Two-deck poker
Poker traditionally has to be played with one deck. When you have more than one deck, the entire face of the game changes - more hands become possible, the probability of some hands changes drastically, and so on.
To demonstrate this, I decided to analyze poker with two decks of cards. As I calculate it, this is the correct ranking of hands:
Royal flush
Five of a kind
Straight flush
Flush with two pair
Four of a kind
Flush with one pair
Flush with no pairs (1)
Full house
Unflushed straight
Three of a kind
Two pair
One pair
High card
Note 1: You could, if you liked, join a flush with one pair and a flush with no pairs. Then, a full house would beat them. Flush with two pair is rare enough that it should stay separate, though.
All ties are handled in the same way they would be in normal poker.
- I tried to stick to the framework of basic poker hands as best I could. Because of this, five of a kind and flushes with pairs seemed like necessary additions. You could add all kinds of other spiffy hands if you wanted to (i.e. does having a suited pair make it better?), but that's beyond the point of my analysis.
- The Royal flush being top dog seemed like something players would expect, so I included it. If you preferred, you could consider the Royal to be a straight flush, with five of a kind being better. As long as the Royal flush is considered separately, however, it wins: there are 128 Royals and only 728 fives-of-a-kind.
- With five decks, the Royal flush gets dethroned as the best hand, because a flushed five of a kind (with only 52 possibilities) would be king. I'm not sure how adding more decks would affect this, however.
Edit: I forgot to account for flushed vs. unflushed pairs. Embarrassing! The new numbers are correct.
Royal flush:
4 different suits to flush in
2 different ways of getting each card in the royal flush
2
2
2
2
128 different Royal flushes
Five of a kind:
13 different ranks
8C5=56 different ways of getting five cards of that rank
728 different fives-of-a-kind
Straight flush:
4 different suits to flush in
9 different high cards (since Ace high gives royal flush)
2 different ways of getting each card in that particular straight flush
2
2
2
2
1172 different straight flushes
Flush with two pair:
4 different suits to flush in
13C2=78 combinations of ranks for pairs
11 different ranks for fifth card
1 combination for first pair in suit
1 combination for second pair in suit
2 cards possible for fifth card in given rank
6884 different flushes with two pair
Four of a kind:
13 different ranks for four-of-a-kind
12 different ranks for fifth card
8C4=70 combinations for four-of-a-kind
8 different cards of rank for fifth card
87360 different fours-of-a-kind
Flush with one pair:
4 different suits to flush in
13 different ranks for pair
12C3=220 combinations of ranks for extra cards
1 combination for pair
2 ways of getting each extra card in chosen rank and suit
2
2
91520 different flushes with one pair
Flush with no pairs:
4 different suits to flush in
13C5=1287 combinations of ranks for five cards
2 ways of getting each card in chosen rank and suit
2
2
2
2
164738 different flushes with no pairs, including straight flushes
Subtract 1172 straight flushes
163566 different flushes with no pairs or straight
Full house:
13 different ranks for three-of-a-kind
12 remaining ranks for pair
8C3=56 combinations for three-of-a-kind
8C2=28 combinations for pair
244608 different full houses
Unflushed straight:
10 different high cards for a straight
8 ways of getting each card in the straight
8
8
8
8
327680 different straights, including straight flushes
Subtract 1172 straight flushes
326508 different unflushed straights
Three of a kind:
13 different ranks for three-of-a-kind
12C2=66 combinations for ranks of extra cards
8C3=56 combinations for three-of-a-kind
8 different cards for fourth card
8 different cards for fifth card
3075072 different threes-of-a-kind
Unflushed two pair:
13C2=78 combinations of ranks for pairs
11 different ranks for fifth card
8C2=28 combinations for first pair
8C2=28 combinations for second pair
8 different cards of rank for remaining card
5381376 different hands with two pair
Subtract 6884 different flushes with two pair
5374492 different unflushed hands with two pair
Unflushed pair:
13 different ranks for pair
12C3=220 combinations of ranks for extra cards
8C2=28 combinations for pair
8 different cards for each remaining extra card
8
8
41000960 different hands with one pair
Subtract 91520 different flushes with one pair
40909440 different unflushed hands with one pair
High card:
13C5=1287 combinations of ranks with no matches
8 ways of getting each card
8
8
8
8
42172416 different hands that do not contain a pair, three-of-a-kind, four-of-a-kind, or five-of-a-kind
Subtract 327680 different straights (including straight flushes)
Subtract 163566 different flushes with no pairs (not including straight flushes)
41681170 hands that contain no other hand
Card decks for playing poker
I know a lot of my readers are amateur players, practising at home to perfect their game so they can place bigger bets and play bigger tables.
