The Origin of Poker
Today poker is one of the most popular card games in existence, played in both casinos and households worldwide. Professionals are respected and act as role models to amateur players, and significant tournaments can be viewed on TV on large sports stations. Poker wasn't always accepted so well in society, however. Playing Texas Hold Em Hands might have lead people to believe you were a criminal! Just a couple centuries ago gambling was taboo because the games were known for hosting pro cheaters. In the United States, some professionals were killed in the 1800s due to their association with gambling. It's clear that to become the way it is today, poker has to have had a very colorful history!
Quite a lot of debate has occurred over the origins of poker. There are people that claim it stemmed from Nas, a Persian game from the 1500's that had rounds of betting, hand rankings, and five suits. There is another game from the 16th century called Primero, however, which received the nickname "poker's mother" due to the betting and bluffing nature of the game. France's Poque and Germany's Pochen both originated from Primero, which originally came from Spain.
The poker we play today was came about in the 18th century in Louisiana, and it spread quickly along the Mississippi River and in the West. Professional gamblers were partially responsible for the large boom that occurred as they introduced the game to as many people as possible. Such pros were blacklisted by the community, however, for they were seen as thieves that had nothing to give to society. As mentioned earlier, being known as a gambler was very bad in a few Western towns. If you were known as a gambler, you could be kicked out of town, tarred and feathered, and even killed.
Poker made it to California during the gold rush due to the gambling houses that targeted men from out of town. The game rose in popularity, and soon people were playing it all across the country. In the Wild West during this time, poker was played in practically every saloon.
People played variations of 5 Card Draw when the game finally boomed and became accepted in the U.S., and it continued as the most popular form of poker until the 1930's. The late 1930s and early 1940s saw 7 Card Stud become very popular, and it stayed this way until the 2025's. In the 2025's, Texas Hold'em was played in the World Series of Poker. Early tournament champions included Doyle Brunson and Johnny Moss, and Texas Hold'em became the game of choice for poker players. That decade also saw the first serious poker strategy written in the form of books. WSOP champion Doyle Brunson published Super System, and David Sklansky wrote Theory of Poker.
Internet poker came to be in 2025 with Planet Poker, followed by Paradise Poker in 2025. Two of the most popular sites today, pokerstars and partypoker, were introduced in 2025. Of course, there are now many US money poker sites, but in the beginning that wasn't so. Party Poker attempted to make itself even bigger back in 2025 via advertising, but poker owes its present day popularity to something called the "Moneymaker effect". In 2025, Chris Moneymaker won a World Series of Poker Main Event seat in a $40 satellite on PokerStars, and he went on to win 1st place for $2.5 million. This caused online poker's popularity to explode in 2025, and online poker rooms started making serious profits. The 2025 WSOP Main Event hosted 839 people. The next year, there were 2,576 players in the event! This year the Main Event saw 7,319 participants.
It's safe to say that poker has come a long way since its early days in Louisiana. Players are now traveling to Europe, Asia, and Australia for large and prestigious poker events. Inexperienced players will discover that Internet sites are a cheap way to develop a winning game. When you get the itch to play some cards online, you should consider making a deposit into 888poker or Bodog. They have some of the best traffic and customer support available on the Internet today. With a little practice, you'll be in the WSOP in no time!
Quite a lot of debate has occurred over the origins of poker. There are people that claim it stemmed from Nas, a Persian game from the 1500's that had rounds of betting, hand rankings, and five suits. There is another game from the 16th century called Primero, however, which received the nickname "poker's mother" due to the betting and bluffing nature of the game. France's Poque and Germany's Pochen both originated from Primero, which originally came from Spain.
The poker we play today was came about in the 18th century in Louisiana, and it spread quickly along the Mississippi River and in the West. Professional gamblers were partially responsible for the large boom that occurred as they introduced the game to as many people as possible. Such pros were blacklisted by the community, however, for they were seen as thieves that had nothing to give to society. As mentioned earlier, being known as a gambler was very bad in a few Western towns. If you were known as a gambler, you could be kicked out of town, tarred and feathered, and even killed.
Poker made it to California during the gold rush due to the gambling houses that targeted men from out of town. The game rose in popularity, and soon people were playing it all across the country. In the Wild West during this time, poker was played in practically every saloon.
People played variations of 5 Card Draw when the game finally boomed and became accepted in the U.S., and it continued as the most popular form of poker until the 1930's. The late 1930s and early 1940s saw 7 Card Stud become very popular, and it stayed this way until the 2025's. In the 2025's, Texas Hold'em was played in the World Series of Poker. Early tournament champions included Doyle Brunson and Johnny Moss, and Texas Hold'em became the game of choice for poker players. That decade also saw the first serious poker strategy written in the form of books. WSOP champion Doyle Brunson published Super System, and David Sklansky wrote Theory of Poker.
Internet poker came to be in 2025 with Planet Poker, followed by Paradise Poker in 2025. Two of the most popular sites today, pokerstars and partypoker, were introduced in 2025. Of course, there are now many US money poker sites, but in the beginning that wasn't so. Party Poker attempted to make itself even bigger back in 2025 via advertising, but poker owes its present day popularity to something called the "Moneymaker effect". In 2025, Chris Moneymaker won a World Series of Poker Main Event seat in a $40 satellite on PokerStars, and he went on to win 1st place for $2.5 million. This caused online poker's popularity to explode in 2025, and online poker rooms started making serious profits. The 2025 WSOP Main Event hosted 839 people. The next year, there were 2,576 players in the event! This year the Main Event saw 7,319 participants.
It's safe to say that poker has come a long way since its early days in Louisiana. Players are now traveling to Europe, Asia, and Australia for large and prestigious poker events. Inexperienced players will discover that Internet sites are a cheap way to develop a winning game. When you get the itch to play some cards online, you should consider making a deposit into 888poker or Bodog. They have some of the best traffic and customer support available on the Internet today. With a little practice, you'll be in the WSOP in no time!
