Poker Hand Rankings

Poker Hands There are many variations on the game of poker, but the ranking of hands always remains the same. A poker hand is always made up of 5 cards. The value of each card highest to lowest are ace,king,queen, jack, 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, ace (ace count low or high).

Poker hands are ranked in order of probability of being dealt in five-card combinations from the standard deck of 52 cards.

There are possible 2,598,960 combinations of five-card hands to be dealt.

Pictured below are the poker hands ranked from highest to lowest:

Royal straight flush or Royal Flush The highest value 5 card straight all of the same suit eg. 10,J,Q,K,Ace all of hearts

Straight Flush 5 cards in sequence (straight) all in the same suit eg. 5,6,7,8.9 of spades - 9 high straight flush

Four of a kind Four Cards of the same denomination eg. 10 10 10 10 Q - quad tens

Full House Three cards of one denomination and a pair (two of another) eg. QQQ55 - full house queens full of fives - tied hands are decided first by the best three of a kind then the best pair

Flush Five cards all in the same suit but not in denomination sequence eg. Kh, 10h 7h, 6h, 3h - a queen high flush

Straight Five cards in denomination sequence of any suit eg. 45678 - straight eight high

Three Of A Kind Three cards of the same denomination also known as Trips eg 777a9 - trip 7’

Two Pairs Two pairs of the same denominations - If tied with the same the higher pair then the highest low pair wins, if these are tied then highest other card (or kicker) decides it eg AA 66 2 - two pairs aces and 6’s

One Pair One pair of the same denomination eg. Kh Ks A 7 4 - A pair of Kings

High Card If none of the above hands are made the highest card wins eg Q5278 - is a Queen high beaten by K5378 a king high