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Poker is hugely popular, and with good reason: it’s a fun social game that can be played for real money; it has a great deal of strategy involved, which keeps players engaged; and there are a number of different ways to win. But before you start bluffing, raising, and folding, there are some basic things you should know.

The first thing you need to understand is how the betting works. There are several betting intervals, called “rounds,” during each hand of poker. Each round is initiated by 2 mandatory bets, called “blinds,” placed into the pot by the players to the left of the dealer. These bets ensure that there is at least some interest in the pot, and they also help prevent players from bluffing or “folding” out of turn, which would destroy the flow of the game.

When it’s your turn to act, you can either say “call” (match the previous player’s bet amount) or “raise” (increase the previous player’s bet amount). The most important thing to remember is that you should always say what you mean – tacking on an extra word like “check” when you want to check means nothing and can confuse the other players. You should also place or slide your chips forward for the other players and dealer to see so that they can confirm how many you’re placing.

After the bets are placed, the flop is dealt. The dealer will then put the next card face up on the table, and another round of betting begins. Players can call, raise, or fold their hands at this point.

The rules of poker state that you can have one of the following hands: a pair, three of a kind, four of a kind, straight, or flush. A pair is two cards of the same rank, three of a kind is 3 cards of the same rank, and a flush is 5 consecutive cards of the same suit. Some of these hands are easier to conceal than others. For example, if you have pocket fives and the flop comes A-8-5, most people are going to assume that you have a full house. Other hands, such as two pairs of aces, are more difficult to conceal.