An Overview Of Poker Hand Strengths
on 4:00 AM
An Overview Of Poker Hand Strengths
Any poker player must understand both the types of hands available in the game and their relative strengths against one another. It's quite straightforward and you don't have much to remember. However the strength of your hand - in particular your two hole cards - determine to a large extent what to play, what to fold as the hand progresses and if you might try to make your opponents think you have better cards than you actually do. So just what are the various hand strengths?
The lowest is the high card. You have say a ten, nothing of a higher value than that and nothing to match up to say make a pair (two cards of the same value). Unless you are plain lucky or a world class bluffer it is highly likely that a high card hand is going to win you anything. Fold and get out.
Next up is a pair. Just like it sounds that's two cards of the same value. Two tens, two jacks and so on. The might the value of the pair the better. For example a pair of kings beats a pair of nines. Pairs (particularly high value) can be not so bad to get in to a pot with though tend not to play so well unless you improve the hand on the flop by say making three of a kind.
The next highest rank of hand is two pairs. For example two nines and two sevens. As with one pair, the higher the value of the higher pair the better. So those two nines and two sevens are not as good as two kings and two nines. Two pairs is a sort of a middling hand though can easily become a full house (very powerful) if a third card of the same value as one of your pairs appears. For example your have two nines and two sevens and another nine comes out during the play of the hand.
Then it's three of a kind. Self explanatory. Three kings, three eights. If you have three of a kind it could become almost unbeatable if you hit that fourth card of the same kind. Three of am kind can be a nice disguised hand if your small hole card pair hits the third (or fourth) on the flop.
A straight is next in line in terms of strength. The hand compromises of any five cards of different suits in sequence. For example 6, 7, 8, 9 10 or 9, 10, jack, queen, king. The suits are not important - can be a mixture of all of them - as long as the cards are in sequence. The higher the value of the highest card the better. So a straight with a 10 as the highest card will be beaten by a straight with a queen as the higher value card. For straight purposes an ace can be either high or low.
After a straight comes a flush. That's five cards all of the same suite. All spaces, all diamonds, all hearts or all clubs. As with a normal straight, the higher the value of the highest card the better. So if you are dealt what are known as "suited connectors" as your hole cards (two cards of the same suit next to each other, say a nine and ten of hearts) and hit three more hearts you are in a good position of strength.
I mentioned a full house in a previous paragraph. That's the next highest ranking of hand after a straight flush. A full house is made up of three cards of the same value and one pair. For example three jacks and a pair of fives.
Now it's four of a kind. Four cards of the same value. Four aces, four nines, four threes. If you have a pair to start with and manage to find the other two somehow then there are only two other hands of a higher ranking.
The first of those is a straight flush. That's the same as a flush - five cards all of the same suit running consecutively. For example the 7, 8, 9, 10 and jack of clubs.
Now for the highest rank of hand in poker. The royal flush. These come along about as often as Halley's comet. But what is a royal flush. Well, it is a flush of 10, jack, queen, king, ace all of the same suit.
So there you have it. The different types of poker hands and their respective strengths. Memorise it, get used to it, know what beats what and as your poker skills develop learn to try to figure out what your opponents may have and what you might want to make them think you have if a bluffing opportunity may present itself. Good luck at the tables.
Any poker player must understand both the types of hands available in the game and their relative strengths against one another. It's quite straightforward and you don't have much to remember. However the strength of your hand - in particular your two hole cards - determine to a large extent what to play, what to fold as the hand progresses and if you might try to make your opponents think you have better cards than you actually do. So just what are the various hand strengths?
The lowest is the high card. You have say a ten, nothing of a higher value than that and nothing to match up to say make a pair (two cards of the same value). Unless you are plain lucky or a world class bluffer it is highly likely that a high card hand is going to win you anything. Fold and get out.
Next up is a pair. Just like it sounds that's two cards of the same value. Two tens, two jacks and so on. The might the value of the pair the better. For example a pair of kings beats a pair of nines. Pairs (particularly high value) can be not so bad to get in to a pot with though tend not to play so well unless you improve the hand on the flop by say making three of a kind.
The next highest rank of hand is two pairs. For example two nines and two sevens. As with one pair, the higher the value of the higher pair the better. So those two nines and two sevens are not as good as two kings and two nines. Two pairs is a sort of a middling hand though can easily become a full house (very powerful) if a third card of the same value as one of your pairs appears. For example your have two nines and two sevens and another nine comes out during the play of the hand.
Then it's three of a kind. Self explanatory. Three kings, three eights. If you have three of a kind it could become almost unbeatable if you hit that fourth card of the same kind. Three of am kind can be a nice disguised hand if your small hole card pair hits the third (or fourth) on the flop.
A straight is next in line in terms of strength. The hand compromises of any five cards of different suits in sequence. For example 6, 7, 8, 9 10 or 9, 10, jack, queen, king. The suits are not important - can be a mixture of all of them - as long as the cards are in sequence. The higher the value of the highest card the better. So a straight with a 10 as the highest card will be beaten by a straight with a queen as the higher value card. For straight purposes an ace can be either high or low.
After a straight comes a flush. That's five cards all of the same suite. All spaces, all diamonds, all hearts or all clubs. As with a normal straight, the higher the value of the highest card the better. So if you are dealt what are known as "suited connectors" as your hole cards (two cards of the same suit next to each other, say a nine and ten of hearts) and hit three more hearts you are in a good position of strength.
I mentioned a full house in a previous paragraph. That's the next highest ranking of hand after a straight flush. A full house is made up of three cards of the same value and one pair. For example three jacks and a pair of fives.
Now it's four of a kind. Four cards of the same value. Four aces, four nines, four threes. If you have a pair to start with and manage to find the other two somehow then there are only two other hands of a higher ranking.
The first of those is a straight flush. That's the same as a flush - five cards all of the same suit running consecutively. For example the 7, 8, 9, 10 and jack of clubs.
Now for the highest rank of hand in poker. The royal flush. These come along about as often as Halley's comet. But what is a royal flush. Well, it is a flush of 10, jack, queen, king, ace all of the same suit.
So there you have it. The different types of poker hands and their respective strengths. Memorise it, get used to it, know what beats what and as your poker skills develop learn to try to figure out what your opponents may have and what you might want to make them think you have if a bluffing opportunity may present itself. Good luck at the tables.
