Poker is a card game in which players wager money on the outcome of a random distribution of cards. The player with the highest-ranked hand wins all of the money wagered. While it may appear to be a game of chance, poker contains substantial strategic elements and is largely based on probability, psychology and game theory.
There are many different forms of poker, but all involve a common element: betting. Each player places an amount of chips into the pot, representing the money bet on a particular hand. Then the dealer deals each player a complete set of cards. The players can then make bets and raise them if they wish.
In standard poker games, the higher ranked hands win, and ties are broken by the rank of the highest unmatched cards (in a four-of-a-kind or full house) or secondary pairs (in a flush). However, some poker variants use wild cards which alter these hand rankings, and some do not count cards in the high rankings at all.
Regardless of the specific rules of a particular poker variant, all players must place a number of chips into the pot equal to the amount raised by the player to his left on the last betting interval, or at least increase their stakes to that level. This is called “equalization” and makes the bettor responsible for putting his opponents in a position where they must either call his bet or fold.