Understanding poker hand rankings is essential for anyone looking to play poker successfully. In a standard 52-card deck, there are exactly 2,598,960 possible five-card poker hand combinations.
The hierarchy of poker hands, from highest to lowest, consists of the Royal Flush, Straight Flush, Four of a Kind, Full House, Flush, Straight, Three of a Kind, Two Pair, One Pair, and High Card.
The rarity of each hand determines its ranking – a Royal Flush, occurring only once in every 649,739 hands, is the most prestigious and rarest hand in poker.
Each hand category has specific rules for comparing similar hands, with kickers (unpaired cards) often determining the winner in tied situations.
In Texas Hold’em and most other poker variants, these rankings remain consistent, making them fundamental to mastering the game.
The probability of making each hand varies significantly – for example, players have roughly a 50% chance of getting no pair (High Card) but only a 0.000154% chance of hitting a Royal Flush.
The Poker Hand Rankings
1. Royal Flush: The Royal Flush stands as poker’s most prestigious hand, featuring the Ace, King, Queen, Jack, and 10 all in the same suit. With odds of just 1 in 649,739, hitting this hand is like striking gold at the poker table. For example, a ♠A-K-Q-J-10♠ represents the perfect Royal Flush in spades.
2. Straight Flush: A Straight Flush comes next in the hierarchy, consisting of five consecutive cards of the same suit, like 9♥-8♥-7♥-6♥-5♥. While not quite as rare as its royal cousin, this hand still only appears once in every 72,192 hands. When comparing two straight flushes, the highest card determines the winner.
3. Four of a Kind: Four of a Kind, affectionately known as “quads” among poker players, occurs when you hold all four cards of the same rank plus any fifth card. The probability sits at 1 in 4,164 hands. For instance, 8♠-8♣-8♥-8♦-K♣ would beat 7♠-7♣-7♥-7♦-A♣, as the rank of the four matching cards takes precedence.
4. Ful House: The Full House combines three of a kind with a pair, appearing once in every 693 hands. In a showdown between full houses, the rank of the three matching cards determines the winner. A hand like Q♠-Q♣-Q♥-7♦-7♣ would triumph over J♠-J♣-J♥-A♦-A♣.
5. Flush: A Flush features five cards of the same suit in any order, occurring once in 508 hands. When comparing flushes, players look at the highest card, and then work their way down if necessary. For example, A♥-J♥-8♥-4♥-2♥ beats K♥-Q♥-10♥-5♥-3♥.
6. Straight: The Straight shows up once in every 254 hands and consists of five consecutive cards of mixed suits. Aces can play high or low, making A-K-Q-J-10 the highest possible straight and 5-4-3-2-A the lowest. In 6♠-5♣-4♥-3♦-2♣ versus 5♣-4♥-3♦-2♣-A♠, the latter wins.
7. Three of a Kind: Three of a Kind, also called “trips” or a “set”, appears once in 46 hands. This hand contains three cards of the same rank plus two unrelated cards. When comparing, the rank of the three matching cards determines the winner, with the remaining two cards serving as kickers.
8. Two Pairs: Two Pairs show up frequently, occurring once in every 20 hands. As the name suggests, it consists of two different pairs plus one unrelated card. In a showdown, compare the highest pair first, then the second pair, and finally the kicker.
9. Pair: One Pair happens roughly once in 1.36 hands, making it a common occurrence at the poker table. This hand contains just two cards of matching rank plus three unrelated cards. When comparing one pair of hands, first look at the pair’s rank, then compare the remaining cards in descending order.
10. High Card: The High Card represents the weakest possible hand, occurring when you don’t make any of the above combinations. These hands are compared by looking at the highest card first, and then working down through the remaining cards. While common, appearing in about 50% of hands, winning
What are Tiebreakers and Kickers?
A kicker serves as the ultimate tiebreaker in poker when players have hands of equal rank. Think of it as your backup card that steps in to save the day when the main hand rankings result in a tie.
The kicker is the highest unpaired card that isn’t part of the primary hand combination.
Let’s break this down with some real-world examples. Imagine two players both holding a pair of Aces. Player 1 has A♠ K♣ while Player 2 has A♥ Q♦.
