08 May 2024 Beginner This material is for beginner players combinatorics fish hand charts The goal of any game is to win. As the rules of poker say, you can win in Texas Hold'em by collecting the highest hand or forcing all opponents to fold - then you do not need to show your cards. In today's material we will show poker combinations in pictures and in order of seniority, and also briefly describe them and consider typical mistakes of players. Let's begin! How Poker Hands Are Ranked There are 10 combinations - for better understanding by beginners, we will supplement the combinations with pictures/examples. Each set of cards has its own priority and composition features. When making a combination, 5 cards are used. These can be community cards + your pocket cards. With the exception of Stud Poker, suits are never taken into account when determining the strength of combinations - in other types of poker and, in particular, No-Limit Texas Hold'em, all suits are equal. In controversial situations, the ranks of the cards are taken into account to determine the winner of the current hand. High Card It consists of five unrelated cards, one of which is higher than the others. This card does not beat any finished combination at all, unless the opponent has an even lower final combination. For example, when two or more remaining players do not have a stronger combination, the winner is determined by the highest pocket card. One Pair One Pair represents a commonly seen hand in poker, formed from two cards of the same denomination. The probability of getting the combination from preflop to river is approximtely 50%. Interesting fact: Many major WSOP live series tournaments have been won by poker players with One Pair. There are many different types of One Pair hands from the lowest: 5th - 6th and so on, all the way up to the highest overpairs, so this should always be taken into account during the game. For example, you realized that your made hand is One Pair, but what's the point if you don't take into account the fact that your opponent may have a ton of better One Pair hands? In this scenario, you will lose the hand and possibly a big pot simply because of your own mistake, and not because of luck. The most valuable are the High-Rank Pairs (for example, Aces). Going all-in with this hand gives you a high chance to win and take the pot. Two Pair This combination is made up of two cards of one rank and two of another. A hand that includes a pair of the highest rank has the highest value. When two or more players receive the same set of cards, the winner is determined by the highest pair in the combination. In the event of a tie between the two highest rank cards, the lowest pair in the hand is compared. If the paired cards are equal, the kicker (the remaining card from your two hole cards) is taken into account. In the event of a tie between the highest paired cards of the opponents, the lowest pair is compared. Three of a Kind Three of a kind is 3 cards of the same rank: for example, three kings or three fours. Three of a kind is quite rare and is therefore considered a strong hand, as it beats weaker hands, such as a pair or two pairs, which are formed much more often. If two or more players have equal cards, the owner of the pot is determined by the highest kicker. Assume that both players have the same three of a kind, consisting of jacks. In this case, the poker player with the highest kicker will win the pot. Straight Straight represents a set of five cards in sequence by rank. The suit of the cards must be different - if suit is the same, then a player has a Straight Flush (which will be discussed later). Ace in a straight may act both as the highest card, and the lowest. When the Ace opens the order before 2 - it acts as the lowest card, playing the role of 1. When completing the combination after the King, the Ace will be a highest card. Accordingly, the lowest Straight is A-2-3-4-5, and the highest Straight is 10-J-Q-K-A. The Straight A-2-3-4-5 is called as a «Wheel». A straight of 10-J-Q-K-A is called a «Broadway». Flush A flush is a set of five cards of the same suit. The cards do not have to be in rank order, otherwise we will get a lot stronger hand. If more than one player has a flush, then the kickers (among holecards of the players) in the final combination are compared. For example, your flush in which the highest card is an Ace (among your holecards) is stronger than opponent's flush in which the highest card is a King (among his holecards), and so on. Since this is a rare hand, losing with it happens only in a few cases. Full House A Full House is a combination of 3 cards of one rank and 2 of another. In other words, it is a Three of a kind + a Pair. In the vast majority of cases, this combination is a winning one. In isolated cases, controversial situations arise. When two players collect a Full House, the winner is determined by the Three of a kind. If the opponents' Threes of a kind are equal in rank, then the value of the Pair is compared. Four of a Kind Four of a kind is a very rare combination formed by four cards of the same rank. The strength of the hand depends on the value of its cards. But controversial situations still arise extremely rarely. When comparing hands, the value of the four cards is taken into account. For example, if two players have collected a four