Poker has its apocryphal origins, but there is one common factor: misdirection and bluffing. While the game is widely played today, its origins are a little fuzzy. It is likely that the first recorded version of the game appeared in Europe during the 17th century and was called poque. From there, the game evolved into the German version of primero, and French settlers brought poker to North America.
In most poker variants, each player antes and place a bet in the pot. This means that each player must place chips into the pot equal to the total contributions of those before him. A player who makes the first bet in a game is known as the dealer. If a player does not ante, he must take a cut from the dealer. The dealer will have the final right to shuffle the cards. In some variants, the dealer must offer the shuffled pack to a player who wishes to join the game.
The main forms of Poker include Draw Poker and Stud Poker. In Draw Poker, all cards are dealt face down, while in Stud Poker, some are dealt face-up as betting progresses. In both types of Poker, the objective of the game is to accumulate the most chips and win the pot. Traditionally, the winner is awarded with a cash prize, poker chips, or some other unit. In five-card poker, all players have exactly five cards, meaning that identical pairs can only win.