Poker is a card game in which a player attempts to make a five-of-a-kind hand. The best five-of-a-kind hand is the highest ranking hand in the game. If a player has more than one five-of-a-kind hand, the higher card is the winner.

Each round of poker has a dealer. This person deals the cards and shuffles the deck. In some variations of the game, the dealer may also be a non-player who takes on these responsibilities for the entire game. In general, players take turns being the dealer. A dealer chip is used to designate the dealer each round, and it is passed from one player to the next. The location of the dealer affects certain betting rules.

In addition to high hand rankings, the highest natural hand in poker is a straight flush. A straight flush is made up of five cards of the same suit. A high ace can be used for a straight flush, but cannot wrap around another suit. A straight flush is also called a royal flush. This hand has odds of one in almost 650,000, while the next-highest hand is four of a kind.

Players begin betting after the dealer deals the first two cards face-down. Once everyone has seen their cards, they have the option to discard up to three cards. They can also take new cards from the top of the deck. After the discarding of cards, the players begin another round of betting.