Poker is a card game of strategy and chance, where players make bets with chips (representing money) placed in a pot before the dealer deals the cards. The player with the highest hand wins the pot. The rules of poker vary slightly with each game, but the overall objective is to make bets that increase your chances of winning the pot.

A game of poker is played in a circle of players, with one person designated as the dealer or button. The turn to deal and bet passes to the player to the left after each hand. The first player to act in a betting interval must place chips into the pot equal to or greater than the bet made by the player before him. If a player does not call the first bet, he must fold his hand and forfeit any right to a share of the pot.

The rank of poker hands is based on their odds and probability, with five of a kind beating all other hands. A straight is any five consecutive cards of the same suit; a flush is three or more cards of the same rank; and a pair is two matching cards of the same rank. Ties are broken by the higher unmatched cards or secondary pairs (in a full house).

When playing poker, it is important to have good tells and body language. This helps you read your opponents and understand their intentions in a given situation. Some classic tells include shallow breathing, sighing, flaring nostrils, sweating, blinking rapidly, shaking hands and an increasing pulse in the neck or temple.