Poker is a card game that involves betting. Each player is dealt two cards face down. These are called their “pockets” or “holes”. Players then begin the first betting phase, beginning with the player to their left of the big blind. Three cards are then dealt face up in the middle of the table, known as the flop. Each player then uses these three cards to construct a 5-card hand.

In most games, a player who has a pair of jacks may choose to open the pot. This player may also decide to raise their bet or pass. If they pass without opening their hand, their cards are returned to the pot. The player who opens the pot must show all of his or her cards before the next player may make their bet.

In a traditional game, there are usually seven to eight players. Each player must have at least 200 poker chips. The lowest-value chip is white; the next highest-valued chip is red. The blue chip is worth ten or twenty-five whites, and the dark-colored chips are worth two, four, or five reds. A player’s bet on the hand determines who wins the pot, and if he/she raises, he or she wins the pot.

A winning hand is one with the highest value pair. If the two cards are identical, the winner is the hand with the higher value pair. If there is a tie, the highest-value card of the three remaining cards wins.