Poker is a card game in which players wager money on the outcome of a hand. The winning hand is the best five-card combination of cards. Players may raise the amount they bet by bluffing or by playing superior hands. The game has several variants, but all share the same basic rules. Players usually use chips to represent bets. The most common chip is white, worth one unit of ante or blind; other colors are also used, and each color has a different value.
The dealer shuffles the cards, and then deals them to each player one at a time, starting with the player to his or her left. The dealer then collects all the bets made by that player and other players into a central pot.
A player may choose to fold his or her hand before the flop, turn, and river if he or she is not happy with it. The final round of betting is called the showdown, and the player with the best hand wins the pot.
Some people believe that poker is a game of pure chance, while others argue that skill and mental strategy play a significant role in the outcome of a hand. The question of whether the game is a game of chance or skill has been debated in legal cases and by politicians.