An Insider's Look at Poker: Tips, Tactics, and Techniques

Everyone knows the game poker, but few people know how to play it. Moreover, there are many different variations of poker, so you need to know which version you're playing to know the rules.

How is poker played?

The idea behind poker is to determine what your hand is worth in relation to everyone else's taking part in the game. Play moves around the table. Players need to decide whether to match the bet placed before them to remain in play or fold their hand to exit the round.

This means it can come down to two players, and who believes their hand will be the winner. It also means one player can decide to fold and exit the hand. In this case, they'll lose even if the other player had the losing hand. A player with the skill to make others fold is often called a shark.

Is poker down to skill or luck?

Both are involved. There's no way to tell which cards you might be dealt, so there is some luck involved there. However, the more you know about poker and what certain hands are worth, the more you can bring an element of skill into the game.

Is learning poker difficult?

It's a relatively straightforward game to pick up, but it can take a while to get used to the rules if you're new. The best way to begin playing is to check out some video poker. This is a basic version of the game, and you can begin to get used to the different hands you can win with. You can then progress to the table game versions, but make sure when you do so that they're not live. You should be able to find lots of practice versions you can play with chips held inside the game. You can't score real prizes, but you can learn plenty without any risk.

Is there a strategy to poker?

While some casino games rely solely on good fortune for things to work out in your favor, this doesn't apply to poker. There is some strategy involved, so the better you know the game and the more you understand its features, the more chance you've got of winning some hands.

What is the key to poker?

You should manage your budget and your casino chips carefully when you play poker. It's easy to go through lots of chips in one hand if you go around the table a couple of times.

The bottom line here is that the more you learn about the game (specifically the variant you would like to play), the easier you'll find it to work out what to do next. Poker is down to luck, yes, but the element of skill and strategy sets it apart from other casino game you could play.