Poker isn't usually associated with a good, affordable game night; but the right group can help make a night's entertainment happen on a budget. All it takes is a deck of cards and something to use for betting chips. The key to affordability is low buy-ins. Generally, it's believed that there is a five dollar limit on home games, but I've had trouble finding evidence that this is actually the widespread legal fact of the matter. It's probably worth taking a look at the laws in your area, or playing with just chips, no value attributed to the chips, and no money changing hands.
Playing without money does tend to make people a little bolder with their betting in a way that some players feel ruins the atmosphere, but your mileage may vary. In my experience, people are willing to switch between rules variations from hand to hand if there's no money on it, and that makes it a more fun experience in my opinion, but, again, I'm just one guy, and you may have a different opinion on what makes a fun game night.
The first thing you need to know to play poker is the poker hands. Below, I've listed the poker hands, starting with the highest value, and moving down the list. If two players have the same type of hand on this chart, the higher one wins. So a 4, 5, 6, 7, 8 straight beats a 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 straight, and three 10's beats three 4's regardless of the value of cards not contributing to the type of hand.
Royal Flush: 10 through Ace, in order, all in the same suit
-10, J, Q, K, A all in one suit
Straight Flush: five sequential cards, in order, all in the same suit
-example: 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 all in one suit
Four of a Kind: Four cards with the same face value
-example: 5, 5, 5, 5, J
Full House: Three of a Kind and a Pair
-example: 4, 4, 4, 10, 10
-note: the three of a kind determines how good the full house is, so that 10, 10, 10, 2, 2 beats 5, 5, 5, Q, Q
Flush: Five cards of the same suit
-example: 2, 5, 6, 7, 10 all in one suit
Straight: Five cards in sequential order
-example: 4, 5, 6, 7, 8 NOT all in one suit
Three of a Kind: Three cards with the same face value
-example: 3, 3, 3, 4, 6
Two Pair: Two sets of two cards each, with each set having the same face value
-example: 10, 10, J, J, 2
One Pair: Two cards with the same face value
-example: 7, 7, 8, J, K
High Card: The highest value card in your hand
-example: 3, 5, 9, 10, K (high card is King)
If poker becomes a staple of your game nights a poster like this could be very helpful.
How to bet:
Betting follows a simple formula. Starting to the dealer's left, players go around the table betting on whether they expect to win the hand. A few actions are possible:
Check: If no bet has been made, a player may "check". This means they are remaining in the hand without betting. Once a bet has been made, no player may check.
Bet: The first player to put chips on the table is "betting". They put a certain number of chips in the middle of the table, and anyone else must pay that many chips to stay in the game.
See/Match: A player going after someone who has bet may "see" or "raise" the bet. To see the bet is to put the same number of chips on the table as the last person to bet. A player who does not at least "see" the current bet must "fold" (see below). Once all players still in the game have paid the same amount, no further betting can take place.
Raise: A player who must put chips in the middle to stay in the game may put in more than are required. This is called "raising" the bet. So, if the bet is two chips, a player can raise that to three chips. Now all players must put in three chips to stay on the table. This includes all players who put in two chips, and who must now add a third on their turn to remain in the game.
Fold: A player who no longer wants to continue meeting the bet may fold. No matter what their hand contains, they cannot win after folding. They do not regain chips already bet.
If this seems confusing, here's an example of what this looks like. We'll say our players are named Alan, Bruce, Charlotte, and Duncan.
Alan: check (there's no bet on the table, and Alan doesn't want to bet)
Bruce: I bet two (Bruce puts two of his chips in the middle of the table)
Charlotte: I'll see (Charlotte puts two of her chips in the middle of the table)
Duncan: I'll raise to four (Duncan puts four of his chips in the middle of the table)
Alan: Fold (Alan puts down his cards and is out of this game)
Bruce: I'll see four (Adds two chips to the two he's already put on the table)
Charlotte: Fold (Charlotte puts down her cards and is out of this game, she does not get back the two chips she already bet)
Bruce: Your bet is called Duncan.
(Duncan was the one who made it a four chip bet, since everyone still in the game has bet four chips, the betting cannot continue, and Duncan must reveal his cards first. If Duncan's hand beats Bruce's, Bruce can concede without having to reveal his hand. The better hand receives all ten chips that have gone into the middle of the table this hand)
Once you've got the hands and the betting down, the next thing to figure out is what variation of poker you'd like to play. Below, I've included two versions that are good for beginners, but there are probably hundreds of variations on the theme of getting the best hand on the chart above.
FIVE CARD DRAW:
This is a good place to begin if you've never played poker before. The strategy is all in hand building, which makes it an ideal way to learn the hands. Additionally, it's a great version for camping trips, because if you're just trying to win from hand to hand, you don't even need chips to play. Here's how five card draw works.
1. The dealer deals out five cards to every player.
2. Starting to the dealer's left, players choose as many cards from their hand as they like to replace, and are dealt that many new cards from the deck. Discard three, you get three. Discard none, you get none. Easy, right?
3. After one pass around the table, the players compare to see who built the best hand.
special rule 1. To add betting to five card draw, require an "ante" (pronounced "Ant"-"E"). This is a required number of chips each player has to put in in order to play, and must be played before cards are dealt. Players then bet according to the betting rules before trading their cards (with no reveal) and after trading in cards (this is where the person whose bet was called must reveal their hand)
special rule 2. You may have multiple rounds of trading in cards. To add this and the betting, simply have betting happen between every trade-in round.
TEXAS HOLD 'EM
This is one of the better known versions of poker, due in large part to its popularity in televised tournaments. This is a version of poker that absolutely requires betting, as the strategy is in when to bet and when to fold. To play Texas hold 'em, simply follow the set-up below.
1. Deal every player two cards. They may look at these without revealing them.
2. Bet (no reveal at the end of betting)
3. Deal out a three card "flop", this is shared among all players at the table and may be used in the composition of any player's hand.
4. Bet (no reveal at the end of betting)
5. Add one card to the flop (this card is called the "turn")
6. Bet (no reveal at the end of betting)
7. Add one last card to the flop (this card is called the "river")
8. Bet (reveal and give the chips on the table to the winner)
Each player combines his two cards with the five cards on the table to create the best five card hand possible.
example: if Duncan has 5, 5; and Alan has 4, J; and the river shows 4, J, J, Q, K then
Alan's best hand is a full house: 4, 4, J, J, J
Duncan's best hand is two pair: 5, 5, J, J, K
Alan would win that hand, as a full house beats two pair.
If at any point there is only one player who has not folded, that player immediately wins the chips on the table, the deck is shuffled, and a new hand is dealt.
In Conclusion
So, there you have it: the very bare bones basics of playing poker. If you don't have poker chips feel free to use anything you like in replacement: soda tabs, bottle caps, pennies, beans, or any other small, easy to count items on hand. With these rules, you can start up your own poker night as a regular occurrence or a one-time shindig. Happy gaming, all.
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