Poker is a card game in which players bet on the strength of their hand. It is a game of chance, but there is quite a bit of psychology and skill involved in betting, as well as the knowledge of probability. A poker game can be played with as few as two people, but most games are played with six to 14 players. The aim of the game is to win a pot of money (all bets made) by having the highest-ranking poker hand at the end of the deal.

The game is started by each player putting in a mandatory bet, called an ante or blind bet. These are placed into the pot by the player on their left. Once everyone has their cards, there are a series of rounds of betting. Each round, the players reveal their hands and the player with the best hand wins the pot of money.

Ties can be broken in poker by looking at the kicker card in each hand. For example, if two players have an identical pair, the one with the higher kicker wins.

During the betting rounds, players can raise their bets when they have strong hands, in order to encourage other players to call them. They can also bluff, by pretending that they have a weak hand when they know other players are holding stronger ones. Players can also fold, which means that they give up on their current hand and don’t compete for the pot.