Poker is a card game played by two or more people and involves betting. The game can be very strategic and involve a lot of psychology. It is commonly regarded as a game of chance, but when bets are involved it becomes a game of skill and strategy. In a game of poker, players attempt to make the best five-card hand. The most common hands include a straight, a flush, and a pair of aces or kings. There are also several other types of poker hands, including three-of-a-kind, four-of-a-kind, and straight flush.

In most poker games, a player must place an ante or blind bet before being dealt cards. The dealer then shuffles the deck and deals each player one card at a time, beginning with the player to his or her right. The cards may be dealt face-up or face-down, depending on the particular poker variant being played. After the deal, the first of many betting intervals begins.

Each player must either call the bet (put chips into the pot) or fold. The player who calls is said to be “in the pot” and must continue to raise or lower their bet as necessary until someone else passes or they run out of chips.

A key part of poker strategy is reading the other players and identifying their betting patterns. Players who are very conservative will bet low early in the hand and can be bluffed into folding, while aggressive players will often bet high before they have a good hand.