Poker Hand Nicknames
Although modern poker has only evolved over the last forty years, intensifying gradually since Benny Binion brought the poker world together in 1970 with his World Series of Poker and Poker Hall of Fame events, the game has a surprisingly long history.
Some historians believe that poker’s roots date back as far as a 15th century German game called Pochspiel, which was one of the first card games to incorporate hand rankings and bluffing, although poker games as modern players would recognise them first emerged in the American Wild West in the middle of the 19th century.
Since then the game has constantly evolved to produce modern poker, which is dominated by the relatively new discipline of No Limit Texas Hold’em. However, in that time a great deal of poker folklore has developed, mainly surrounding specific hands which players are dealt.
The most famous of these is the ‘Dead Man’s Hand’, which is traditionally represented as two black aces, two black eights and a high diamond kicker. The hand grew to notoriety after one of the Wild West’s most famous poker players, Wild Bill Hickock, was murdered while holding the hand. Since then, the hand has become the stuff of legends.
Another of Poker’s most famous hands is a ten and a two of any suit, which is named “The Doyle Brunson Hand” after its founder. The hand became famous after Brunson won two WSOP Main Events with it in consecutive years, both times making Full Houses.