There is a great deal of skill involved in poker. While the outcome of any single hand involves some element of chance, in the long run players place bets into the pot voluntarily because they believe those bets will have positive expected value or because they want to bluff other players for strategic reasons. These decisions are based on probability, psychology, and game theory.

The game starts with a player placing an ante (a small amount of money) into the pot, then being dealt two cards face down. Betting then takes place in one round with raising and re-raising allowed. Players may also discard their cards and take new ones from the top of the deck.

Once the first betting round is over, the dealer puts three additional cards face up on the table that everyone can use. This is called the flop. At this point you have your pocket cards and the community cards, so it’s important to evaluate your position in the hand. If your pocket cards are good, like a pair of 3s for example, then you would say stay. If they are low, then you’d say hit.

You can also say fold if you don’t want to play the hand, but you should be careful with this because it is rude to do so while other players are still in contention for the pot. It’s also a good idea to avoid taking breaks or leaving the table while a hand is in progress, so make sure you have plenty of time to finish your hands.