The Basics of Poker

Poker is a card game that requires skill, fast decision-making and luck. The object of the game is to win a pot, the sum of all bets made during a hand. A poker game may have as few as two players, but the ideal number is 6 to 8 players. There are several different forms of poker, but they all have a similar structure.

Each player starts the round by putting a mandatory bet (called blinds) into a central pot before any cards are dealt. Then, the dealer shuffles and deals each player 2 cards face down (called their hole or pocket cards). The first round of betting begins with the player to the left of the button.

After the pre-flop betting phase, 3 additional cards are dealt face up at the center of the table (called the flop). These are called community cards and each player now has 7 cards to use to make their best 5-card poker hand.

If you have a strong hand on the flop, bet heavily to force weaker hands out of the game. You can also bluff to make your opponents think you have a good hand, and then fold when your cards aren’t good.

In most games, the strongest poker hands are a pair of kings or higher, three of a kind, straight, or flush. If you have two identical pairs of the same rank, you get a full house. If you have two pairs of the same rank but different suits, you get a flush. Ties are broken by the highest card.