10 Questions with Team PokerStars Pro Ville Wahlbeck

Ville Wahlbeck is fifth on Finland’s all-time live tournament money list, and unquestionably one of the greatest mixed-game players the country has ever produced.
He’s cashed at the WSOP 12 times, including winning the $10,000 8-Game Championship in 2009.
He also once told us he was quitting the pro poker grind.
As of late Wahlbeck has been focusing on cash games but he told us he’s itching to get back on the live tournament scene.
We spoke to him about prop bets, tournament plans and the changing landscape of online poker in Finland in our latest Q&A.
PokerListings.com: What’s the biggest prop bet you’ve ever made and did you win it?
Ville Wahlbeck: Overall I think I am a small winner in my golf bets. And other prop bets also cheat poker.
I did win a good one two years ago when I bet quite big that I would make more than 33 out of 100 three-point throws (European lines). I got a nice extra from everything over 33.

"It's always nice to see Juha's face after he loses a bet."

I was far from certain if I'd make it since it had been years since I had touched a basketball and I never actually played the game. I only liked to shoot some baskets every now and then.
But it wasn't even close because I scored 46. The joy of winning was increased by the fact I collected from Juha Helppi, and it's always nice to see Juha's face after he loses a bet.
I also have a funny prop bet in football, where Theo Jorgensen and Johnny Lodden both have to make at least 6 out of 10 penalties against a national level goalie. I'd say Theo has a small chance and Johnny is close to drawing dead, so I'm expecting to collect that one too.
Who are a few young Finnish up-and-comers, who we might not know but who you think will be big poker stars?
There are many young Finnish players trying to work their way up. I'm a bit hesitant to name any because I don't really know if they would like it, so I leave it in secret.
Why does Finland keep producing some of the world’s best high-stakes players, even though it’s a relatively small player pool?
I agree that there are loads of Finnish players in high-stakes games at the moment. But I would say the main reason for this is that PLO has taken over NL as the usual high-stakes game.
And in Finland PLO has a long tradition, and obviously it is much easier to develop your game when you’re playing against good opponents.
Is there something different about the Finnish playing style compared to other Nordic countries?
Not much. There are some spots where I occasionally notice differences, but it is nothing major. I would say the difference is in experience.
Most of the Finns that are playing in high-stakes PLO games these days play hundreds of thousands of hands each year. They don’t have many leaks in their game. They have good game selection and they don't tilt.

"I think by far the best value is to play less known poker variations with a slightly smaller buy-ins."

Some might play only heads-up or three-handed and some focus on six-handed games. Some like to play with full buy-in and some prefer to shortstack. Everyone seems to be playing according to their strengths.
Have the fields changed much in big buy-in tournaments in games like HORSE and 2-7 since 2009 when you had so much success at WSOP?
I'd certainly like to play more big buy-in tournaments in HORSE or 8GAME, but unfortunately it is not possible. They play them only during WSOP. So I can't really say much about how the fields are since I can only play them once a year.
What games still offer good players the biggest edge in bigger live tournaments like the WSOP?
This is a good question. For a good all-around player in WSOP I think by far the best value is to play less known poker variations with a slightly smaller buy-ins like $1,000-$2,000 dollars, like 10-Game tournament, Razz or a Omaha Hi/Lo tourney.
They have a relatively big number of participants, but more than half the field is clueless and a solid player has a great chance to make a deep run.
The same goes with smaller NL tourneys in general. It is much easier to make a score in a $1,000 dollar EPT side event than in the main event.
What are you focusing on in your poker game these days?
Mostly cash games, but I'd like to start playing marked poker a bit more tournaments.
What are the biggest goals you still want to accomplish in poker?
Another bracelet or a win in an EPT main event would do fine :)
What kind of image does poker have in mainstream Finnish culture? What do people in Finland say when you tell them you’re a poker pro?
Being a poker pro is more "normal" than what it used to few be years ago. But I still think poker pros’ images to the mainstream are more glorified than it actually is. People don't understand how much practice and dedication playing poker professionally really takes.
What are your thoughts about PokerStars.eu and what impact it will have for Finland?
It is simply great. I expect more Finnish players to move their action to PokerStars now that it is working under EU license.