If the board shows A♣ 7♠ 4♥ 3♦ 2♣, Player 1 wins because their King kicker outranks Player 2’s Queen kicker. The winning five-card hand would be A-A-K-7-4 versus A-A-Q-7-4.
In Texas Hold’em, kickers become particularly crucial in common scenarios. Consider a situation where Player 1 holds A-8 and Player 2 has A-7, with the board showing A-K-6-5-4. Player 1’s hand (A-A-K-8-6) beats Player 2’s hand (A-A-K-7-6) thanks to the higher kicker.
However, if both players have identical kickers, or if the best five-card hand uses all community cards, the pot gets split evenly between the players.
The kicker system applies differently across various hand rankings. It’s most relevant in hands with high cards, one pair, and two pairs.
In stronger hands like full houses or flushes, kickers rarely come into play since these hands have their own hierarchy system.
Understanding how kickers work is crucial for poker success, as they often determine who takes home the pot in closely matched hands.
Poker Hand Probabilities
In a standard 52-card deck, there are exactly 2,598,960 possible five-card poker hand combinations. The probability of making each hand type follows a strict hierarchy, with rarer hands being more valuable.
High Card is the most common hand, occurring roughly 50% of the time with odds of 1 in 2. One Pair follows at 42.3% probability or 1 in 2.4 hands. Two Pair appears less frequently at 4.75% or 1 in 21 hands.
Moving up the hierarchy, Three of a Kind occurs 2.11% of the time (1 in 47 hands), while a Straight has a 0.39% chance (1 in 255 hands). A Flush appears in 0.20% of hands (1 in 509), and a Full House shows up 0.14% of the time (1 in 694).
Texas Hold’em Starting Hands
In Texas Hold’em, there are 1,326 distinct possible starting hand combinations, which can be grouped into 169 non-equivalent hands when considering suits. These break down into:
Pocket Pairs: 5.88% chance (1 in 17 hands)
Suited Cards: 23.53% chance
Offsuit Cards: 70.59% chance
The probability of being dealt premium hands is notably low:
Pocket Aces: 0.452% (1 in 221 hands)
Ace-King Suited: 0.302% (1 in 331 hands)
Any Premium Pair (QQ+): 1.36% (1 in 73 hands)
Rare Hand Probabilities
The rarest and most prestigious hands have extremely low probabilities:
Four of a Kind: 0.024% (1 in 4,165 hands)
Straight Flush: 0.00139% (1 in 72,192 hands)
Royal Flush: 0.000154% (1 in 649,740 hands)
Understanding these probabilities is crucial for making informed decisions at the poker table, especially when calculating pot odds and evaluating the strength of your hand against potential opponents’ holdings.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: What is the best hand in poker?
The Royal Flush is the highest-ranking hand, consisting of A-K-Q-J-10 all of the same suit. It’s incredibly rare, occurring only once in 649,739 hands.
Q: What beats what in poker?
The hand rankings from highest to lowest are: Royal Flush,Straight Flush, Four of a Kind, Full House, Flush,Straight, Three of a Kind,Two Pair,One Pair, and High Card.
Q: What is a straight, flush, and full house?
AStraightis five consecutive cards of any suit (like 5-6-7-8-9). AFlushis five cards of the same suit in any order. A Full House combines three cards of one rank with a pair of another rank (like Q-Q-Q-2-2).
Q: How are ties broken in poker?
When players have the same hand type, the highest cards determine the winner. For example, with two flushes, the highest card in each flush is compared first, then the second-highest if needed, and so on.
Q: Is one suit ranked higher than others?
In standard poker games, all suits are equal in value. However, some venues use suit rankings (spades, hearts, diamonds, clubs in descending order) for specific situations like determining the dealer button or splitting odd chips, but never for determining the winning hand.
Conclusion
The knowledge of poker hand rankings is the foundation of successful poker play. With 2,598,960 possible five-card combinations, knowing which hands beat others becomes crucial for making quick, confident decisions at the table.
Whether you’re chasing a Royal Flush or deciding whether to call with Two Pair, these rankings guide every choice you make.
Practice recognizing these hands until they become second nature – you’ll find that understanding the 0.000154% chance of hitting a Royal Flush versus the 42.3% chance of making One Pair helps you play smarter. Remember, in poker, knowledge isn’t just power – it’s profit.
