Poker is a card game played by a group of players around a table. Each player has chips that they can use to make bets during a hand. When the betting phase is over, the highest ranked hand wins the pot. This winner is determined by the players who have not folded and is based on a combination of factors, including the strength of the hand and the number of opponents.
A game of poker may start with a shuffle, followed by several rounds of betting. Some variations of the game require players to place a blind bet before they are dealt cards. This is called the ante. Players can also raise this amount when it is their turn. They can say “raise” to add more money to the pot or they can “call” to match the new bet.
After the ante and the pre-flop betting phase, 3 cards are dealt face up in the center of the table. These are known as the flop. A second round of betting begins with the player to the left of the big blind.
A full house contains three matching cards of one rank and two matching cards of another rank. A straight contains 5 consecutive cards of the same suit. A pair is two cards of the same rank. The highest card breaks ties. The game spread rapidly from the east coast of the United States and by the time of the American Civil War, the 52-card English deck was in use.