Poker is a game in which players compete to form the best five-card hand. The better the hand, the more money a player wins. The game has a number of different variations but they all share the same basic rules.
Before the cards are dealt each player must place a small bet (called the ante) into the pot. This bet is made up of the player’s own chips and any money raised by other players. The players can then choose to call, raise or fold. A raise is when a player puts in more than the amount of the previous bet. This forces other players to either call or fold. A player can also bluff by betting that they have the best hand when they don’t, hoping that other players will call their bet and reveal their own weak hands.
The dealer then deals each player two cards face down. Then a third card is placed face up on the board. This is called the flop. Then a fourth card is placed on the board, this is known as the turn.
The betting starts with the player to the left of the dealer. Each player must either call the bet (put in their own chips and match the amount of the bet) or fold. If a player folds they can’t win the round but can make the next one. The player with the highest poker hand wins the pot, which is the total of all the bets made in that round.