Depending on the game, players may be required to make forced bets called ante and blind bets. The dealer shuffles and cuts the deck of cards, then deals the cards one at a time to players. The cards may be dealt face up or face down, depending on the variant. During the course of a round, poker hands develop. For example, a hand with two kings is better than a hand with two kings, which would not win the hand.

A player can make multiple bets, called a raise or a call. Each player must bet a specific amount into the pot, known as the pot. When a draw occurs, the pot is split equally between the players. The winner of the hand is the one who has the highest card. If all of the players have a high card, the player has a high pair, but if all three cards are low, it is a pair.

The game of poker is similar to building a house. There are various types of hands that can be dealt and the player must determine which one has the highest or best hand. The earliest known version of poker used 20 cards. Today, most poker games use a standard deck, although countries with short packs play with 32 or 40 cards. Different games differ in the number of players, the number of cards in play, and the number of cards shared between the players. Most poker games are played with a round of betting, or a series of rounds.