Poker is a card game in which players place chips (representing money) into the pot during betting intervals as defined by the rules of the particular game. The first player to do so is referred to as the ante or blind. Each subsequent player must put in a bet equal to or greater than the amount placed in the pot by the player before him.

The game can be played by two to seven people, although the best games are played with four or five players. It is a game of skill rather than chance, and winning hands are made by combining cards with certain values. The highest hand wins. A pair of identical cards is the second-highest hand; three of a kind is the third-highest; and a straight is a series of consecutive cards in different suits.

A high percentage of hands in poker will not win, but the average good player will win more than half of them. The rest will be lost, either because of bad luck or poor decisions. This is the nature of the game and something all players must accept.

If you play too cautiously and rarely call or raise, the other players at your table will know that you have a weaker hand than they do. They will then be able to push you around the table and reduce the amount of value you get paid off. Consequently, it is important to learn how to play aggressively, even when you have a marginal hand.