Poker is a card game played with a standard 52-card deck. It includes a rank system of cards (high to low) and four suits; the highest hand wins. Some games add jokers, or wild cards, which can take on any suit and rank.

During the betting round players put money into the pot by “calling” if they think their hand has positive expected value or bluffing other players for strategic reasons. While a particular hand’s result largely depends on chance, long-run expectations are determined by a player’s actions chosen on the basis of probability, psychology and game theory.

Before the flop the dealer shuffles the cards and puts three community cards on the table that anyone can use. This is called the flop. After the flop, another betting round takes place.

In poker, it’s important to read your opponents. Watching their body language is crucial to understanding their emotions and determining how strong or weak their hand might be. There are a number of tells that are common among good poker players. They include: