Official poker is a game that combines a little bit of luck with a lot of skill. Those players that use sound strategy to build winning hands are the most likely to be successful in the long run.

The game of poker is played from a standard 52 card pack (some games have added one or two jokers) with some variant games adding wild cards to the mix. There are four suits of spades, hearts, diamonds and clubs and an Ace which is always high. During the course of the hand players can decide to call, check, fold or raise. The last of these actions is to raise the amount of the bet made by the previous player.

When a player has not acted on their hand, the dealer will deal a new set of cards to the remaining players. The player then has the option to re-raise. In addition to the options of calling, raising or folding a player may also choose to cut. A player who cuts takes one low denomination chip from the pot and passes this to a kitty which is used to pay for cards and drinks.

Tournament play differs from cash games in that there is a fixed admission fee and the blind levels are regularly increased during the event. At the end of the tournament players are awarded a portion of the prize pool depending on the number of chips they have left.