may call the joker ace of hearts, and so claim a sequence flush.
The joker is a higher card, moreover, than the actual card whose name
it takes, _i.e._ a joker which is called the king of spades is better
than the real king of spades.
_TECHNICAL TERMS_.
For convenience of reference we annex explanations of the few technical
terms used in Poker.
_Age_.--The eldest hand, _i.e._ the player to the left of the dealer.
Generally called the ante-man or "ante."
_Ante_.--The first stake in the game. It must be made before
the cards have been dealt, by the player on the left of the dealer.
It is the only compulsory stake, and for this reason the amount is fixed,
and is generally small. It must not exceed one half the limit.
The player to the left of the dealer is identified with his stake,
and is familiarly called ante.
[42]
_Bluff_.--To stake an unwarrantable sum on a weak hand for the purpose
of inducing the other players to relinquish their stakes rather than
continue betting. To pretend to have a good hand.
_Blaze_.--A hand consisting of five court cards (see p. 41).
_Chips_.--Counters. An American term, little used by English players.
_To chip_ means to stake chips, to bet.
_Call_.--To call the preceding player is to stake an amount equal to
his stake (see p. 37).
_Discard_.--To throw away cards so as to receive others in exchange
for them (see p. 35).
_Draw_.--To receive cards from the dealer in exchange for an equal
number discarded.
_Eldest Hand_.--The player to the left of the dealer. See _Ante_.
_Foul Hand_.--A hand containing more or less than five cards.
Such hand must be relinquished, and the owner must retire from that game,
losing any sum he may have staked.
_Go Better_.--See _Raise_.
_Go in_.--To stake a sum equal to double the ante and any straddles or
raises which may have been added to it, in order to qualify for drawing
and playing for the pool.
_Hand_.--The five cards held by any player.
_Jack-pot_.--The game which follows an unopened game, _i.e._ which
follows a game in which every player had rejected his cards (see p. 40).
_Joker_.--An extra card, to which any value may be assigned by the
player holding it (see p. 41).
_Kitty_.--A portion of the stakes set aside in every game, either to defray
the expenses of the table, or as a reward for some specially good hand.
_Limit_.--The maximum amount by which stakes may be [43] increased
at one time. The limit, which has a tendency to prevent wild and
unreasonable betting, is generally fixed before play begins.
_Make Good_.--To make good is really the same as to call, but a player
may make good his previous bet, _i.e._ may make it equal to that of
the previous player, and may afterwards raise.
_No_. 1.--The player to the left of ante--the next player is No. 2,
and so on round to the dealer.
_Pass_.--To give up the game. To throw the cards, face downwards,
on the table, and cease playing until the next deal. The player who
passes loses any sum he may have staked.
_Pat_.--A term used in reference to the hand originally dealt to each
player in a game. To play pat is to bet on the hand originally dealt,
without drawing. A pat hand is a hand of high value, which has been
dealt to the player, a hand which he cannot hope to improve by drawing.
_Player_.--This is not strictly a technical term, but the tyro should
note that the persons seated at the table are not necessarily all players.
One or more may retire from the game, and on doing so forfeit all their
interest, and cease to be players in that game. There are seldom more
than two or three players remaining at the end of a game.
_Pool_.--The whole of the stakes in a game.
_Pot_.--The pool.
_Raise_.--To raise the preceding player is to stake a sum in excess of
that staked by him.
_Rise_.--See _Limit_.
_Say_.--The option, which comes to each player in turn, of playing,
and therefore betting, or of passing, _i.e._ throwing down his cards
and resigning the game.
_See_.--To see or call your opponent is to make your [44] stake equal
to his. If the stake be not then raised by succeeding players,
every hand must be exposed (see p. 37).
_Show_.--The exposure of a hand or hands at the end of the game.
_Skip Straight or Skip Sequence_.--A sequence of alternate cards--two,
four, six, eight, ten, for instance. This hand is sometimes introduced,
and takes precedence of _triplets_. It is beaten by an ordinary sequence.
