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Official poker is a card game played in casinos and home games with strict rules that must be followed to ensure the fairness of the game. These rules set a minimum and maximum buy-in amount, establish how many chips are in play during a hand, and prevent players from taking any portion of their stake out of the game after each bet. In addition, the rules dictate the number of cards dealt to each player, how the game is played, and what constitutes a winning hand.

The game starts with one player acting as dealer. This position is known as the button and rotates clockwise after each hand. The two players to the left of the button must post forced bets, the small blind and big blind, before cards are dealt (if there is no ante). New players may either wait for the blind to reach their seat or pay in a minimum amount to receive a hand immediately.

Once the cards are dealt, players must decide whether to call, raise or fold. It is a good idea to verbally state your intention, as this becomes binding once everyone has heard it. A player who does not say anything is considered to be passing. Raising is generally capped at a certain amount, but exceptions can be made if the cap has not yet been reached or when the players are heads-up.

A special fund for the purchase of extra decks of cards and food and drinks is sometimes established at a poker table, known as a kitty. Usually, each player who makes a bet contributes a low-denomination chip from their stack into the kitty. This money is used to buy additional cards and to replenish the kitty if it falls below a reasonable amount. When a poker game ends, any chips remaining in the kitty are divided equally among the players who remain in the game.

As poker has become an international game, there has been growing interest in establishing a consistent set of rules for the game. This would avoid confusion and misunderstandings that can arise when different rules are in use.

The goal of poker is to make the best five-card hand using the player’s own cards and the community cards, which are revealed after each round of betting. The highest hand wins. A standard pack of 52 cards is used; the suits are spades, hearts, diamonds and clubs. Some games also use wild cards, which can take on any suit or rank desired. Some also have specific rules for how a poker hand should be declared as high or low.