Live Blog: Ivey Goes for 9th WSOP Bracelet

Phil Ivey is at his third final table of the 2012 WSOP and we're shipping full coverage of it in our live updates of Event 24, $5,000 Omaha Hi-Lo Eight or Better.
Click here to follow Ivey's latest run at his 9th WSOP bracelet.
***Update*** Sunday June 10: Phil Ivey finished second, losing to now two-time bracelet winner Andy Frankenberger, in Event 17, the $10k Pot-Limit Hold'em Championship, .
Click here to read step-by-step coverave of Phil Ivey's latest bracelet run.

Friday, June 8: Phil Ivey Eliminated 7^th in $5k Stud Hi-Lo ($34,595)

The unthinkable has happened. Phil Ivey has been eliminated. 

Even when Ivey was down to less than one big bet we still had high hopes. After all, he’s Phil Ivey.
But it wasn’t to be. Despite doubling up just a few hands ago Ivey was in need of a serious infusion of chips. He went after those chips in a hand against Todd Brunson but couldn’t put the cards together to earn himself even half the pot.
Ivey’s final hand began with Adam Friedman bringing it in with the 2♦ and Ivey completing with the A♥. Brunson and John Monnette also came along, with the 3♠ and Q♣, respectively.
Brunson bet on fourth street and only Ivey called. Ivey check-raised all-in on fifth street and Brunson called.
Ivey was ahead for the high side with a pair of sevens but Brunson had a wheel draw and an ace which he could pair.
Brunson nailed his straight on seventh street to scoop the pot and send Phil Ivey home in seventh place.
Ivey narrowly misses his ninth bracelet, but records his 23^rd WSOP final table.
And with that we are done live blogging Ivey’s quest for his ninth bracelet. Hopefully he will make another final table so we can pick this up again marked cards.

Ivey Rallies with Emergency Double

Phil Ivey is staging a comeback. He was down to less than one big bet but now, after chopping an all-in and then doubling up, he’s back up to 68k (almost three big bets!)
The first hand saw Ivey all-in on third street with (A♠ J♣)2♦ against (9♦ 8♥)3♦. By seventh street Ivey had paired his ace, good enough for the high, while Brunson had made an eight-low to take the other half.
Just a few hands later Ivey was all-in on fourth street with trip nines against Ziyard’s trip sixes. Neither player could pull out a qualifying low and Ivey pulled the 68,000 back to his corner of the table.

Bonus Ivey Photo Gallery

Ivey in Critical Condition

Phil Ivey is on life support at this final table. The eight-time bracelet winner is down to his last few bets and already found himself all-in once, chopping to stay alive.
He lost a moderately-sized pot to Adam Friedman before shipping the majority of his stack to Zinman Ziyard.
The hand started with Sven Artzen bringing it in with the 2♦ and Ivey completing with the 5♠. Ziyard raised with the A♦ and only Ivey called.
Ivey check-called one bet on fourth street, got a free card on fifth and check-called again on sixth.
Ziyard: (X-X) A♦ 7♦ 6♠ J♥
Ivey: (X-X) 5♠ 5♦ 2♦ K♦
Both players checked seventh street and Ziyard showed A♥ Q♦ 5♣ and Ivey threw his cards to the muck.
Ivey was down to just 35,000 after that hand.
Not long after, Ivey was all-in against Nikolai Yakovenko. The hand started with Todd Brunson bringing it in and Yakovenko raising. Ivey called all-in and Brunson folded.
Ivey showed A♣ J♥ against Yakovenko’s A♦ 2♥.
By the time all the cards were dealt Ivey had made a pair of eights to take the high while Yakovenko’s six-low was good for the other half.
Ivey is still very much in danger.

Ivey Makes Final Table

We’re down to the final eight players in this event and Phil Ivey is sixth in chips with 230,000.
Here are the final table counts as eight-handed play gets going:

• Adam Friedman – 707,000
• John Monnette – 686,000
• Sven Arntzen – 549,000
• Nikolai Yakovenko – 343,000
• Todd Brunson – 259,000
• Phil Ivey – 230,000
• Bryn Kenney – 207,000
• Zimnan Ziyard – 203,000

On the way to the final table Ivey got in a few big pots, mainly against recent bracelet winner John Monnette.
The first pot saw Monnette get bets in on every street, scooping the pot with an eight-high straight and an 8-7 low.
Not long after, however, Ivey managed to take a few chips back from Monnette.
Ivey check-called bets on every street and bet out on seventh with(X-X) 4♥ A♠ 4♠ T♣ against Monette’s (X-X) K♣ 8♥ A♦ 9♣.
Monnette folded to Ivey’s final bet and Ivey chipped back up to 260k.

