Poker is a card game in which players wager money against one another for the right to show their cards. It is a popular pastime in casinos, clubs, private games, and over the Internet. It is considered the national card game of the United States, and its rules, variations, and jargon are widely known.
A standard deck of 52 cards is used in most poker games. Each player starts with two cards, called hole cards, and then five community cards are dealt in stages, consisting of three cards — referred to as the flop — and then an additional single card, referred to as the turn. After the community cards are dealt, a round of betting begins with the player to the dealer’s left.
When a player wants to raise the stakes, they put their chips into the pot equal to the value of the minimum bet and then say “raise.” The player to their left may either call or fold if they do not want to raise.
The turn to open and raise bets passes clockwise from player to player. If no player opens, the cards are reshuffled and cut by the player to their right, who must offer the shuffled pack for a cut before any other player can do so. Each hand has a winner, who takes the entire pot (all bets made during that deal) if they have the highest ranked hand when all the cards are shown.
