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Poker is a game riddled with fascinating legends. You hear tales of gold prospects being decided on a pair of bullets in the days of the wild wild West. Or how a newcomer by the name of Chris Moneymaker took down the WSOP against names that are infamous around poker circles. There's a lure to this game that attracts people of all walks for a chance to strike it rich. The game is often believed to be more of a skill reading tells or betting patterns than it is catching high pairs or straights. But before we go big and get sent home, it's important to learn some of the basics of this trade.

To understand how the game is played, we need to understand which poker hands rank where. Here is a list in order from top to bottom of the highest to lowest hands dealt on the table:

• Royal Flush – 10 through Ace all suited and an extremely rare find
• Straight Flush – any run of all five cards suited
• Four of a Kind – 4 cards that are all alike
• Full House – three cards alike and two cards alike
• Flush – all five cards suited
• Straight – a run of all five cards of varying suits
• Three of a Kind – three cards that are alike
• 2 Pair – two pairs of cards that are like
• 1 Pair – any pair of cards that are alike
• High Card – this is the highest card in the hand starting from Ace down.

Cards are dealt in a clockwise manner by the dealer. The players then begin a series of betting rounds, each claiming to have the best hand. When the player knows the cards aren't in his favor, he'll either fold or bluff. A good bluff will have the others players giving up on their hands and forfeiting the pot. Otherwise, after all bets are final, the best hand wins.

Now many variations of this game have been designed. The latest craze is the Texas Hold-em version of poker. This poker game has grown wildly popular since the before mentioned Chris Moneymaker proved to the world that even an underdog can win it all on any given night. Whichever style of poker the parties wish to play is open for them to decide. But most variations do spin from this style of poker.