Poker is a card game in which players place bets into the pot before they see their cards. The highest-ranking hand wins the pot. The cards are dealt from a standard 52-card deck.
Each player must ante (put in the first amount of money, typically a nickel) to get in the game. When betting gets around to you, you can say “call” to put the same amount of money into the pot as the person before you, or you can raise your bet to add more chips to the pot. You can also fold your hand at any time if it’s not good enough to win.
There are four rounds of betting in a hand of poker: before the flop, after the flop, after the turn, and after the river. The flop is the first three community cards dealt face up on the table. The turn and the river reveal additional community cards, respectively.
A full house contains 3 matching cards of one rank, and two matching cards of another rank. A flush contains 5 consecutive cards of the same suit, and a straight consists of 5 cards in sequence but from different suits. The highest card breaks ties.
Learning to read other players is a key part of successful poker strategy. Watch for tells, which can include nervous gestures, fiddling with their chips, and a wide range of body language. Also, study how experienced players play and try to emulate their moves.