Ivey Battles Bari, Outlasts Hellmuth

Phil Ivey started Day 3 of this event sixth in chips with 234,000, just a few thousand chips in front of 11-time WSOP bracelet winner Phil Hellmuth.
Ivey is a mixed-game powerhouse at the WSOP. He's got eight bracelets and every one of them was won in a non-Hold'em event.
In 2002 Ivey won three bracelets and two of them were in Stud events, including the $5k Stud Hi-Lo event he's playing in today.
Today Ivey's first real taste of action was against 2011 bracelet winner Allen Bari.
Bari was short and doubled through Ivey to get his day off on the right foot. Bari then lost a big pot, which was a blessing for Ivey since Bari doubled through him again just a few hands later.
The second double-up started with Ivey bringing it in with the 2♦ and Bari completing with the 8♦. A third player called and Bari bet fourth street when he received the 4♦. Only Ivey called, now showing 2♦ 6♠.
Bari check-raised all-in on fifth street and Ivey called infrared ink. They turned over their hole cards.
Bari: (7♦ 3♥) 8♦ 4♦ Q♦
Ivey: (4♥ 2♣) 2♦ 6♠ 5♦
Bari managed to spike his flush on seventh street and with neither player making a qualifying low Bari got the double.
While Ivey's day got off to a rough start he did manage to outlast Phil Hellmuth.
The Poker Brat had been feuding with Adam Friedman since this event began and the two didn't pull any punches this afternoon.
Hellmuth was crippled in a previous hand against Alexander Krapivinsky but it was Friedman that took the last of the Brat's chips
Friedman and Hellmuth played a big pot to seventh street with Friedman making  a flush for the high and a six-low to scoop the entire pot.
Shortly after, Hellmuth was all-in with a pair of nines on third-street against Friedman’s A♠ T♠ 2♠. Friedman paired his ace to scoop and eliminate Hellmuth.

What's Luck Got to Do With It?

Luck plays a significant role in poker. Luck plays an insignificant role in poker.
These two statements are not contradictory, largely because we haven't specified the time frame. If we're talking about relatively short, limited time frames, then luck is a huge element.
The general consensus among top pros and seasoned amateurs is that it accounts for 80 to 85% of their outcomes in single sessions lasting less than five or six hours.
Most of these same folks also feel that if you look at a time frame like a week of full-time play (about 35 to 45 hours) it likely is still accounting for some 30 or 40% of their results.
If you extend the temporal window out, to a year's full-time play (roughly 2000 hours), they estimate that it accounts for somewhere in the neighborhood of 5% of their ultimate bottom line -- a number that many of you may find surprisingly high.
However, many, and this includes top professionals, don't seem to grasp what it all means.
Let's take one of poker's favorite 'guys you love to hate,' Phil Hellmuth. Phil is on record for one of his classic one-liners delivered as he stomped out of the room, "If it weren't for luck, I'd win every tournament."
You can find him screaming this on YouTube at some poor bastard who had the temerity to suck out on him.
I think Phil actually believes this since his ego is roughly the size of Kansas. But, fascinatingly, if it were true that except for luck he would win 'em all, it would be the end of Phil's life as a poker professional.
If luck were not playing the significant role that it is, the best players would be the first casualties simply because Phil's prognostications would come true. He would win every tournament and the game would die.
Who would be willing to sit down and play with someone when you know you're going to lose to him?
Sure, some with egos the size of Montana might but, frankly, no sensible person is going to want to pony up the entry fee when they know they're playing for second place money, at best.
The truth is that poker has just the right amount of luck. It is one of the reasons why it has become so staggeringly popular.
If luck played a lesser role the weak players would go broke too quickly; their winning sessions would become too infrequent and too far apart. They would lose interest and stop playing. If there were no 'fish,' no 'contributors' the game would wither away.
If luck played a larger role it would diminish the likelihood of a skilled player becoming a long-term winner. It would lessen the motivation to become good at the game and fewer solid marked cards lenses players would be able to win consistently enough to keep them coming back.
On the flip side, if the impact of luck were larger, variance would go up and it would become more difficult for the skilled player to discover that he or she actually was a skilled player.
I know this may seem odd but it isn't. When I started playing seriously I found myself winning with some regularity. I was having dinner with Mason Malmuth and asked him if he thought I was a winning player.
He asked how many hours I'd put in. I'd been keeping records for about 150 hours at that point.
Mason laughed (yes, he does laugh from time to time) and said, "Put in another 500 to 800 hours and then maybe, just maybe, we can begin to feel a little confident about the answer."
He was right, and if the luck factor were increased significantly, that 500 to 800 hour window would have to be increased significantly.
Luck, in fact, is one of the reasons why Hold 'em has become the game of choice around the world. It has just the right balance between skill and the random draw of a card. Luck is also why 5-stud isn't played any more.
The luck element is far less and the skilled players so thoroughly dominate the lesser that they quit playing.
Luck is also the reason why duplicate poker is unlikely to become popular. Duplicate poker is based on the protocol used in tournament bridge; the cards are dealt and "set" in advance and everybody plays the same hands.
When everyone has to play the same hands the luck element is dramatically reduced. Reduce it too much and the game will die.
It is also the reason why heads-up cash games are often played for the highest of high stakes and by the very best players. Here the luck element is lessened. Play is focused and intense cheat poker.
More hands are played which smooths out the impact of chance and skill tends to dominate. As we've seen, when this happens weak players quickly abandon the game because they get cleaned out too quickly. So the games tend to be played by those whose skill levels are close to each other.
Luck also plays important psychological roles. It provides a ready-made excuse. The weaker players can blame 'bad luck' for their ill fortune but cling to the myth of skill when they win.
Without such easy rationalizations the fish would have to admit that they were, indeed, fish. A diminished role of chance would force self-insight much more quickly and unambiguously than it currently does.
Luck is also a go-between of empowerment and self-status. Those who don't believe that they really are the masters of their own fates tend to believe in luck and assign causal roles to the random turn of a card. Those with a higher sense of self see luck as what it is: 'random error' in a multifactor world.
They are apt to assign causal roles to their decision making, take personal responsibility for the outcomes and do not invest luck with any long-term causal role.
So, what's the real role of luck in poker?
a. None
b. Everything
c. Both
Answer: 'c' of course, which is very cool.

