Around the 17^{th and 18th centuries, Europe went agog over a new card game of around three to six players. This game was called “Poch” or “Pochen” in Germany and “Poque” or Le Poque in France. Both of these games were inspired by the Spanish game “Primero.” Both are believed to be the direct origins of modern day poker.Pochen and Le PoqueBoth Pochen and Le Poque, aside from being the name of this interesting card came, referred to a certain pool of chips in the card table; there were also pools for Ace, King, Queen, Jack, Ten, etc. The pochen or poque pot could be won through a betting round or rounds.}

The player to the left of the dealer in the German version and to the right of the dealer in the French version begins the betting by putting in the number of chips he wishes to wager. One by one and in order (clockwise for the Germans and counterclockwise for the French), the players either raise the bet by placing in more chips, match the bet by putting in the same number, or refrain from betting (fold). Just like modern day poker, a player can bluff his way to winning the pochen or poque pot.

The betting ends when the bets among the remaining players are equal. Then a showdown takes place where remaining players reveal their cards. The ranking of the cards in descending order is quartet, triple, and pairs; ace is the most superior character so a quartet of aces wins over a quartet of tens; among cards of the same rank and character, the pay suit wins so between queen pairs, the pair with the pay suit wins. The pay suit, by the way, is the last card dealt face up at the center of the table at the beginning of the game, and holding a card with the same suit as the pay suit and the same character as one of the paid pools in the game means an automatic win in a different stage of the game.

Poker’s Ancestors: Before Pochen and Le PoqueThe game Le Poque and Pochen may have ultimately defined the poker of today because they rounded up the concept of bluffing introduced by the Spanish game Primero, but in no way is the history of poker limited to that. The concept of playing cards, betting, the number of cards, the order of card combinations, all these elements built up for around ten centuries and among different cultures. The Chinese had “domino cards” around 968 AD. Around the 12th and 13th centuries, the Egyptians were also recorded to have been playing some sort of card game. The Persians were renowned for their elaborately designed Ganjifa cards and their game “As Nas” which had all the elements of poker except bluffing.

Poker’s TravelsThe European game was spread to other continents in the French colonization efforts. When the French took over Canada, and when French-Canadian pioneers subsequently founded New Orleans, poker’s reach increased steadily until it spanned the whole country.