Poker Hands

A deck consists of 52 cards. These cards are divided into 4 suits, with each suit having 13 ranks.
The Four Suits

The suits are all of equal value. That is to say, no suit is higher than any other suit.

The Thirteen Ranks

In poker, the Ace is the highest card and the 2 (Deuce) is the lowest. However, the Ace can be used as a low card to form the straight 5432A.

Poker Rules - Hand Rankings (Poker Hands)

A poker hand consists of 5 playing cards. Poker hands fall into one of several categories, such as flush, straight, or two pair. The player whose hand is in the higher category wins. If two players have hands in the same category, the tie is broken usually by who has higher cards. Below is a table of the hand categories, highest to lowest.

Straight Flush: consists of 5 cards in numerical sequence, all of the same suit. The higher straight flush wins. AKQJT is the highest straight flush, and is also called the royal flush. 5432A is the lowest straight flush

4-of-a-kind: four cards of the same number.The higher 4-of-a-kind wins. If two players have the same 4-of-a-kind, then the highest 5th card wins. 4-of-a-kind is also known as quads.

Full house: consists of a 3-of-a-kind and a pair. The higher 3-of-a-kind wins. If two players have the same 3-of-a-kind, then the highest pair wins. The Full House is also known as a boat.

Flush: consists of 5 cards of the same suit. The flush with the higher top card wins. If two flushes have the same top card, then the flush with the higher 2nd-top card wins.

Straight: consists of 5 cards in numerical sequence. The straight with the higher top card wins. AKQJT is the highest straight; 5432A is the lowest straight (5432A is also called a wheel).

3-of-a-kind: consists of three cards of the same number. The higher 3-of-a-kind wins. If two hands have the same 3-of-a-kind, then the 2 unmatched cards are used to break the tie. 3-of-a-kind is also known as trips. If you have a pocket pair in Texas Holdem, and you form trips by the third card coming onto the board, this is known as a set.

2 pair: two sets of pairs. The hand with the higher top pair wins. If the top pairs are equal, then the low pairs are used to break the tie. If those are also equal, then the unmatched card is used to break the tie.

One pair: 2 cards of the same numerical rank.The hand with the higher pair wins. If the pairs are equal, then the unmatched cards are used to break the tie, first by comparing the highest unmatched cards, then the 2nd highest unmatched cards, and finally the lowest unmatched cards.

High Card: If none of the players have anything of value, the player holding the highest-valued card wins, with the 2 as the lowest card, and the Ace as the highest. In the case of a tie, you move to the next highest card, and continue.