Day 1a Ends with Dario “Trazaman” Amato on Top

Day 1a of the 2013 Battle of Malta is over and it’s bigger than we could possibly have imagined.
There were a total of 417 entries, smashing the €200,000 guarantee in the first two hours of play.
Last year’s 349-player Battle of Malta will easily be doubled considering we still have Day 1b to play tomorrow.
A collection of noted poker marked cards players took part in the action today including Kara Scott, Andreas Hoivold, Pierre Neuville, Christian “Kippe” Bergstrom, Lauri Pesonen and Giovanni Rizzo.
Fate wasn’t exactly kind to the notable players with Scott, Pesonen and Rizzo all going out on reasonably bad beats.
A total of 110 players survived Day 1a.
Andreas Hoivold survived with 46,600 chips as did adult actress Puma Swede who finished with 39,800 in a surprising strong performance.
The chip lead, however, went to Italian online grinder Dario “Trazaman” Amato, who finished with an impressive 247,400.
Day 1b of the 2013 Battle of Malta begins at 14:00 p.m. local time tomorrow. Day 1b is expected to be even bigger so this could well become the richest tournament ever held in Malta.
You can expect complete chip counts later tonight but here’s a rough look at the top five chip counts at the end of play:

• 1. Dario Amato – 247,400
• 2. Petrazzelli Federico – 207,800
• 3. Ove Senberg – 194,000
• 4. Conor Shelly – 186,100
• 5. Evan Frashaug – 177,600

Five Pro-Endorsed Strategy Tips That Are Terrible

Poker is a unique game and the best players use a combination of math, skill and observation to beat it.
It takes a brilliant mind to understand and win at poker marked cards- and an even more brilliant one to invent the strategy basics that are now commonplace.
These geniuses do their best to solve the game as it’s played at the time.
But the game of poker has evolved a lot over the last decade, and will continue to. What might have worked 10 years ago canseem silly now. And winning strategies today might not be effective at all 10 years from now.
Below are a few of those strategies - endorsed by some of the most famous names in the game, no less - that may have worked in the past but have passed their prime.

1. Reraise with Small Pairs Before the Flop in Limit Hold’em

The Author: Phil Hellmuth
The Book: Play Poker Like the Pros
The Advice: When the pot is raised to you in Limit Hold’em and you hold a small pair, you’re better to make it three-bets rather than call the original raise. You’re then meant to “represent whatever hits the flop.”
Why it’s bad: The problem with this advice is that he’s writing a book for beginners, and beginners are going to play infrared marked cards in small-stakes games. People in small stakes games play tons of hands.
You’re not going to be able to represent anything on the flop because people are just playing their hands. They don’t care that you made it three-bets to go. They care that they flopped top pair, and they aren’t going to fold.
You end up just putting more bets into the pot without ever being able to get them back unless you flop a set.
The better approach: In Limit Hold’em, especially in low-stakes Limit Hold’em, you should just call because you’re more likely to get callers behind you. Play the hand to flop a set and if you don’t, fold.

