Poker Hands

Posted by kNox on August 12th, 2010

There are dozens of different variations to the game of poker. They different in many many aspects: the number of cards that are dealt to each player, the number of community cards that are turned face up on the table (if there are any to begin with), and lots of other minor aspects that can make all the difference in the world inside a poker game. But do you know what all of these games have in common? Each and every one have the same basic rule: the hand rankings. You see, the player that is decided the winner of a certain round has the largest made poker hand. And this is because the highest hands have the lowest probability of being made. These hand rankings are the result of hundreds of years of card playing. Here they are:

o  The Royal Flush. This is the daddy of them all. No hand can beat this. The Royal flush is composed of a Ten to Ace Straight, with all cards being of the same suit. So this could be a Ten, Jack, Queen, King and Ace, all of Hearts.

o  Straight Flush. Like the Royal Flush, the straight flush is composed of five consecutive cards of the same suit. But, unlike the Royal Flush, the Straight Flush doesn't have the T-A straight, as they can be any five consecutive cards. As you would expect, this hand is lower than the Royal Flush.

o  Four of a Kind. As you'd expect, this hand is composed of four cards of the same rank. For example, four Aces, a poker player's dream.

o  Full House. This hand has three cards of the same rank, followed by another two cards of the same rank. For instance, three Jacks and two Queens. This would be called "Jacks full of Queens", or, simpler, "Jacks Full".

o  Flush.  This hand has five cards of the same suit. For instance, five diamonds.

o  Straight. Five consecutive cards. Also, a 3-7 straight is higher than a 2-6 straight.

o  Three of a kind. As you'd expect, this is composed of three cards of the same rank. For instance, three Jacks.

o  Two pair. Two pairs of cards (of different ranks, or else it's four of a kind). Two eights and two Kings, or any other two pairs.

o  One pair. Simple, a pair of two cards of the same rank. If two players have a pair, the winner is the one with the highest pair.

o  High card. When no poker hand is made by players, the winner is the one that holds the highest card. For instance, a player with an Ace high will always beat a player with a King high.

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kNox

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kNox
Joined: August 12th, 2010
Articles Posted: 10

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