Poker is a card game played between two or more players and involves betting on the value of your hand. It is a game of chance and skill, and there are many variations of the game. The objective of the game is to have the highest five-card hand at the end of a series of betting rounds. Players place bets using chips, with the amount of the bet dependent on the type of poker game being played.

At the start of a poker game, each player purchases a certain number of chips. Typically, one white chip is worth the minimum ante or bet; a red chip is worth five whites, and so on. A player may also choose to raise a bet, adding more money into the pot. Whether to raise or call is usually decided by consensus among the players.

When the cards are dealt, each player has two personal cards in their hand and five community cards on the table. The highest-ranking hand is a royal flush, which consists of a Ten, Jack, Queen, and King of the same suit (clubs, hearts, diamonds, or spades). Other high hands include four of a kind, which has three cards of one rank and two unmatched cards; and a straight, which has five consecutive cards of the same rank but from different suits.

To win a poker game, you must be able to read your opponents. Some players are very conservative, only betting when they have a good hand; others make it obvious what they have by raising early and calling re-raises with weak or marginal hands. A balanced style of play keeps your opponents guessing and allows you to get paid off on your strong hands and to successfully bluff.