Poker is a card game in which players compete for an amount of money or chips contributed by all players (the pot). Players place bets voluntarily and for various reasons, including to maximize the amount of winnings they expect, to bluff other players, and to punish opponents for bad behavior. While the outcome of any individual hand largely involves chance, long-run expectations are determined by strategic decisions made by players on the basis of probability theory, psychology, and game theory.

To be successful, you must overcome the inherent biases in your playing style and develop quick instincts. This takes practice, and watching experienced players to see how they play and react in a given situation. To do this, you must also be willing to lose hands when you did everything right, to fall victim to terrible luck, and to lose to better cards than yours.

A standard 52-card pack is used in poker, often with one or two jokers. In games with more than 10 players, a second pack of contrasting colors is used to speed up the deal and reduce the number of mistakes made by the dealer. When the first pack is dealt, the previous dealer assembles all the cards from the deck he dealt and shuffles it to prepare it for the next deal. This enables the player to make an informed decision to call or raise a bet when it comes around to his turn.