Poker is a card game in which players place chips into the pot (the center of the table) for betting purposes. The highest-ranked hand wins the pot. Poker is played from a standard 52-card deck plus some additional cards called Jokers, which may be used as wild cards in some games.
Players ante something (amount varies by game; ours is usually a nickel) to get dealt cards and then put the rest of their money into the pot. If they have a good hand, they will raise their bet and the others can call or fold.
Once everyone has a chance to bet/call/raise/fold the dealer puts three cards on the board face-up that anyone can use (called the flop). The second round of betting begins with the player to the left of the button.
Alex dealt himself a pair of kings off the deal, which isn’t too bad. Brad kept two cards, so he probably has a pair as well. Charley kept four, so he might be trying for a straight or flush.
A player who wants to stay in the pot must raise his stake equal to the amount raised by the last player and he can also raise it even more. If he doesn’t want to raise it any further, he must fold. This equalization method means that whoever wins will have a pot of 29 less his total stake. The rest of the money at the table will be shared among the players.