Article: The more you play and watch, the faster and better you’ll get. Since every poker game is different, it’s important to develop good instincts rather than try to memorize and apply tricky systems. Observe experienced players and imagine how you’d react in their position. Then, watch how the experienced players react to build your own instincts. While you do this, consider how successful you’d have been if you were playing and reacted as you did. Would you have won, or would you have lost? Then, decide how you can improve your strategy going forward. and cut the deck before they’re dealt. Shuffling the cards mixes them up to make the game more fair. To do a basic shuffle, split the deck into 2 stacks. Next, hold a stack in each hand close together and facing each other. Use your thumbs to flip through the cards, combining the deck into one. After the cards are shuffled, get someone who isn’t the dealer to cut the deck by separating it into 2 stacks and placing the bottom stack on top.  Do several shuffles to make sure the cards are mixed up. You can cut the deck more than once if you’d like. The dealer typically does the shuffling and bets last, which is called the “button” position. After each hand, you’ll pass the dealer/button position to the next player on the left. If the dealer is always the same person, like in a casino, the button position will still pass clockwise around the table. You can say this if you are the first better or if all those already betting have checked. If you say "check" when it's your turn at the beginning of a new hand, that means you are choosing not to place a bet at that point. Instead, you pass the chance to open to the next player.  In the following rounds, if you say “check,” that means you’re staying with the bets you already paid into the pot during this hand, and you won’t pay more until someone else raises during their turn. If another player does raise on that hand, then you nor anyone else can say "check" or maintain your “check”—so when the play comes around to you again you have to either match or raise the latest bet or fold your hand. For example, you could raise the ante $1 or at least the agreed minimum raise. If you choose not to open, take turns in clockwise order, until someone else has opened or every player checked. If everyone checks, then it is time to choose to discard and draw 1 to 3 cards, or "hold pat" on the cards you have. When there are fewer than 3 cards available to draw, replacements will be drawn. The dealer will have to shuffle the discards and add them to the bottom of the draw stack. Calling means making a bet equal to the last bet or raise. For example, if the person right of you just bet $10 and it's now your turn, you would say "call" or “I call” to match that bet. Then you would place $10 in chips or cash in the pot. This is also known as “sweetening the pot.” Raise or re-raise requires finishing this round and making another round to now allow any others to "call" or "raise" the amount of that last bet to stay in the game, or else "fold". The ones who already called can check on this turn and the hand is finished unless someone re-raises.  If someone before you bets $20 and you think you have a winning hand or you want to bluff, you can raise when it's your turn by saying “raise to $30.” However, do not say “I see your 20, and I’ll raise you 10…” Despite being popular in movies, this is actually frowned upon as sloppy table talk. Folding means forfeiting your cards and giving up that pot with any bets you've made into it. Wait to be dealt into the next hand if you have chips or have not reached your limit of losses. To fold when it’s your turn, put your cards face down on the table and place them onto the discard pile. You can fold at any point in a hand when it’s your turn. This means exchanging your poker chips for money. If you still have chips but don’t want to play anymore, take your chips to the bank and tell them you’re ready to cash in. The bank will determine how much money your chips represent, then they’ll hand you cash. You can usually return and watch the game after you cash in.
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Practice and watch others play to develop quick instincts. Shuffle the cards Say “check" to skip placing a bet or simply tap the table twice with two fingers. Say "I open" if a bet hasn’t been placed yet and you want to open betting. Say “call” if you want to bet the same as the last person. “Raise” to increase the current betting amount. Say “I fold” when you're ready to quit a hand. “Cash-in” when you’re ready to quit the game.