For that reason, a lot of the stuff on my website is given over to advice on strategy and tactics of play. However, there is one important aspect of poker I haven t discussed yet the cards themselves!
The deck you use to play poker won t necessarily make a huge difference to your success at the game, but I thought it might be interesting for me to tell you a bit about the different types of card deck out there, what brands are being used by pros in casinos, and which might be best for your home play.
A standard deck has 52 cards a tradition that has been around for more than 500 years. There are more than 80,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000 different outcomes to the order of shuffle of the 52 cards. The fact that number has 67 zeros means you are extremely unlikely to get the same arrangement twice.
In a casino, it s pretty standard practice to have more than one deck of cards to hand this is a good idea in any poker game because if one deck gets damaged or marked, you can switch to the back-up. A marked deck can give an advantage to any player who can spot the marks. In poker rooms, the two decks will usually be two different colours so they are easily distinguished. Most of the cards you buy online will come in sets of two decks and have these contrasting back colours.
For a game at home, I would recommend changing deck every two hours or so. That s because even an undamaged deck can become marked with fingerprints, or food and drink stains common for games at home.
However, if a card becomes visibly damaged you should change it immediately. Players can track the damaged card. If you re hosting a mini-tournament make sure if that you have a couple of packs per table.
Quite often in professional games, a player might ask for a new setup , which is them asking if the decks can be changed. Usually this is because they feel they have had a bad run with the deck of cards currently in use, and want to change their luck with a new pack. I am quite superstitious so I understand but it can slow the game down quite a bit if you are changing deck every other hand!
When you are thinking about which cards to buy it can be quite overwhelming there are so many brands and types of deck that you can buy online.
The two basic types of playing cards are 100% plastic cards and paper cards which have then been coated in plastic.
Casinos will always use the 100% plastic ones and these are the type I prefer to play with. However, coated cards are the more common they are the sort you will find at a supermarket. However, they are not durable enough for sustained play, and get marked or scuffed much more easily than plastic ones. So if you are going to play quite a bit of poker with your friends, I would go for the more expensive but better value 100% plastic cards.
Professionals use them. Casino dealers like them because they deal nicely and slide smoothly across the table. At a pro-table a dealer will usually use a machine to shuffle the deck, but at home these plastic cards shuffle nicely in your hands and carry a good weight.
It s not too hard to find plastic cards online, and you can even find the same brands as they use in professional tournaments which can be useful practice if you are working your way up to your first competition! The brands used most often in casinos are Kem, Copag, Gemaco and Modiano. Kem are probably the most popular because they are used on the World Series of Poker and the World Poker Tour.
One thing a lot of people ask is whether there are different rules for a standard size or design of cards in different countries, but in my experience the international standard is 63.5mm X 88.9mm with regular denomination, suit, and court cards.
But, as I said before the cards should be your tool to win. It s useful to have a couple of good decks, but if you are going to invest in something to improve your game, it should be your time.
Basics of Poker
Today, Poker is truly an international game, enjoyed in virtually every country where card games are played.
How to play: Basics of Poker
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- Game Type: Casino
- Age: 18+
- Players: 2, 3, 4, 5+
- Tag: PochenPoqueStud
As early as the sixteenth century, Germans played a bluffing game called "Pochen." It later developed into a French version, called "Poque," which was eventually brought over to New Orleans and played on the riverboats that plied the Mississippi.
In the 1830s, the game was refined further and became known as Poker. During the Civil War, the key rule about drawing cards to improve one's hand was added. A variation - Stud Poker - appeared at about the same time. There are hundreds of versions of Poker, and the game is played not only in private homes, but also in countless Poker rooms at famous casinos. Poker can be played socially for pennies or matchsticks, or professionally for thousands of dollars.
There is plenty of luck in Poker, but the game requires incredibly great skill as well, and each player is the master of his own fate.
