Poker is a card game with millions of fans. The game involves a combination of your own two cards and five community cards to make a poker hand. You place a “bet” (the amount varies by game) and then players can raise the bet in turn clockwise. The highest poker hand wins the pot. You can win the pot without showing your cards by betting aggressively, forcing weaker hands to fold and by bluffing.

There is an opening round of betting when all players get their 2 hole cards. This is typically followed by the flop, which is 3 community cards dealt face up. Then there is another round of betting.

You can say “I open” if you want to bet the same as the player before you. If the person to your right has raised the bet, you can call by saying “I call.” Otherwise you can check if you don’t want to raise or call the bet. If you check, you will either bet again on the next turn or you will go out of the hand.

What makes a good poker article is personal anecdotes, specific details about the game and the by-play between players (like who flinched or smiled). Also, it’s helpful to study the rules of poker, including its many variants. Lastly, you should be familiar with the strategies used by professional players, including how to read tells. This will allow you to create interesting and compelling articles about poker.