Where Did The Poker Chip Come From?

We all play it; we all love it, at least on days that we don’t loose our shirt playing it. The game is Poker, and “you can’t play for popcorn” as the saying goes. So what would a good game of poker be without the poker chip? They come in all shapes and sizes, colors and materials, from clay chips, to composite chips, and in those really improvised games perhaps even in the from of chocolate. The poker chip has been around in some shape or form almost as long as the game of poker itself.

The need for keeping track of money during the game sprung the necessity of the chip, but that is not the only reason that the chip was born. To be able to disassociate the real value of what one is betting is an essential part of poker many professionals often say. “If I were throwing hundred dollar bills in the middle I would probably never bet a dime, however a chip is just a piece of clay, so I move all in” one pro says.

The oldest form of poker chips was the basic clay chip, first used in the 1800’s, and since then have evolved into what is used today, brightly colored and often surprisingly interestingly designed poker chips. Many believe that no poker game is complete without the use of a smooth cornered chip that can be perfectly shuffled between your fingertips, and when thrown into the pot, lands with a sound of authority that says, “Don’t mess with me”.

To modern day casino’s however the poker chip is more than just a way to keep track of money. It is a necessary part of gaming security. With counterfeiters just waiting to exploit any possible weakness, Gaming casinos must do everything they possibly can to prevent counter fitters from creating fraudulent chips, to be exchanged for money. In order to do this casino’s design extremely hard to counterfeit chips, with special designs, weights and constructed from specific materials that make it almost impossible to duplicate. Some new types of chips even have small microchips in the middle, that record the player’s action, and at the same time provide security features.

So now that you know all about what a poker chip really is and what goes into making each chip unique and great to play with will you ever look at a poker chip the same way? Sure you will, especially when you’re raking in a giant pot, and stacking all your new found plastic money that you just bluffed some poor soul out of.

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