Poker Rules

Introduction

Every poker variation has its own set of rules that need to be followed to assure that the game runs above board. At the right hand side of this page you will find links that will take you to the rules pages of the different poker variations. Poker rules form the basis of developing the ultimate poker strategy. Poker is not just a simple card game. The strategy which you choose to adopt, your hand selection and your insight will determine whether you are a winning or a losing player. Since you will always have the choice to play or not play a hand, this reduces the luck factor of the game.

Making a Hand

In most poker variations, such as Texas Hold'em, 7 Card Stud and Omaha, players have to choose from seven cards to make the best five-card hand by combining their cards.

Example:

Player A:
Player B:
The Board:

Player A will use both of his own cards combined with three community cards to make his hand, in this case a full house .

Player B, on the other hand, will only use one of his own cards, the , and four community cards , to make his hand, in this case a straight .

In the end the full house of Player A will beat the straight of Player B.

In Texas Hold'em it is even possible to 'play the board', which means that you use none of your own cards but play all five community cards to make your hand. If, for example, you are holding and the board shows , then the best combination is a flush, which is made up of the five community cards. Be aware that every other player at the table can also play this hand, and the best you can hope for is a split pot.

Hand Rankings

The following are the hand rankings for the most popular poker variations. They are listed by their strength, starting with the Royal Flush, which is the ultimate poker hand, all the way down to a high-card hand, which is the worst poker hand.

Hand 1: Royal Flush – Consecutive cards from 10 to Ace, all of the same suit.

Hand 2: Straight Flush – Consecutive cards, all of the same suit, but with a high card lower than Ace.

Hand 3: Four of a Kind – Four cards of the same rank.

Hand 4: Full House – Three cards of one rank, combined with a pair.

Hand 5: Flush – Five cards of the same suit, but not in consecutive order.

Hand 6: Straight – Five consecutive cards, but of different suits.

Hand 7: Three of a Kind – Three cards of the same rank.

Hand 8: Two Pair – Two cards of the same rank combined with another two cards of the same rank

Hand 9: One Pair – Two cards of the same rank.

Hand 10: No Pair – The highest card counts.