Playing Poker - How to Rank Cards in Poker

Poker Games are usually played with a 52 card deck. Sometimes a joker is used when draw games are played. Texas Hold'em Poker and Stud Style games are played without the use of jokers. Poker hands always are about the five best cards available. A sixth card is never used to break a tie. The suit of the card is also not used to break a tie. 'Suits' refers to spades, hearts, clubs and diamonds.

Cards are ranked from highest to lowest from the Ace which is the highest card to the King, Queen, Jack and so on till the 2 - which is referred to as 'deuce'. Although an Ace is the topmost card and the deuce is the lowest card, the Ace can be used below a deuce in straights. It can also be played as the lowest card also.

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When the betting rounds are completed, the poker players reveal their hands or discard them if they find that a better hand has beaten them. The poker hand rankings are determined and a winner emerges.

The ranking is like this:

1. When a joker is used in the poker game, five of a kind is the best hand and within this five aces is the best combination. The fives aces comprise of the four aces in the pack plus a joker.

2. If no joker has been used in play, the best hand is a Straight Flush. This is five consecutive cards of the same suit. e.g. 4,5,6,7,8 of clubs(or any other suit as long as all cards belong to the same suit). In this the highest is the Royal
Flush - A,K,Q,J,10 of the same suit.

3. Four of a kind: Four cards of the same rank. This would be e.g. four jacks and a fifth card. Higher ranks beat lower ranks. So four queens card beats four jacks.

4. Full house: Three cards of the same rank with a pair of another rank. E.g. 88822. The higher ranking three cards are compared to determine who has a better hand. 66622 beats 333KK.

5. Flush: This refers to five cards, all belonging to the same suit e.g. A6532 of spades. When flushes are compared, they are ranked from the top card on down. A6532 would beat K6547 and Q9754 would beat Q7752. If two flushes have exactly the same combination of cards like AQ753 of clubs versus AQ753 of spades, then it's a tie and the pot is split.

6. Straight: This refers to five cards in sequence belonging to different suits. e.g. 87654. When comparing two straight hands, the highest card decides the winner. So QJ1098 defeats 98765. An Ace can be used at the beginning e.g. with AKJ109 or at the end with 5432A. You can't use an Ace in a combination like 32AKQ.

7. Three of a Kind: This refers to three cards of the same rank with two unpaired cards e.g. 55532. The higher ranked trio wins against the lower ranked one. So 55532 is higher than 333AK.

8. Two Pair: This refers to two cards of one rank, two cards of another rank and a fifth card called the kicker. QQ552 defeats JJ998. 99442 defeats 9922K. 5533A defeats 5533Q. Two hands with the same ranks e.g. QQJJ5 versus QQJJ5 split
the pot.

9. One Pair: This refers to two cards of the same rank and three unrelated cards e.g. 22K96. A higher pair beats a lower pair. if both players have the same paid, the other cards are the 'kickers'. So 88Q42 defeats 88754.

10. No Pair, High Card: This refers to poker cards with no pairs and no ranking values listed above. The highest card decides the winner. The cards can be used in order if required. So A8642 beats A7542.

The best way to learn how to play Poker is to go beyond reading. Read the rules, jump in and start playing. You can play poker for fun. You don't have to bet money. Websites like Bet365 offer Poker games where you don't have to bet money. At the same time they also offer Poker rooms where you bet real money. This way you have a way to improve your Poker skills and also get the thrill of gambling when you want it.