Poker is a game in which players place chips (representing money) into a pot for betting. During each betting phase, players reveal their cards and aim to make the best five card “hand” with their own two personal cards plus the community cards. The player with the best hand wins the round and all the money that has been placed down as a buy-in.

Players can also raise their bets to “bluff” other players and try to fool them into thinking they have a good hand. They can also choose to leave the game at any time by “folding” and not bet again.

In order to increase your chances of winning, it is important to study the tells of other players. Tells are the unconscious habits of a poker player that give away information about their hand. They can be as subtle as a facial expression or as noticeable as a body language change.

Maria Konnikova is a writer and former academic psychologist who uses poker to learn about decision-making. She believes that learning to play poker can help us understand uncertainty and improve our decisions in life, whether we’re deciding what to have for breakfast or our career choices. She has written a book about her journey into the world of poker and decision-making, entitled The Biggest Bluff.