Poker is a card game for two to 14 players, played with chips (representing money) in which the object is to win a pot consisting of the bets made by all players. The pot may be won by a player having the highest ranking hand, or by making a bet that players with inferior hands call. The game also involves bluffing, wherein a player bets that he or she has a good hand when in reality it is weak.

A round of betting begins after the players have received their hole cards. This is usually preceded by 2 mandatory bets called blinds put into the pot by the players to the left of the dealer. Then a flop is dealt face up and there is another round of betting.

Players can then decide to call a bet, raise a bet or fold. They can also try to read tells of other players in order to make better decisions about their own bets and calls.

There are a number of different poker hands, depending on the arrangement of the cards and their value. The highest hand is five of a kind. Two pairs of cards that are of equal rank is another high hand. If there is a tie, the higher high hand wins, e.g. five aces beats five queens. Other hands are three of a kind, straight, flush and a high card. The high card breaks ties. In some cases there are side pots as well.