2. The Fourth Raise Means Aces

The Author: Phil Gordon
The Book: Little Green Book
The Advice: "The fourth raise is always aces."
Why it’s bad: It’s not so much “bad” as it is dated and wrong.
The top players today are four-betting so much more than aces it’s incredible.
Take a look at Shaun Deeb’s bustout hand from the 2011 Main Event, for just one example.
No longer is even the 5th or 6th bet guaranteed to be aces.
The better approach: Treat all players individually.
For some players the fourth bet might always mean aces, but other players might still have any two.

3. If You’re Playing Small Connected Cards, They Don’t Need to be Suited

The Author: TJ Cloutier
The Book: Championship No-Limit and Pot-Limit Hold’em
The Advice: Small connectors don’t need to be suited because in multi-way pots there’s a high likelihood someone has higher cards of your suit.
Cloutier says that the suit causes more harm than good when you make a flush and lose to a bigger flush.
Why it’s bad: There’s literally no way that unsuited cards would ever be better than suited cards.
The notion that the suit does more harm than good is ridiculous.
Yes, occasionally you’re going to make a flush and it’s going to be second best. But also occasionally you’re going to be drawing to a straight and backdoor the flush.
The better approach: Being suited gives you more ways to win. It’s as simple as that.

4. Raise for Information

The Author: David Sklansky
The Book: Theory of Poker
The Advice: You sometimes want to raise to find out where you’re at in a hand.
Why it’s bad: It’s bad because the information you get is often not very helpful.
E.g. You raise and your opponent folds. This is bad. Chances are he folded a bluff and you probably would have preferred he kept trying to bluff you.
E.g. You raise and he calls. How much does that really tell you?
He could have a draw, he could have a hand he's slow playing, he could have you beat, he could not have you beat.
If he re-raises, he could have you beat. He could also be playing a big draw fast or a worse hand fast.
The better approach: There are ways to define a hand, but generally raising isn’t a very good one.
Pay attention to your opponents and their previous play will give you a better idea as to what they have.
Actively try and put your opponent on a range and with every new bit of information you’ll get closer to his hand.

5. Vary Your Opening Amount

The Author: Dan Harrington
The Book: Harrington On Hold’em 1
The Advice: In a tournament you should vary your opening size from 2x to 4x randomly to make it difficult for your opponents to not get a read on you.
Why it’s bad: The only reason you need to vary your bet sizing randomly is if you’re regularly raising different amounts.
If you’re raising the exact same size every single time it’s not like your opponents will pick up any tells on you because your bet is always the same.
The better approach: If you’re playing in a tournament there’s really no reason to raise 4x the big blind -- ever.
Keep your standard 2.25x to 2.5x raise and stick with it. It risks less chips and is just as effective.
Raising to 4x just needlessly risks chips.

Chino joins the Poker Pack

Last week David "Chino" Rheem inked a deal that had him joining the ranks of Steve Sung, J.C. Tran, Nam Le and Quin Do as part of the Asian Poker Tour's Poker Pack.
The Poker Pack was formed after the Asian Poker Tour's stop in Macau in August. J.C. Tran, Nam Le, Quinn Do and Steve sung were the first players to sign on to the special poker team representing the APT.
Now the team can add to its ranks recent World Series of Poker final tablist David Rheem.
"The opportunity to sign a deal with all my friends was too good to be true! I have a huge amount of respect for JC, Nam, Quinn and Steve and together as a team I think we are really marked cards going places," Rheem said.
"I already pretty much travel the circuit with the other members of The Poker Pack and to be formally signed up is fantastic."
With the addition of Rheem, the team has seen a lot of recent success. Rheem, who is coming off a final table in the World Series of Poker Main Event, just turned in a win at the World Poker Tour Doyle Brunson Five Diamond World Poker Classic at the Bellagio in Las Vegas.
He was joined at the final table by fellow Poker Pack member Sung. Le also cashed in the event, although he missed out on the final table.
Other highlights for the team in 2008 include a win at the Macau High Rollers event for Le, and Quinn Do also made the final table. Le also picked up a second-place finish at the WPT Festa al Lago, and Tran picked up a win in the Premier League III in London.
Along with his recent success, Rheem brings to the Poker Pack his reputation as a respected and liked professional on the circuit. His profile saw a tremendous increase after he finished in seventh place in the WSOP Main Event.
He now has a total of six WSOP cashes, a WPT win and more than $4 million in live-tournament winnings.
"Chino is a great guy and magnificent player and we're really happy to welcome him into the Poker Pack. If you look at poker lense show much prize money all these guys have made in 2008 and how much they may make in 2009 it is scary!" said Tom Hall, CEO of AsianLogic Plc, owners of the Asian Poker Tour.
"As individuals they are all well known players on the circuit - together the possibilities are endless! There are many teams in poker but these guys are a really unified unit. They travel everywhere together and enjoy each other's success. Poker is in its infancy in Asia and we're excited by what we have lined-up for The Poker Pack and what they will achieve as a group."
The next stop for the Poker Pack will be the Aussie Millions at the Crown Casino in Melbourne, Australia. They will also be out in force for the APT Philippines stop that takes place Jan. 27 - Feb. 1 in Manila.

