In poker, players compete to form the highest-value hand using a combination of their own hole cards and the community cards. The highest-ranking hand wins the pot. The most valuable hands include a Royal Flush (10-Jack-Queen-King-Ace of the same suit), Straight Flush (5 consecutive cards of the same rank), Full House (3 matching cards of one rank and two matching cards of another rank), Three of a Kind, Two Pairs, and One Pair.
After the first betting round, the dealer puts down a third card on the table that anyone can use (the flop). Then, there’s another round of betting, with players raising and folding as they see fit.
The player to the left of the big blind takes the first turn, and can either put out chips equal to the current bet (call), raise the current bet by at least double (raise), or push their cards to the dealer facedown without putting any chips in (fold).
As you play poker, try to take note of what other players are doing and how they are acting. Studying the moves made by more experienced players can give you a broader perspective on the game, and help you incorporate some of their strategies into your own gameplay.
Once the final betting round is over, the dealer shows everyone their cards and the person with the best 5-card poker hand wins all the money that was put up as buy-ins in the pot.