Poker is a game of chance and psychology (though with a little practice, it can also be a game of skill). It involves betting between players, with the person with the highest hand winning. There are a number of different poker games, each with its own rules and strategy.
Depending on the game, one or more players may have to put up an initial amount of money into the pot before the cards are dealt. This is known as an ante or blind bet, and it helps to prevent cheating and other forms of collusion.
Once the cards have been dealt, each player must reveal their hand. The player with the highest hand wins the pot, though some hands are easier to conceal than others. For example, if you hold two matching kings and the board is a pair of fives, your opponent will likely assume you have three-of-a-kind.
As you play more poker, you’ll begin to develop an intuitive feel for odds and probability. The numbers you see in training videos and software output will become ingrained in your brain, and you’ll naturally consider things like frequencies and EV estimations during every hand.
Each betting interval in a hand is called a “round.” When it’s your turn to act, you can either call by placing chips into the pot equal to the amount raised since your last action, or raise by betting more than the previous player did. You can also fold by putting no chips into the pot, discarding your hand and leaving the round.