Poker is a card game in which each player makes a series of bets during one or more betting intervals, according to the rules of the variant being played. These bets are placed into a central pot, with each player contributing at least as much money (representing chips) to the pot as the player to his or her left did in the previous betting interval.

The goal is to win more money than other players. To do this, you must have a good starting hand and play it aggressively. This means playing a solid range of hands that includes pocket pairs, suited aces, and broadway hands. You must also be able to read other players’ tendencies and adjust your strategy accordingly.

If you have two deuces, for example, the best strategy is to hold it because it guarantees a profit. But that’s not the end of the story, as there may be straight and flush draws that materialize as the hand progresses. It’s important to think carefully about the situation and weight your chances to maximize your profits.

Sometimes your sound strategy backfires and you get crushed by a table full of idiots. They raise with junk, call your bluffs with junk, and hit perfect cards on the turn and river to rake in the pot. It’s easy to get discouraged at this point and start thinking that poker is rigged. However, if you look at your results over the long term, they will show a reversion to the mean.