Poker is a card game played by two or more players. It involves betting on the strength of a player’s hand and raising when they have a good chance to improve it. The objective is to win the pot by having the highest ranked hand at the end of the betting round.

To play, each player must buy in for a certain number of chips. The chip value varies depending on the game, but most games use a standard system: white chips are worth one unit, red chips are five units, and blue chips are 25 units. Each player must have at least 200 chips in total.

The most common hands in poker are pairs, three of a kind, straights, and flushes. A pair consists of two cards of the same rank, three of a kind are 3 cards in sequence but different from each other, and a straight is five cards in consecutive order of any suit.

As you learn more about the game, pay attention to how other players react to different cards and situations. Studying and observing experienced players is a great way to pick up some poker tricks and develop your own instincts.

However, don’t focus too much on the details of each hand. Describing a series of bets, checks, and reveals can become boring for your audience. Instead, try to focus on how the players are reacting to the cards – who flinches, smiles, or even blinks. This will make the story more interesting.