Poker Hand Ranking

Poker Hand Ranking – Refresher

Poker hand rankings are the same for several varieties of the game as it is played in most casinos and poker rooms around the world. No one should sit down at any poker table without this basic knowledge. If you are involved in a friendly penny-ante game you may be able to learn while doing. These hand rankings are for the best five-card hand, whether the game is five-card or seven-card.

A player will have to have at least a pair to win a hand, most of the time. But the rank of hands actually begins with “high card.” In a standard, 52-card deck, the cards range from 2 through 10 then Jack, Queen, King and Ace. In some games the Ace can be counted as a “one,” the lowest card in the deck. If no one has a pair and one player has an Ace, this is the winning hand.

Example	Description of poker hand
	Card values go from Ace through 10 (with the Ace counting as 1 or the lowest card). Then comes the Jack - followed by the Queen, King and the Ace again if this card can be used as highest or lowest value. If no player has a pair, the high card determines the winner.
	Next in line is the pair. The deck has four suits – spades, diamonds, hearts and clubs. Suppose you have in your hand the 2 of spades and the 2 of diamonds. You have a pair of 2s (also called deuces). A pair of Queens beats a pair of 9s, for example.
	If you have two pair in your hand you’re in pretty good shape. But be careful, there are several hands that are much stronger.
	Next comes three of a kind, sometimes referred to as a “set.” Example: three 9s or three Kings. This is usually a very good hand.
	Sometimes a player gets three of a kind and feels invincible, only to lose to a straight. This hand includes five cards in consecutive number order. Suits don’t matter with a straight. Example: 5, 6, 7, 8, 9 of any suit. An Ace might be used for the smallest straight Ace through 5, or the highest straight, 10 through Ace. The smallest straight has been called the “wheel” while the largest straight is sometimes called “Broadway.”
	What if you have five cards of the same suit but not in number order? You have a flush. Example: a 3, 6, 7, 10 and Ace of hearts.
	When we move to the next-best hand we’re getting into the rare atmosphere. People will sometimes win the hand with a full house. This is made up of three cards of the same rank, such as three Kings, along with another two cards of the same rank, such as two 7s. This is often referred to as a “full boat” as well.
	At the start we mentioned that there are four suits in the deck and each suit has the same number of cards. If you get the rare four of akind that means you have all four Kings or all four 8s or all four of any other card.
	The straight flush is just what it sounds like: a combination of five cards in consecutive number order and all the same suit. Example: 5, 6, 7, 8, 9 all clubs.
	If you have the 10, Jack, Queen, King and Ace, all the same suit, you have the best hand – a royal flush.

Those are the poker hand rankings for high-card poker.