A game of cards in which players bet chips (representing money) to win a pot. The game can be played by 2 to 14 players. There are countless variations of the game, but they all share certain common features.
A poker hand is composed of five cards. Each card has a rank and value that are in inverse proportion to its mathematical frequency in a standard 52-card deck. Poker also includes wild cards that can represent any card the player wishes, and can alter the meaning of a hand.
In most poker games, the player to the left of the dealer has the right or obligation to open the betting. Each player then has the option to call that bet or fold. The player who makes the highest-ranking hand wins the pot. If no player has a high enough hand, the pot is split amongst the remaining players.
To play poker, a player must buy in for a set number of chips (representing money). A white chip represents a unit worth a minimum of the ante or bet; higher-valued chips may represent a value such as 10 or 20 whites, or two, four, or five red chips.
In addition to the basic rules of poker, it is important for a player to be able to read the faces and expressions of other players. This skill is called “reading tells.” A player’s tells are unconscious habits, and can include body language or eye contact.