If a player has a strong hand, he can choose to stay in the game or fold. Each betting interval begins with a player placing a bet. Each player must then either raise or put in the same number of chips as the previous player. If a player does not want to remain in the game, he can drop out of the game by folding. This means that he no longer has a chance to win the pot.
There are many different ways to win a hand of poker. The most common way to win is to get two pairs. The higher pair wins the hand. In cases of ties, the higher card wins. If two players have four of a kind, but only one of them has the high card, a third player wins. Likewise, a third player can win by having a higher pair. However, a fourth player can win a hand if he is holding a pair, but not a flush.
The earliest known version of poker was most likely a 17th-century French game called poque, from which we get the word poker. It evolved into German pochen and eventually became primero. It was French settlers who introduced poker to North America. These settlers renamed the game and added the bluffing and misdirection elements that have made it so popular. It is unknown where poker originated, but the game is widely considered to have originated in Europe.