Poker is a card game played by two or more people, with each player betting his or her chips into the pot (the shared pool of chips on which all players place their bets). Betting may occur at one or more intervals during a deal depending on the variant of poker being played.

To start the game, each player buys in for a certain amount of chips. This can be as low as one white chip or as high as five red ones. Once all players have purchased their chips, the dealer shuffles the cards and deals each one a set of 2 hole cards. The player to the left of the dealer has the privilege or obligation to open the betting for that round, meaning he or she must put in enough chips to raise any other player’s bet by at least the minimum amount.

After the flop, an additional card is dealt face up. This is called the turn and there will be another betting round. At the end of each round, all players reveal their cards and the player with the best hand wins the pot.

While the highest hand is a Royal Flush (A, K, Q, J, and 10 of the same suit), other popular hands include Straight Flush, Four of a Kind, Three of a Kind, and Two Pair. In some games, the players create a common fund, or kitty, by “cutting” (taking one low-denomination chip from each pot in which they call more than one raise). This kitty is used to pay for new decks of cards and food and drinks.