of a kind, then the one whose four cards are of a higher rank wins: a four of a kind 8-8-8-8 is higher than a four of a kind 7-7-7-7. In the case of an equal combination, both players compare kickers - the remaining 5th cards out of 5, which make up the final combination. Straight Flush Straight Flush is almost the strongest combination in poker, except for Royal Flush (which is essentially a special case of Straight Flush). Straight Flush is a combination of 5 cards of the same suit in order of seniority. In fact, the hand is a symbiosis of Straight and Flush, which we talked about earlier. A situation in which more than one player has a Straight Flush combination in one hand is an extremely rare occurrence. The probability of losing and getting into controversial situations with such a rare hand tends to zero. But if, nevertheless, two+ players collect Straight Flush, then the owner of the pot will be determined by the highest card. For example, Straight Flush with the highest card T will beat Straight Flush with the highest card 6. Royal Flush Royal Flush is the highest possible variation of a straight flush. It is formed by 5 cards of the same suit in order from Ten to Ace : T-J-Q-K-A. There are four variations of royal flush: hearts, clubs, diamonds, spades. And it is the best possible hand in NLHE, which is unbeatable. They look like this: Interesting fact: even the most experienced poker professionals who have been playing for several years have never collected this combination. The odds of collecting a royal flush are the lowest (0.000154% or 649,739:1 odds to be exact). Common mistakes made by beginners who have just learned poker combinations Where and under what circumstances do beginners make the most mistakes? Let's find out! #1: Chasing the best hand A very common mistake is to play until the end in the hope of improving the hand in Hold'em. These can be various draw hands, with which the player wants to complete the Straight, Flush, Straight-Flush and even the Royal Flush. When playing each hand, you need to understand whether it is worth trying to chase the combination or is it better to give up earlier and not invest any more. Realize that sometimes it is better to fold than hold and to take a risk and go further, realizing later that you shouldn't get to this moment in the hand. #2: Paying attention only to the absolute value of hands As they say, appearances can be deceiving. Even with a pair there is a high risk of losing - it is only one pair, and there are many hand ranks higher. Although they are formed rarely, but when the opponent has such a hand, you risk losing a huge amount of chips / money. Very often, beginners enter the game with a hand that seems to be good, but in fact it is not. For example, in Hold'em, these are high rank cards with bad kickers: combinations like A-2, K-3, Q-4, etc. Especially when each of the cards is of different suits. With these hands, it is very unlikely that you will hit a winning hand on either the flop or the river. When defending, the general goal of hand selection is to withstand attacks from opponents so that you usually have a playable hand with a good chance of winning at showdown or a decent chance of improving to a better hand. However you look at it, knowing whether to continue with an available hand or fold it immediately comes with experience. #3: Wanting to play a lot of hands One of the biggest misconceptions is the desire to play every hand. Often, beginners are very impatient because they feel disconnected from the game. They don’t want to look weak against their opponents or don’t understand how to do it. Basically, any hand can look good if you don’t know what combinations they can lead to and which of them are really good. A beginner often tries to get to the flop, but when that moment comes, he suddenly realizes that he doesn’t have the best cards. Anticipate this mistake before you play a lot of hands and lose a huge part of your stack. The number of situations where a player calls with any nice cards and then folds without hitting anything serious multiplies over time - and with them, money losses. #4: Incorrect bet size To play successfully, you should always know what your bet size should be. Typically, in no-limit games, recreational players either bet too little or too much. For example, some players will increase their preflop open-raises to 4-5 big blinds. Ideally, you want to bet just right to maximize your chances of winning while minimizing your losses. #5: Being Overly Emotional If you've had a rough day or lost several big pots in a row, your emotions will undoubtedly affect your future decisions. Obviously, playing in such a state will not bring anything good, because the current emotional background determines the basic levels of emotions and blurs rational thinking. It will be more difficult for you to read players and analyze information at the table. And excessive emotions can lead to completely disastrous consequences. Making a decision solely based on emotions is not the best option. Final Words on the Best Poker Hands To win at poker, you need to know the rules of the game. Combinations are the very basis of the rules. Use our material to learn all 10 poker combinations and understand their seniority. Continue studying articles in our poker school to improve your level of skill in poker!
