Poker is a game of cards where players form hands and bet on them, with the highest hand winning the pot. The game requires a certain amount of skill to play well, as it involves reading the other players and making decisions under uncertainty. But it also requires focus, endurance and discipline — skills that can be applied to other aspects of life.

The first step to learning poker is understanding the rules and etiquette. Then you must commit to a solid study program and smart game selection. A fun game isn’t necessarily going to be the most profitable for you, so it is important to choose the right games and limits to participate in.

Once you’re comfortable with the basics, it’s time to learn more advanced strategies. There is a huge amount of information available on the internet and in books. But how do you know which information is most useful? As former professional player Annie Duke explains in her book Thinking in Bets, when deciding under uncertainty, you must first estimate the probabilities of different scenarios and outcomes.

A full house consists of three matching cards of one rank and two unmatched cards of another rank. A straight contains five consecutive cards of the same suit. A flush consists of three matching cards in a row, but can be from more than one suit. And a pair is two matching cards of the same rank and three unmatched cards of other ranks.