Poker is a card game in which players wager money to win a pot. The game has hundreds—perhaps even thousands—of variations, but they all have the same objective: to make the best five-card hand. Players place bets into the pot before being dealt cards, and they may raise these bets during what are called betting rounds. In the end, the player with the best hand wins all of the money in the pot.
The highest-ranking poker hand is a royal flush, which is made up of a straight, four of a kind, or three of a kind. A straight is 5 consecutive cards of the same suit (e.g., all clubs, hearts, diamonds, or spades). A four of a kind is four cards of the same rank and two matching suits. A three of a kind is three matching cards of any rank and one matching suit. A pair is two matching cards of any rank and one matching suit.
Players can choose to call a bet, raise it, or fold. If they raise, they must match the amount raised by other players if they choose to continue playing, or else concede and give up their cards. They can also bluff, attempting to deceive their opponents into thinking they have a better hand than they actually do.
In both poker and life, it is important to balance risk and reward. Pursuing safety can lead to a smaller return on investment, but sacrificing a small amount of risk can sometimes lead to a large reward, such as winning a big pot or getting a job interview.