The Pack
The standard 52-card pack, sometimes with the addition of one or two jokers, is used. Poker is a one-pack game, but today, in virtually all games played in clubs and among the best players, two packs of contrasting colors are utilized in order to speed up the game. While one pack is being dealt, the other is being shuffled and prepared for the next deal. The procedure for two packs is as follows: While the deal is in progress, the previous dealer assembles all the cards from the pack he dealt, shuffles them, and places them to the left. When it is time for the next deal, the shuffled deck is passed to the next dealer. In many games in which two packs are used, the dealer's left-hand opponent, instead of the right-hand opponent, cuts the pack.
In clubs, it is customary to change cards often and to permit any player to call for new cards whenever they wish. When new cards are introduced, both packs are replaced, and the seal and cellophane wrapping on the new decks should be broken in full view of all the players.
Card Values/Scoring
While Poker is played in innumerable forms, a player who understands the values of the Poker hands and the principles of betting can play without difficulty in any type of Poker game. Except in a few versions of the game, a Poker hand consists of five cards. The various combinations of Poker hands rank from five of a kind (the highest) to no pair or nothing (the lowest):
Five of a Kind This is the highest possible hand and can occur only in games where at least one card is wild, such as a joker, the two one-eyed jacks, or the four deuces. Examples of five of a kind would be four 10s and a wild card or two queens and three wild cards.
Straight Flush This is the highest possible hand when only the standard pack is used, and there are no wild cards. A straight flush consists of five cards of the same suit in sequence, such as 10, 9, 8, 7, 6 of hearts. The highest-ranking straight flush is the A, K, Q, J, and 10 of one suit, and this combination has a special name: a royal flush or a royal straight flush. The odds on being dealt this hand are 1 in almost 650,000.
Four of a Kind This is the next highest hand, and it ranks just below a straight flush. An example is four aces or four 3s. It does not matter what the fifth, unmatched card is.
Full House This colorful hand is made up of three cards of one rank and two cards of another rank, such as three 8s and two 4s, or three aces and two 6s.
Flush Five cards, all of the same suit, but not all in sequence, is a flush. An example is Q, 10, 7, 6, and 2 of clubs.
Straight Five cards in sequence, but not all of the same suit is a straight. An example is 9 , 8 , 7 , 6 , 5 .
Three of a Kind This combination contains three cards of the same rank, and the other two cards each of a different rank, such as three jacks, a seven, and a four.
Two Pairs This hand contains a pair of one rank and another pair of a different rank, plus any fifth card of a different rank, such as Q, Q, 7, 7, 4.
One Pair This frequent combination contains just one pair with the other three cards being of different rank. An example is 10, 10, K, 4, 3.
No Pair This very common hand contains "nothing." None of the five cards pair up, nor are all five cards of the same suit or consecutive in rank. When more than one player has no pair, the hands are rated by the highest card each hand contains, so that an ace-high hand beats a king-high hand, and so on.
Two hands that are identical, card for card, are tied since the suits have no relative rank in Poker. In such a case, the tied players split the pot. Note that if two hands contain the same high pair, then the ranking of the next card in the hands determines which one wins. For example: 9, 9, 7, 4, 2 beats 9, 9, 5, 3, 2. Likewise, two hands that have identical pairs would be decided by the fifth card. For example: Q, Q, 6, 6, J beats Q, Q, 6, 6, 10.
Betting
Betting is the key to Poker, for the game, in essence, is a game of chip management.
In the course of each Poker deal, there will be one or more betting intervals in which the players have an opportunity to bet on their hands. Minimizing losses with poor hands and maximizing winnings with good hands is the underlying skill that Poker requires.
Before the cards are even dealt, the rules of the Poker game being played may require that each player put an initial contribution, called an "ante," of one or more chips into the pot, to start it off.
Each betting interval, or round, begins when a player, in turn, makes a bet of one or more chips. Each player to the left, in turn, must either "call" that bet by putting into the pot the same number of chips; or "raise," which means that the player puts in more than enough chips to call; or "drop" ("fold"), which means that the player puts no chips in the pot, discards their hand, and is out of the betting until the next deal.
When a player drops, they lose any chips that have put into that pot. Unless a player is willing to put into the pot at least as many chips as any preceding player, they must drop out.
