Video Poker Tutorial
Welcome to Video Poker Tutorial! Go ahead and have a seat, cause we are going to go ahead and turn you into an expert player in no time. From the simple basics of what makes a hand, to tips on how to play the big games, we are going to cover everything you need to get started.
Basic Poker Rules
Poker is a game of chance, observation, and skill. The chance comes from the shuffling of the cards. The Observation comes from watching other players and noticing the trends of play that they have. Skill comes in knowing what you are likely to get, and what cards are good to keep, and which ones are risky. This tutorial will teach you the basics of the procedures of the game. Details vary between different types of poker games, such as the difference between Seven Card Stud and Texas Hold'Em.
The Very Basics
Poker is almost always played with a standard pack of 52 cards. The cards are ranked (from highest to lowest): Ace, King, Queen, Jack, 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2.. There are four suits; spades, hearts, diamonds and clubs. Rarely do suits have any rank in position. When they do, it usually is (From highest to lowest): spades, hearts, diamonds, clubs.
All poker hands contain five cards, the highest hand wins. Some games have Wild Cards, which can take on whatever suit and rank their possessor desires. Sometimes jokers will be used as wild cards. At other times, the game will specify which cards are wild.Types of Hands
Hands are ranked as follows (from high to low): 
Straight Flush
A straight flush is the best natural hand. A straight flush is a straight (5 cards in order, such as 3-4-5-6-7) that are all of the same suit. As in a regular straight, you can have an ace either high (A-K-Q-J-T). A special kind of Straight Flush is a Royal Flush, and it is ranked A-K-Q-J-10, and is the highest hand you can have in poker.
Four of a Kind
Four of a kind is simply four cards of the same rank. If there are two or more hands that qualify, the hand with the higher-rank four of a kind wins.
F
ull House
A full house is a three of a kind and a pair, such as J-J-J-5-5. Ties are decided by comparing three of a kind, then pairs. So J-J-J-5-5 beats 9-9-9-4-4, which beats 9-9-9-2-2.
Flush
A flush is a hand where all of the cards are the same suit, such as Q-9-5-3-2, all of spades. When flushes ties, the one with the highest ranking card wins.
Straight
A straight is 5 cards in order, such as 7-8-9-10-J. When straights tie, the straight with the highest ranking card wins. For example, a Q-J-10-9-8 beats a 10-9-8-7-6.. If two straights have the same value they split the pot.
Three of a Kind
Three cards of any rank. In case of tie, the highest three of a kind wins. If both are the same rank, then the compare High Cards.
Two Pair This is two distinct pairs of card, such as a Q-Q-8-8-A, or a 7-7-4-4-8 . The highest pair wins ties. If both hands have the same high pair, the second pair wins. If both hands have the same pairs, the high card wins.
Pair
One pair of cards. The highest Pair wins, with high card breaks ties.
High Card
This is any hand which doesn't qualify as any one of the above hands. If nobody has a pair or better, then the highest card wins. If multiple people tie for the highest card, they look at the second highest, then the third highest etc. High card is also used to break ties when the high hands both have the same type of hand (pair, flush, straight, etc).
Betting
Poker is a betting game, where each player plays for other people's stakes. Depending on the type of game, this could be anything from play money and candy to hundreds of dollars per bet. No matter what the stakes are, the rules are typically the same.
In most games, you must 'ante' something to play in the game, which forms the pot. After you ante, players bet into the pot. At the end of the game, the highest hand that is still in play wins the pot. When it is your turn to bet, you have one of three choices:
- Call
When you call, you bet enough to match what has been bet since the last time you bet . If this is the second time a bet has gone around a table, if you are the last person before the last person that raised, it ends that round of betting.
- Raise
When you raise, you first bet enough to match what has been bet since the last time you bet, then you 'raise' the bet another amount. Most professional games will have an upper limit to how much can be bet.
- Fold
When you fold, you drop out of the current hand (losing any possibility of winning the pot), but you don't have to put any more money into the pot.
As an example, let us say you are playing a game, and start of the bid at 2. The next player calls, adding 2 to the pot. The next player decides to raise, adding 4 to the pot. The next player decides to raise again, adding 6 to the pot. You decide to call, adding 4 to the pot (The 6 that the last player added, minus the two that you already gave to the pot). The next player folds, the player after that calls, ending the round of betting.