Poker is a card game in which players place bets on the outcome of their hand. The game has a number of variants and can be played with 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, or more players. Its rules and nuances vary from one variant to another, but some general principles apply to all of them.
The game begins with forced bets, called the ante or blind bets. These bets are placed into the pot by 2 players to the left of the dealer. Once the players have these bets, they receive their two hole cards and begin a round of betting.
In many variations of poker, players can exchange or draw cards to improve their hands during the betting rounds. Some games also allow for players to reveal their hands during a final betting phase, where the player with the highest hand wins the pot.
The game is normally dealt from a standard 52-card pack, with or without jokers. Often, a non-player is given the role of dealer, but in some games this responsibility rotates among the players. In the latter case, a dealer chip is passed to a new player after each deal. This player is responsible for shuffling and dealing the cards, but also for placing bets during the betting intervals.