Poker is a card game played by a group of people around a circular table. The goal is to build a pot of money by making bets on your poker hand.

In addition to betting, players must discard some of their cards. Players can discard up to three cards.

A standard pack of 52 cards is used for poker. Cards are ranked from Ace to Ace.

Ties among two identical poker hands are broken by a high card. A straight flush is the best possible hand, with five cards in the same suit.

Another feature of poker is the kitty. The kitty is an ad hoc fund that is shared by all players. This is used to pay for new decks of cards.

Typically, each player must bet a minimum amount. The ante is generally determined by the stakes in the game.

Poker variants vary in the way the cards are dealt, including how often the cards are shuffled. A full 52-card deck is common, although some games use more than one pack.

One of the earliest versions of poker is a 17th century French game called poque. It made its way to the New World via French settlers.

There are hundreds of variations of the game. Some variants involve additional cards, such as wild cards. Depending on the type of game, the cards may be dealt face up, or face down.

The three card brag, which was very popular during the American Revolution, is still a popular game today. A version of the game, the spit-in-the-ocean, uses fewer cards.