_Straddle_.--To raise the ante. To double the initial stake made by
ante in every game before the cards are dealt. Straddling the ante
gives the straddler (or the last straddler, if there be more than one)
the advantage of the last say before the draw.
_Straight_.--A sequence, a series of five cards in regular order
(see p. 38).
_THE STAKES_.
As before stated, the ante and limit should be fixed before play begins,
and once fixed should not be altered in any circumstances. Players who
have lost sometimes apply to have the limit raised. This should be
refused.
The ante should be a small sum, the smaller the better. It must not exceed
half the limit, and for general play a much lower proportion is desirable.
If the limit be one shilling, the ante may be fixed at one penny.
Counters are desirable for play in all cases; they are in every
way more convenient, and avoid the constant trouble of giving change.
They should be circular in form, and all of one size, but of three values,
represented by different colours:--
1, say Red; the value of ante.
2, say White; treble the value of ante.
3, say Blue; the value of the limit. [45]
The counters should be sold to each player before the game begins,
and be bought back at the same rate after play.
_HINTS TO PLAYERS_.
A few words of advice to the tyro may not, in conclusion, be out of place.
They will not make him into a good player--practice and experience alone
can do that,--but they may prevent him paying for his experience more
than is necessary:--
Do not play with folk you do not know.
Never play with a man you cannot implicitly trust. The game needs all
your attention, and it becomes a toil instead of a pleasure if you have
to be on the watch for unfair play.
Never play for a stake you are not prepared to lose.
Fix a limit to your losses and cease play at once when they reach it.
The temptation to continue is greater when losing than when winning.
Fix a time to cease play--and keep to it.
Perfect self-control is, it is needless to say, essential to
successful play.
The man whose losses make him ill-tempered, must not play at all.
He certainly cannot win, since loss of temper involves loss of judgment.
A game like Poker, which it must be confessed is not calculated to rouse
the finer feelings of humanity, is only tolerable when played under the
severest self-imposed restraint.
Avoid playing, moreover, with an opponent who cannot keep his temper.
You will beat him, no doubt, but anger is infectious, and, unless you
are blessed with extraordinary self-command, the risk of catching it
is too great.
Neither voice, manner, nor features should give the [46] slightest clue
to your hand. One or other will do so at first inevitably, and all will
need a constant effort to control. The perfect Poker player sits like
an automaton, and his face is a mask.
Study your opponents, their features and manner, in success and failure.
To an accurate observer they will generally betray themselves.
An American authority says, "the study of my adversaries is,
of more value than the study of my cards."
Bluffing is at best a very dangerous game, seldom worth the risk, and it
involves, even for its occasional success, a very just estimate of your
opponents. Remember that you cannot bluff even a tyro out of "fours."
If you do bluff, bluff when you are winning, and have established a fear
of your hands in the minds of your opponents.
To bluff when losing is insanity.
In actual play there are few maxims which hold good for all cases.
All depends on what is termed luck, and nearly every Poker player
recognises luck, whatever that may be, as an important factor in the
game--one they often allow to override calculable chances. Some players
seem to have almost persistent good luck, and win with comparatively
poor hands. Others are just as unlucky, losing with high cards.
With a pair, if you decide to play, discard the remaining three cards.
You have then three chances of triplets.
With triplets discard one, your chance of getting fours is remote, and you
leave your opponents in doubt as to whether you are not trying for a flush.
With triplets you may generally risk _seeing_ your opponent.
Never try for the completing card of a sequence. If, for instance,
you have 3, 4, 6, 7 and king, do not play--[47] discarding the king on
the chance of receiving a 5. Throw up your hand. With a sequence you
may generally wait till your opponents think fit to see you.
With fours, discard the odd card, in order to mislead your opponents.
This hand, or anything better, so seldom comes to a player, that he is
justified in staking as much as possible upon it.
Be content to pass sometimes with the better hand. The best players do so,
since it costs less than the habit of calling.
Neither borrow nor lend a penny at the table.
_RULES OF THE GAME_.
_The Deal_.