Depending on the game rules, one or more players are required to place an initial amount into the pot before the cards are dealt. These forced bets are often called antes, blind bets or bring-ins. After all forced bets are placed, the dealer shuffles the cards and deals each player a set number of cards, beginning with the player on their right. These cards may be dealt face-up or face-down. Then the first of several betting rounds begins. After the last card is revealed at the end of the round, the player with the best five-card hand wins the pot.
The betting and bluffing that occurs during the game is what distinguishes Poker from a large number of other vying games. A primary feature of this bluffing is that the players’ hidden cards and their actions are public information but not their private thoughts or intentions. This process is analogous to the cryptographic principle of public-private key encryption.
In a poker tournament, the winning player collects all of the chips that were put down as buy-ins by the other players at the table. In most cases, there are specific rules for how the money will be distributed amongst the other players after the game is over. This ensures that the game does not become an all-or-nothing venture for the winner. It also allows for the possibility that more than one player will win the same amount of money and thus share in the victory.