A betting interval ends when the bets have been equalized - that is, when each player has either put in exactly as many chips as their predecessors or has dropped. There are usually two or more betting intervals for each Poker deal. After the final interval there is a "showdown," which means that each player who remains shows their hand face up on the table. The best Poker hand then takes the pot.
If a player makes a bet or a raise that no other player calls, they win the pot without showing their hand. Thus, in Poker, there is a bluffing element, and the best combination of cards does not always win the pot! Bluffing is one of the key reasons why Poker is so popular.
If a player wishes to remain in the game without betting, they "check." This means, in effect, that the player is making a "bet of nothing." A player may check provided no one before them in that betting interval has made a bet. If another player has bet, they cannot check but must at least call the bet or drop. A player who checks may raise a bet that has been raised by another player. This is called "sandbagging," which is allowed, unless it has been decided beforehand that this practice is forbidden. If all players check during a round of play, the betting interval is over, and all the players still in the pot remain in the game.
In each betting round, one player is designated as the first bettor, according to the rules of the game. The turn to bet always moves to the left, from player to player, and no one may check, bet, or even drop, except when it is their turn.
Knowing When to Bet
The ranking of Poker hands is based on mathematics. The less likely a player is to get a certain hand, the higher it ranks and the more likely it is to win the pot. For example, a player should not expect to be dealt a straight flush more than once in 65,000 hands, but they can expect to be dealt two pair about once in every 21 hands.
Unless a player is planning to bluff, they should not make a bet without holding a hand that they think may be the best. No Poker player can bet intelligently unless they know what constitutes a good hand, a fair hand, and a bad hand. A table of the various Poker hands and the number of combinations of each in a pack of cards is provided.
The Kitty
By unanimous or majority agreement, the players may establish a special fund called a "kitty." Usually the kitty is built up by "cutting" (taking) one low-denomination chip from each pot in which there is more than one raise. The kitty belongs to all the players equally, and it is used to pay for new decks of cards or for food and drinks. Any chips left in the kitty when the game ends are divided equally among the players who are still in the game. Unlike the rule in some other games, such as Pinochle, when a player leaves a Poker game before it ends, they are not entitled to take their share of chips that comprised part of the kitty.
Chips
Poker is almost always played with poker chips. For a game with seven or more players, there should be a supply of at least 200 chips. Usually, the white chip (or the lightest-colored chip) is the unit, or lowest-valued chip, worth whatever the minimum ante or bet is; a red chip (or some other colored chip) is worth five whites, and a blue chip (or some other dark-colored chip) is worth 10 or 20 or 25 whites or two, four or five reds. At the start of the game, each player "buys in" by purchasing a certain number of chips. All of the players usually buy in for the same amount.
Banker
One player should be designated as the banker, who keeps the stock of chips and records how many have been issued to each player or how much cash the player has paid for their chips. Players should make no private transactions or exchanges among themselves; a player with surplus chips may return them to the banker and receive credit or cash for them, while a player who wants more chips should obtain them only from the banker.
Betting Limits
There are different ways of fixing a betting limit. Some limit is necessary; otherwise a player with a lot more money would have, or would be perceived to have, an unfair advantage. Once fixed, the limit should be unalterable throughout the game unless the players unanimously agree to change the stakes. Some popular limit systems follow:
Fixed limit
No one may bet or raise by more than a stipulated number of chips, for example, two, or five, or 10. Usually this limit varies with the stage of the game: In Draw Poker, if the limit is five before the draw, it might be ten after the draw. In Stud Poker, if the limit is five in the first four betting intervals, it is 10 in the final betting interval (and often ten whenever a player has a pair or better showing).
Pot limit
Any bet or raise is limited to the number of chips in the pot at that time. This means that a player who raises may count as part of the pot the number of chips required for the player to call. If there are six chips in the pot, and a bet of four is
Table stakes
The limit for each player is the number of chips the player has in front of them. If the player has only 10 chips, they may bet no more than 10 and he may call any other player's bet to that extent. In table stakes, no player may withdraw chips from the table, or return chips to the banker, until they leave the game. A player may add to their stack, but only between the deal just completed and the beginning of the next deal.
Whangdoodles, or Roodles
In a fixed-limit game, it is often agreed that following any very good hand - a full house or better, for example - there will be one deal by each player of Jackpots, in which everyone antes double, and the betting limit is doubled for these deals as well.
