Poker is a card game where players compete to form the best hand using their cards and the community cards revealed at the table. The highest hand wins the pot at the end of the betting phase. Depending on the rules, there may be additional cards called Jokers (or Wild Cards) which can take the place of any suit.
Initially, you are dealt 2 cards and then the betting phase begins. The dealer will reveal his cards, and you can choose to hit, stay, or double up. The dealer will then give you one more card. You can then say hit if you believe that your original two cards have a low value, or you can keep the same pair if they are high enough in value, or you can change to a higher pair, like 3 of a kind or straight.
You can also play a flush, which is 5 cards of the same rank in sequence, or you can have a straight, which is five consecutive cards of different ranks, or a three of a kind. The highest pair is used to break ties.
A good poker player understands that it is usually the situation at the table, not their cards, that determines whether they win or lose. In other words, a pair of Kings is usually a good hand, but it can be beaten by someone holding A-A when the flop comes 10-8,6. This is why it’s important to learn your opponents. This doesn’t necessarily mean picking up on subtle physical poker tells but more often than not you should be looking for patterns in their betting behavior.