Poker is a card game that involves betting and requires a substantial amount of skill and psychology. The goal of the game is to have the best hand at the end of a betting round. There are many different types of poker games, but they all have the same basic elements.

There is typically a round of betting after all players have received their 2 hole cards. This is started by mandatory bets (called blinds) put into the pot by the players to the left of the dealer. Players can choose to call, raise or fold.

After the betting round, a showdown takes place where players reveal their hands and the player with the highest hand wins the pot. The game of poker has evolved significantly since its early beginnings, but it still relies on a certain amount of luck and bluffing to win.

Most poker games are played with chips, which represent money. Each chip has a specific value, usually represented by a color. Players exchange cash with the dealer prior to the start of the game for the appropriate number of chips. The dealer also assigns values to the chips during this process. A white chip is typically worth one dollar, while a red chip might be worth five. The dealer is then responsible for shuffling the deck and dealing each player their cards. Often times, a non-player is assigned the role of dealer and must pass the “dealer chip” to a new player after each betting interval.