Poker hand rankings are one of the most essential factors of a poker game. While playing a fast online poker game such as Texas Holdem Poker you must be able to quickly discern which cards are needed to create a better poker hand. Beginners in poker tend to lose as they are not able to identify the best opportunities to build a strong hand. In order to do that it is important that you understand the poker hand rankings.
Remember that when you’re playing Texas Hold’em poker you are trying to create the best 5-card poker hand from a total of 7 cards. There are 2 hole or pocket cards and 5 communal cards. You may use any combination to create your best hand. You may even use all five communal cards.
Poker Hand Rankings are as follows:
Royal Flush
This hand is the highest ranking hand possible and cannot be beaten A Royal Flush is made of 5 cards of the same suit, Ten, Jack, Queen, King, Ace.
Straight Flush
A straight flush made up of 5 consecutive cards of the same suit. An ace can play both high and low
Four-of-a-kind
This is any hand containing four similar cards.
Full House
A full house is when you have Three-of-Kind and a Pair.
Flush
A flush is any five cards of the same suit.
Straight
A Straight is five cards of any suit in succession. Straights are very common in Holdem Poker.
Three-of-a-kind
This hand is any three similar cards of any suit.