Generally, a group of people sits around a circular table and plays poker. Cards are dealt one at a time, and a player who has the best hand takes the pot. There are many variations of the game. Some of the most common variations include Hold’em and Stud Poker.

In Hold’em, the betting interval begins with a “buy-in” bet. Usually, the buy-in is a small bet. If there are more than one player left in the hand, a “side pot” is created. The side pot is created from money that the remaining players have put into the pot. This pot is separate from the main pot, which is the pot where the cards are laid out in the center of the table.

After the first betting round, players begin to reveal their cards. If they have two identical hands, then a high card breaks the tie. If they have three or four of the same kind, then two ties are broken. If they have five of the same kind, the higher card wins.

When there is a tie, players split the pot. If they don’t have a high card, the players break the tie with their next deal. If there are two pairs, then the next card is used to break the tie.

Some poker variations allow players to split the pot between the highest and lowest hands. This is called a “backdoor flush.” If players hit a card they need on the turn and river, they can achieve this backdoor flush.