Poker is a game of skill and psychology, but one of the hardest parts of the game to master is staying on course when your strategy doesn’t produce the results you expect. Human nature will always try to derail you with bad calls or ill-advised bluffs, so you need to be willing to be patient and disciplined and keep working on your game even when you don’t see the wins you want.

In most games, each player antes a small amount (the exact amount varies by the game). They then receive two hole cards and betting begins. After the initial bets, an additional card is dealt face up in the middle of the table, called the “flop.” At this point, you can decide to call, fold or raise. The highest hand wins the pot.

When playing strong value hands, you should bet and raise aggressively to put your opponents under pressure and out-position them. This will force them to over-think and arrive at the wrong conclusions, which will ultimately cost them money. Alternatively, you can slowplay your hand to mislead your opponents into thinking that you’re bluffing and try to trap them. However, this isn’t the most profitable way to play poker and it can lead to a lot of unnecessary losses. So, be careful and don’t be afraid to play your strong value hands straightforwardly.