In poker, players begin by making a forced bet, which may be an ante or blind bet. The dealer then shuffles and cuts the deck of cards. Then, the dealer deals each player one or two cards. These cards may be dealt face-up or face-down, depending on the poker variant. In between rounds, poker hands develop and compete for the pot. The higher-ranking hand wins. However, the player with the best hand is considered the winner.

The highest hand in poker is the five-card hand. The highest pair wins. The second pair and the high card break ties, as does the straight and the better-than-pair hands. Wild cards, such as aces and kings, are considered non-ranking, and do not have any relative rank. As such, wild cards play an important role in determining a winning hand. One important rule in poker is that wild cards may be used to make a five-of-a-kind hand, which is better than a straight flush.

While every poker game has its own distinct rules and strategies, the main feature of the game is the same: the hands are comprised of five cards. The value of a poker hand inversely proportional to its mathematical frequency. Players may make bluffs by betting that they have the best hand, which results in a winning hand. This strategy is called “bluffing”.