Poker is a game of betting in which the outcome of each hand is determined by the players’ cards and the cards dealt to them by the dealer. The players compete against each other in a central pot, and the player who holds the best hand at the end of the game wins the pot.

The game begins with a deal of cards, which are dealt one at a time to the players in turn (the dealer deals them first). Each player may call to place a bet, fold by removing their hand from the game, or raise by increasing their previous bet.

During a betting round, each player may place their chips in front of them and do not directly place them into the pot (“splashing the pot”), to prevent other players from verifying the bet amount. This is done to avoid cheating by other players.

After a betting round, all the bets are gathered into the pot and each player’s current bet amount is recorded. In a variant, this may be the same as the number of chips placed into the pot by that player.

The next betting round is capped by a player who has made their final bet. The remaining players may call to raise another bet, but they are not permitted to make a third or fourth bet. If all the players fold on any of the rounds, the remaining player collects the pot and no further rounds are played.