Poker is a card game with a lot of luck, but it also involves a significant amount of skill and psychology. The best players will always win in the long run. The goal is to find optimal frequencies and hand ranges, and make the correct decisions based on these frequencies. It takes a lot of practice to get good at this, but the more you play, the better you will become.
There are many different poker games and betting rules, but the basics are the same in all of them: each player puts in an ante (amount varies by game) before being dealt cards. Once all the betting is done, the highest hand wins the pot. If no one has a winning hand, the dealer will deal replacement cards to everyone.
A pair is two cards of the same rank, a three of a kind is 3 matching cards of one rank, and a straight is five consecutive cards in the same suit, like 5-6-7-8-9. A flush is any combination of 5 cards of the same suit, including wild cards. The highest natural hand is a royal flush, consisting of an Ace high straight, or A-K-Q-J-T.
Talking poker with people who are better than you is a great way to improve your own game. However, it’s important to choose the right people to talk to. They should be willing to share their thoughts and thought process, not just their results. This will allow you to see the process that led to their success, and learn from it.