Poverty Poker
A maximum limit is put on the number of chips any player may lose. Each takes out one stack at the start; if they lose that stack, the banker issues the player another, without charging for it, and in many cases, the player can get still a third stack free before dropping out of the game. (Some limit should be placed on the number of free stacks so that a player will have the incentive to play carefully.)
No limit
In these sessions, the "sky's the limit," but such games are rarely played today.
Limits on Raises
In almost all games played today, there is a limit on the number of raises at each betting interval, and this limit is invariably three raises.
Draw Stud Poker
The players should first decide what form of Poker they will play
The main forms of Poker are Draw Poker and Stud Poker. In Draw Poker, all the cards are dealt face down to the players. In Stud Poker, some of the cards are dealt face up as the betting progresses, so that all of the other players get to see a part of each player's hands.
Unless the host, or the rule of a club, has already established the game, the players should first decide what form of Poker they will play. Two factors should influence their decision: the number of players, and whether the group has only experienced players or has some inexperienced players. The following selections are recommended:
2, 3 or 4 players: Stud Poker in any form. Usually, with so few players, only the very experienced play Draw Poker and they will often use a stripped deck, which is a pack with cards removed, such as all the deuces (twos) and treys (threes).
5 8 players: Any form of Poker, either Draw or Stud.
More than 10 players: One of the games in which fewer than five cards are dealt, such as Three-Card Monte or Spit-in-the-Ocean. All of the Poker variations are described later in this chapter. Another alternative with so many players is to simply form two tables and organize two separate games.
Dealer's Choice
When the Poker session is Dealer's Choice, each dealer has the privilege of naming the form of Poker to be played and to designate the ante, wild cards (if any), and the maximum limit of chips that can be wagered during each round. However, the dealer may not require one player to ante more than another. If a game such as Jackpots is selected and no one opens the betting, the same dealer deals again and everyone antes again.
Wild Cards
While most Poker purists choose to play with no wild cards, in many games, especially Dealer's Choice, various cards may be designated as wild. A wild card is specified by the holder to be a card of any rank or suit, such as a fifth queen, or the card needed to combine with the other four in a player's hand to form a straight or a flush. Wild cards in a Poker game add variety, and of course, they greatly increase the chances of getting a rare combination such as a full house or a straight flush. The usual choices for wild cards are as follows:
The Joker
Note that most packs of cards include two jokers for use in such games as Canasta. Poker players are increasingly adding one or both jokers as wild cards.
The Bug
This is the joker, but its wildness is limited: It counts as an ace; or as a card of any suit for making a flush; or as a card of any rank and suit for making a straight or straight flush.
Deuces
"Deuces Wild" is a popular form of Draw Poker. Every two is wild. Sometimes the joker is included as a fifth wild card. Note that the number of wild cards in a hand does not diminish it in anyway; thus, with deuces wild, five of a kind comprised of 10, 10, 2, 2, 2 (five 10s) beats 8, 8, 8, 8, 2 (five 8s).
One-eyed cards
The king of diamonds and the jacks of spades and hearts show only one eye, whereas the other face cards all have two eyes. One-eyed jacks are sometimes designated as wild cards, but the king of diamonds is rarely selected to be wild.
Low hole card
In Stud Poker, each player's lowest "hole" card (that is, the lowest card that is dealt face down and not seen by the other players) is wild. In Draw Poker, the wild card would be the lowest card in a player's hand. When such a card is designated, it means that every card of that rank in that player's hand is wild, but the fact that a certain card is wild in one player's hand does not make that same rank of card wild in other players' hands.
Laws and Ethics
In every game, a written code of Poker laws should be used as the final arbiter for settling all questions. No Poker laws are universally followed - there are many local customs and preferences - but the Poker laws on this site embrace the latest customs of the most expert games and are recommended for adoption. It is a tradition of Poker that any club or group of players may make special rules, called "house rules," to suit their personal preferences. Of course, any such house rules should be written down.
Time Limit
Before play begins, the players should set a time limit for when the game ends and stick to it. Violation of this principle could eventually turn pleasant sessions into unpleasant ones. Often when the time for quitting is approaching, the host or one of the players will say "three more deals" or "through Zane's deal," so that players will know how many deals are left and can gauge their strategies accordingly.
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