"A Crazy Game of Poker" | Market Insights

Poker is a game that has gained popularity over the past 15 years, enough so that you can occasionally turn on ESPN and watch poker tournaments where the winner can walk away with over $5 million and a cool bracelet that would make Liberace take notice.  The main game played in these tournaments is No-Limit Texas Hold’Em.  In Texas Hold’Em, each player receives two cards that are dealt face down and then an additional three are dealt face up as community cards, making a five-card hand.  After the initial deal, players begin betting and there is a total of two more cards that are dealt face up for a total of 7 cards, 5 community cards and 2 held by each player.  Once all 7 cards have been dealt, the player who can create the best poker hand wins the pot.  It is a game that requires you to play your opponent as much as simply playing your cards.  Texas Hold’Em is also unique in that you can bet all your chips at any time in the game, so understanding your probability of success and acting accordingly is a major part of being a successful No-Limit player.  This also makes the amount of chips you have at any moment a very important factor in the game.  Those with larger stacks can play more aggressively without the fear of being wiped out by a bad bet.  Once you are out of money, the game is over.