Poker is a card game where players use their skills to bet on the cards they have. It is a source of recreation and even a livelihood for many around the world.

Several skills are necessary to play the game well: patience and discipline. Sharp focus and perseverance are also important.

Basics of Poker

Before the cards are dealt, each player must ‘ante’ something into the pot (the amount varies by game). The dealer shuffles, the player to their left cuts, and the players are dealt one card at a time, clockwise from the dealer.

Betting rounds are usually repeated until the highest hand wins. At the end of the round, the winning hand is matched by other players and the betting pool is re-filled.

A hand is called “strong” when it beats the other hands, while a hand is weak if it loses to the other hands. The most common types of hands are:

Full House

A full house is made up of 3 matching cards from the same rank, plus 2 matching cards from another rank, and another unmatched card. Flush is any five cards from the same suit. Straight is 5 cards of consecutive ranks from the same suit.

Highcard breaks ties

A high card is any card higher than a low card. A high card may break a tie when the low card has a pair or better. A high card can also be used to win when nobody has a pair.