Poker is a gambling game played between two or more players. There is much luck involved, but it also requires a high degree of skill and psychology. There are many different games of poker, each with its own rules and variations. A basic form of the game is a complete hand dealt to each player, followed by betting rounds in which players may raise or lower their bets. The best hand wins the pot.

In most poker games, one or more players are required to make forced bets, called the ante or blind bet. The dealer then shuffles and cuts the cards, then deals each player his or her cards. These cards may be either face-up or down, depending on the game being played. Each player may then decide to call (match) the maximum previous bet, raise it, or fold. The raised bets go into a central pot.

When all players have acted on their hands, there is usually a showdown, in which each player shows his or her cards to the other players. The highest-ranking hand wins the pot.

It is customary for a group of Poker players to establish, by unanimous or majority agreement, a fund, called the kitty, which is used for the purchase of new decks of cards and/or food and drinks. Any chips left in the kitty when the game ends are distributed equally among the players who remain in the game. The kitty is typically built by “cutting” (taking) a low-denomination chip from each pot in which there is more than one raise.