Poker is a card game with a lot of skill, psychology and luck. It’s not just about getting good cards; it’s about betting when you should, folding when you shouldn’t, and bluffing in a way that doesn’t make people think you have the best hand (unless you have the best hand).

Before dealing the first card, players place a mandatory bet called blinds into the pot. This adds to the overall value of the pot at the end of the hand.

Once the cards are dealt, each player must decide whether to fold, call or raise. A player can raise by putting in the same amount of chips as the person before them. Players can also drop out of the round by not calling any bets.

The goal of the game is to form a high ranking hand from the five cards in your hand according to the rules of the game. The highest hand wins the pot. This pot is the sum of all bets placed by players during the hand.

In most games there are 13 ranks – Ace, King, Queen, Jack, 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3 and 2 – in four suits (Clubs, Diamonds, Spades and Hearts). Some games will include wild cards – for example the deuces (2s) or one-eyed jacks – that can take the rank of any card in your hand.

The best hands are three of a kind, two pair, a straight or a flush. Ties are broken by the rank of the fifth card in your hand.