If you want to learn poker, or even better, become a millionaire by playing with friends in your living room, it’s important to understand the game’s basic rules. These are not difficult to master, but they will give you a good foundation to build upon.

The basic rules of poker are simple: Each player puts up a bet (called the small blind and the big blind) before their starting hands are dealt. A player wins the pot (the total amount of money bet in a hand) when they have the best poker hand, or all the other players fold.

After the cards are dealt, players can check, call, raise or fold their hands. When making these decisions, it is important to think about what your opponent is likely to have and how they might perceive your actions. Always have a reason for your moves, eg, are you betting for value or as a bluff?

Strong value hands are your best bet at winning the pot. You don’t hit these hands as often as you might think, but when you do, it’s worth getting involved with them.

A full house contains 3 matching cards of one rank and 2 matching cards of another rank. A flush contains 5 consecutive cards of the same suit. A straight contains 5 cards of consecutive rank, but from more than one suit. The highest card breaks ties.