Poker is a card game played between a player and a dealer or a group of players. The object of the game is to use your cards to form a high hand or to convince other players that you have the best hand. There are many different variations of poker, but all share a number of common features. The most important of these is betting, which gives the game its structure and creates a pot that players must compete for.
Each round of betting begins when a player, in turn, puts chips into the pot equal to or higher than the amount put in by the player to his or her left. This is known as calling. Players can also raise the bet if they believe that their hand is superior, or they may fold (push their cards to the dealer face-down and abandon the hand).
After the first round of betting, 2 additional cards are dealt to each player. Then there is a final round of betting in which the players reveal their cards. The player with the highest hand wins the pot. If no one has a winning hand, the pot is split amongst the tied players.
The most basic requirement of a good poker hand is a pair of matching cards of the same rank. Other than these pairs, there are many other combinations of cards that can make up a winning poker hand. These include three of a kind (three matching cards of the same rank) and two pair (two matching cards of a lower rank plus one unmatched card). A flush contains 5 consecutive cards of the same suit.