Poker is a game of chance and strategy that requires players to evaluate their odds of winning each hand and weigh the risks versus the rewards. Like life, you can’t play it safe all the time, otherwise you miss opportunities to make progress towards your goals. On the other hand, taking too much risk can result in failure.
In poker, one or more betting intervals take place during each deal. At the beginning of each betting interval a player, as determined by the rules of the poker variant being played, has the privilege or obligation to place chips (representing money) into the pot before his or her opponents. This is called placing the ante.
After the ante is placed, each player is dealt two cards face-down (hidden from other players). These hidden cards are known as a player’s hole or pocket cards. Then, three cards are revealed in the center of the table and are community cards. This is the flop. After the flop betting phase, another betting interval begins with the player to the left of the big blind.
A player may raise his or her bets after an opponent has raised, in order to make them match his or her bet and possibly win the pot. This is a re-raise. A re-raise can also be used to pressure an opponent into calling a bet by making him or her fear that the raiser has strong cards. It is a common strategy in poker.