Poker is one of the most popular card games in the world, enjoyed by millions of people. In its most basic form, it’s a game of betting between two or more players, where each player holds five cards and is trying to make the best possible hand.

To play, each player must place a bet, known as the ante, before they are dealt a set of cards. Once the cards are dealt, each player may call or raise the amount of the bet made by the previous player. They can also check (which means they don’t want to bet). The person with the best five-card hand wins the pot.

A number of different variations of poker exist, and the exact rules vary from game to game. However, all poker games involve some form of ante, and the game is played with chips. Usually, a white chip is worth the minimum ante or bet; a red chip is worth five whites; and a blue chip is worth 10 or 20 or 25 whites. Most packs of poker chips include two jokers, which can act as wild cards.

Each betting interval, or round, ends when all players have called, raised, or checked. Sometimes, a player will put all of their remaining chips into the pot, which is called an all-in bet. Typically, only the players who have a good hand will remain in the game, and the player with the highest hand takes all the money in the pot.