Poker is a card game in which players wager chips (representing money) on the outcome of a hand. A player with the best hand wins all of the chips at the table. Usually, the winner shares some or all of this money with the other players at the table. This helps to ensure that the game is not all-or-nothing, and that a player who loses can still win some money from the game.

The rules of poker vary somewhat by variant, but the basic game involves a single round of betting after each deal. Each player places an ante (the amount of the bet varies by game) before being dealt cards. Depending on the rules of the game, a player may call a bet placed by a previous player, raise that bet, or check.

Some games require a “blind bet” in addition to the ante. The player to the left of the dealer chip makes this bet. In turn, each player must either place in the pot a number of chips equal to or greater than that of the previous player, raise that bet, or call.

After all of the bets are made, players reveal their hands and the player with the highest hand wins the pot. The highest hand must consist of a pair, three distinct cards, or a straight. Ties are broken by the highest card, or if no one has a pair, the highest high card.