Poker is a card game played by two or more people. There are many different poker variants, but the fundamental objective remains the same: to win pots (money or chips) by taking part in rounds of betting and then making a five-card poker hand. It is also possible to win a pot before the showdown by making other players fold, and this can be achieved by raising your bets in earlier rounds.
The ante is the first amount of money put into the pot, and must be made by all players before they are dealt cards. Then the player to their left starts the betting, with each player deciding whether to call, raise or fold. If you raise, you put in more than the last player and may see other players re-raise your bet again, which means that you could end up with an even bigger pot!
After the flop is revealed there’s another round of betting, with the player to the left of the dealer starting it. Then the dealer puts a fifth card on the table that anyone can use, this is known as the river. Then there’s a final round of betting and the highest ranked poker hand wins the pot.
It’s important to learn the rules of poker, so you can be a confident player in any situation. It’s also good to have a quick look at some poker hands charts so that you can understand the ranking of different hands. For example, a flush is a five-card hand that all have the same rank, and a straight is 5 consecutive cards of the same suit.