Typically, poker is played with a pack of 52 cards. There are four suits – spades, hearts, diamonds and clubs – and each hand is composed of five cards. The highest hand wins the pot. Depending on the rules of the game, the pot is divided between the highest and lowest hands.

The first step in playing poker is to shuffle the deck. A dealer will pass out a few cards to each player. The cards may be face up or face down. The dealer may also create a community card pile.

After the cards are dealt, each player must show their hand. Players can discard up to three cards. Some variant games allow players to take new cards from the top of the deck.

The next step is to make a bet. Bets are made in clockwise order.

When a player’s hand does not match the previous bet, they can raise or check. If they match the bet, they can choose to call, raise or fold.

A showdown is the final round of betting. After the cards are discarded, the remaining player collects the pot. Unless they owe something to the pot, all other players fold.

Poker is played by a group of people sitting around an oval table. The first person left of the button is the player who will act first. The first two players to the left of the button post the small blind and big blind.