Poker is a card game in which the players compete to make the best hand. It is played with a standard 52-card deck and has become one of the most popular games in the world. There are a number of different variants of the game, each with its own rules and traditions.

During a betting interval in the game, each player may place chips representing money into the pot. The player to his or her left may call the amount of the bet (as designated by the rules of the specific game being played) or raise it. If a player chooses to raise the bet, he or she must add the same amount of money to the pot as was placed in it by the player before him. A player may also drop his or her cards and leave the table, which is known as folding.

In some poker games, the players may establish a special fund called a “kitty.” The kitty is built by “cutting” one low-denomination chip from each pot in which there is more than one raise. Any chips remaining in the kitty at the end of the game are divided equally among the players who remain in the game.

Patience is a key trait for success in poker. It is important to be able to make tough decisions throughout the game without being distracted by emotion or fear of losing your buy-in. In addition, it is important to only play with money you are comfortable losing.