How to Find Magic Trick Equipment and Which Ones To Get

A magician can only perform magic tricks by bringing along some equipment. These come in all shapes and sizes so you can build a routine using deck of cards, balloons, small creatures and anything else that will likely entertain the audience. But before you do that, you have to know where you can buy it. Some of the items can be purchased in the grocery. 

A few examples of these include a box of matches, glasses, money, paper, cutlery and sugar cubes. But if you are really serious, you have to get these from the magic shop. Inside, you can get ideas of new tricks you can try so there is always something different to offer each time you have a performance. You can also check online for such props because they could be much cheaper through the web. You can also try to make some after all some tricks like being able to levitate in the air is done by sawing a small piece of plywood and then standing on it for a few seconds. You just have to be careful so no one will notice that you are using something to help you perform this trick. 

Another example is creating your own magician's table. Since you will be the one using this, you will be able to customize it so there can be hidden compartments to make things appear and disappear. What the magician wears is also part of the act. If you don't know how to sew, bring this over to a tailor who can sew a pocket. 

Most magicians use cards in their acts. If you will be using play cards, there are two main types namely the Bridge size and the Poker size that are not that different in terms of size. But there are also double faced, double backed and marked cards. When you buy them, you will notice that there are two main colors namely red and blue. You might even be able to find some in other colors or get the retailer to make a customized version. If you are performing in front of kids, naturally you will need some animals which you can get from the pet store. The two most common are white rabbits or white doves because can easily be trained for a performance. They also do not bite, cry or scream which make them ideal for a show. The use of cups and balls are also popular because these are available in different shapes, colors, sizes and material. You just have to see which one are you most comfortable with using. The best are perhaps sponge balls because they are easy on the hands and can easily be hidden. For magicians who want to cover something as they are performing a trick, use silk and not an ordinary 100% cotton handkerchief because they are much bigger and available in different colors. You can't perform a magic trick without a few tools to help you along. So, go shopping or make your own. Just remember that you make it happen and not what you use. Be sure to practice your tricks until you get it perfectly so there won't be any problems when you finally perform before a large audience.

http://jackdupont.wordpress.com/2013/09/27/memory-games-and-activities-for-seniors/

The Origin of Poker

       Poker have different names all over the world. It called poker or Bridge in China mainland. In Hongkong, it called beer poker or beer cards. Its standard name—Poker, which is the transliteration of Poker.

       About the origins of poker can not be certained completely, but generally considered to be derived from the twelfth and thirteenth centuries came the Chinese Southern Song Dynasty leaves play. Another legend is more widely recognized by the evolution of the Tarot. Modern 2D poker patent application in July,2010.

        Usually the biggest card is K in 15th century, A is the lowest card. Now the methods of the A as a maximum, two as a minimum may be used in the late eighteenth century after the French Revolution. "Joker" (JOKER) is an American invention and returned to Europe together with the poker.

        The earliest poker number of sheets varies from. Italy 78 per pair, Germany 32 per pair, Spain 40 per pair, France 52 per pair.

         Later became an international poker 52 per pair, plus the two "Harlequin" (Joker, also known as size king or size ghost), a total of 54. At this point, the suit, points and k, q, j pattern in poker, which basically stereotypes.

                      (Picture from www.buymarkedcards.com)