Poker is a game of cards where players place bets in a round. Each player has two cards and can decide whether to fold, call or raise their bet. The best five-card hand wins the pot. There are many different variations of this game and some do not use the betting system or showdown but most follow these basic rules.
Each betting round in poker begins when a player to the left of you makes a bet. You must either call that bet by placing your chips in the pot equal to or higher than the amount you were last to raise, or drop, leaving you out of the hand.
After everyone has called the first bet the dealer puts three more cards on the table that anyone can use. These are known as community cards. Another round of betting then takes place.
A poker hand is made up of any combination of 5 cards that rank consecutively in order (for example, a straight). It can also contain two matching cards of one rank and three unmatched cards. A pair is a pair of identical cards and a flush is 5 cards in sequence but not of the same suit (for example, four of clubs).
In poker you can make other people fold even though they might have a high-ranked hand by applying pressure through betting and raising your own bets. That’s what separates amateurs from professionals. However, you can’t control your opponents cards – only their assessments of what they have and the pressure you apply to them.