Poker is a card game in which players compete against other players. Players form hand rankings using the cards on the board. A Royal Flush, for example, ranks highest. A Straight Flush, on the other hand, ranks second. Straight flushes are the strongest hands, followed by Flushes and Three-of-a-Kinds. The lowest hands in poker include a pair of aces, two pairs of threes, and a low pair of aces.
Each betting interval begins with a player putting down a stake. Other players must raise their stakes, or put in the same amount. At the end of each betting interval, all bets are gathered in a central pot, or pot. The winnings from each round of betting are added to this pot. This process repeats itself until all players have put in their final bets. When a player folds, they lose all their chips in the pot, and must withdraw their hand from the game.
After 1875, players receive a full 52-card deck. Several variations were developed. In 1875, stud and straight were introduced. Later, wild cards were added. Another variation was draw poker, which allowed players to discard their cards and replace them with cards from the undealt portion of the pack. During this process, players who do not want to draw are said to stand pat. After the first round of betting, the game is followed by a showdown.