Poker is a game of chance (in a sense that you don’t have much control over the cards you’re dealt) but also involves quite a bit of skill and psychology. It’s one of the most popular card games and is played with a group of people in a table. The game is fast-paced and players can bet on each round, even if they don’t have the best hand. This is called “checking.”

The first step in the game is to put an initial amount of money into the pot before any cards are dealt. This is known as the ante and can vary between different poker variants. Players can also choose to make blind bets in addition to or instead of the ante. The turn to place a bet rotates around the table.

When all bets have been made and the antes or blind bets are placed, the players will be dealt their cards. The highest hand wins the round. Ties are broken by looking at the rank of the high cards in each hand. For example, if two hands tie on having two pairs, then they look at the highest of those pairs and so on.

Once the hands are revealed, the players can either win the main pot or one of several side pots that can be created. The winning hands can be a straight, three of a kind, four of a kind, flush, or a high card.