Poker is a family of card games that are played by players in casinos. The cards are shuffled, and the best hand wins the bet. The game’s rules determine the best hand, and players compete to bet more money. The objective of poker is to win a wager. The most valuable hand is the highest one, and the winning player will keep the pot. The rules of poker can vary from game to game, so it is important to know the ins and outs of the game before starting a hand.

The game is simple, but the history behind it is seedy. The game’s name, “poke,” is believed to come from the slang used by pickpockets. Jonathan H. Green is said to have first referred to this game as a cheating game in the early 1880s, after observing a Mississippi riverboat where two or four players played. Originally, the game had only two to four players and was played with a deck of twenty cards.

Players usually buy in for the same amount, and they can change the name to suit their style of play. When playing in a casino, the kitty is a pool of funds that is divided equally among all players. The kitty is usually formed by dividing a low denomination chip from a pot that has had more than one raise. If a player leaves a game before it is over, he or she does not receive his share of the kitty chips.