Official poker is a card game that involves betting real money. The rules of the game are standardized and agreed upon by all players. The rules are typically adapted from “Robert’s Rules of Poker” (also known as Robert Ciaffone rules), which is considered the most authoritative set of cardroom rules. Ciaffone is widely regarded as a leader in the rules of poker and was the author of the rulebook used by many of the major poker rooms in the United States.

The main form of poker played is Texas hold ’em, which was popularized by the World Series of Poker and other televised events. Other games such as draw and seven-card stud are still common, but hold ’em is the most popular variant.

ACTION: A player’s fold, check, call, raise, or other similar actions. A player’s intention to act may also be considered action, and can include verbal statements such as “I’m all in.”

CARDS: The suits of spades, hearts, diamonds, and clubs are the ranking cards in poker. In most cases, only a pair of matching cards wins a pot.

FRONT-UP CARDS: The first three community cards dealt in a poker hand are called the flop, turn, and river. These cards are exposed for the players to see as the betting progresses, and each player attempts to make the best five-card poker hand with a combination of their two hole cards and the community cards.

A special fund, usually made up of low-denomination chips, is sometimes established for the benefit of the game. It is often used to pay for new decks of cards or food and drinks. Players who leave a game before it ends are not entitled to take their share of the chip collection, which is also known as the kitty.