Poker is a card game of chance and skill that can be played by two or more players. Players place chips into the middle of the table to make a bet, called a raise. The player with the highest hand wins the pot. Traditionally, the best hand was a flush of all five cards of the same suit, but modern games often include wild cards, as well as standard ones.

The rules of Poker are generally written down, but individual clubs or groups may have special house rules to fit their own preferences. Most groups also agree on a standard code of conduct, referred to as the Poker Laws, to prevent cheating or collusion.

When a player’s turn comes, they can choose to “call” (match the amount of money raised by the player before them) or to “raise” (add more chips to the pot). If another player calls your raise, you have the option to fold your cards and forfeit that round.

A poker hand consists of five cards and has value in inverse proportion to its mathematical frequency, meaning that the more rare the combination of cards is, the better the hand ranks. The game can be played with or without betting, but bets are typically made only when a player has a good chance of winning the pot. A player can also win the pot by bluffing, betting that they have a good hand when they do not, hoping that other players will call their bet and reveal their inferior cards.