This is the daddy of all hands and even if you
play often, you will rarely see one. It's similar to a
hole in one in golf. It is made of up all of the same
suite, ten through Ace. It is a straight and a flush and
the royal part comes from it being made up of the highest cards
too.
As Ks Qs Js Ts
Straight Flush
While not as magical as the royal straight flush,
the straight flush still is a rarity. It is made up of
5 cards of the same suite ranked in succession. For example
6-10, or A-5 (Ace can play both high and low in straights).
Jc, Tc, 9c, 8c, 7c
Four Of A Kind
This is self-explanatory. A four of a kind
occurs when you have all the cards of one type.
Ks, Kd, Kc, Kh
Full House
A full house happens when you have both three
of a kind and also a pair. To determine if one full house higher
ranked then another, first look at the three cards of the same
kind. The one that is larger wins. If they both
are the same then you'll have to compare the two cards. For
example:
Jacks full of fours (JJJ, 44)
beats
9s full of Aces (999, AA) Jacks full of tens (JJJ, TT)
beats
Jacks full of nines (JJJ, 99) Full houses in texas hold'em are
nice hands and you will most likely see someone show one down
every time you play.
Jc, Jd, Jh, 9c, 9h
Flush
A flush occurs when you have five of the same
suite. If the cards were also in succession (like a straight),
then it would be a straight flush. To determine which
flush wins if there are more then one in a hand, then the person
with the highest card in their hand wins. In the example
to the right, the person has a ten high flush. This would
beat someone with a nine high flush and below. Flushes are pretty
common in hold'em.
Th, 8h, 4h, 3h, 2h
Straight
A straight occurs when a player has five cards
in ranked succession. Note that an Ace can play both as
a high card or a low card. Note the two examples to the
right. Straights are also very common in hold'em.
Ah, Kc, Qd, Jd, Th
Ah, 2c, 3h, 4h, 5c
Three Of A Kind
Three of a kind is a nice hand. There are
two different names for three of a kind hands and it depends
on whether you have two of them on the board, or a pair in your
hand. They both rank the same but to be a savvy player
you should know the difference. If you have a pocket pair
and hit one on the flop then it is called a "set".
If you have two cards on the flop and only one in
your hand then it is called three of a kind.
8h, 8d, 8c, 9d, Ad
Two Pair
Two pair is when your best five cards create
a pair twice. That seems easy enough right? When comparing
two hands both with two pair then the larger one always wins.
For example:
AA 22 would beat KK JJ
88 33 would beat 77 66
Kh, Kd, Qh, Qd, 3c
One Pair
One pair is the hand you'll be getting the most
and trying to win with the most. Top pair is usually the
hand you'll be betting and trying to win some pots with. When
more then one person has the same pair, then the "kickers"
come in to play. Remember texas hold'em uses the best
five cards so the following is true: Ah, Ac, Jc, 6d, 4d
would lose to
Ad, As, Jd, 6c, 5d
Notice how the 5 beats the 4 (best five cards makes a hand).
Kh, Kd, 8j, 6d, 5c
High Card
The high card hand is the lowest non pair hand.
Sometimes Ace high can win, but in the low limit games
it is very rare. In the example to the right, the high card
is K. So you would have "king high". You would
beat someone if they had "queen high" or below but
even a pair of deuces would beat you!
