Poker is a card game that can be played for fun or professionally for thousands of dollars. It’s a game of chance, but requires a lot of skill. A good poker player can make a bad hand look strong with clever bluffing.

In Poker, the object is to win the pot by having the best combination of cards. There are a number of ways to do this, including betting with your strongest hands and raising with weaker ones. You must also be able to read the other players’ expressions and body language.

The game can be played with one or two packs of standard playing cards, sometimes with a joker or two. In a typical game, each player “buys in” by purchasing a certain amount of chips. Usually, a white chip is worth the minimum ante or bet; a red chip is worth five whites; and a blue chip is worth 10 whites or more.

If you want to call a bet, say “call” or “I call.” You must place the same number of chips in the pot as the person to your right. If you don’t call, you must fold.

Many amateurs try to outwit their opponents, but this can backfire. Instead, play your strong value hands as straightforwardly as possible, and bluff only when your opponent is likely to overthink your bets and arrive at the wrong conclusions about your bluffing tendencies. In this way, you can take advantage of the mistakes that your opponents are likely to make.