Hand Ranking & Odds
1. Royal Flush
Ace, King, Queen, Jack, and Ten in the same suit. The probability of getting a Royal Flush is around 0.000154%, or once in every 649,740 hands.
2. Straight Flush
This hand consists of five consecutive cards of the same suit, such as 5-6-7-8-9 of hearts. The probability of getting a Straight Flush is about 0.00139%, or once in every 72,193 hands. If two or more players hold Straight Flushes, the player with the highest card wins the pot.
3. Four of a Kind
This hand contains four cards of the same rank, such as four kings or four sevens. The probability of obtaining Four of a Kind is around 0.0240% or once in every 4,165 hands.
4. Full House
A full house consists of a three-of-a-kind and a pair together, such as three 8s and two 5s. The value of the three similar cards determines the strength of the hand, with the player holding the highest set winning in case of a tie. The odds of getting a Full House are approximately 0.1441%, or once in every 694 hands.
5. Flush
Five non-consecutive cards of the same suit. The highest card in the hand determines the strength of the Flush. If there is a tie between Flushes, the second, third, fourth, and finally, the fifth-highest card is considered to break the tie. The probability of being dealt a Flush is roughly 0.197%, or once in every 509 hands.
6. Straight
This hand contains five consecutive cards of any suit, such as 3-4-5-6-7 or 10-J-Q-K-A. The strength of the Straight is determined by the highest card in the sequence. If two players have Straights, the one with the highest card wins. The odds of obtaining a Straight stand at about 0.3925% or once in every 255 hands.
7. Three of a Kind
Also known as a set or trips, comprises three cards of the same rank. The highest set wins in case of a tie. The probability of getting Three of a Kind is approximately 2.11%, or once in every 47 hands.
8. Two Pair
The player with the highest top pair wins in case of a tie. If the top pair is equal, the second pair or kicker comes into play. The odds of being dealt Two Pair are around 4.75% or once in every 21 hands.
9. One Pair
The value of the pair determines the strength of the hand, with the next highest card (kicker) winning in the case of a tie. The probability of getting One Pair is approximately 42.26%, or once in every 2.4 hands.
10. High Card
The highest card in the hand determines the strength of the High Card hand. As a last resort, the second, third, fourth, and fifth-highest cards are considered to break a tie. The odds of being dealt only a High Card are about 50.12%, or once in every two hands.
High Card and Low Card Hands
In certain variations of poker, high-card and low-card hands have specific significance. In high-low split games, such as Omaha Hi-Lo and Seven Card Stud Hi-Lo, the pot is split between the highest and lowest hand. Low hands often have their ranking apart from the standard poker hand rankings. One common low-hand ranking system is the “Ace to Five” method, also known as the “California” system.
To qualify as a low hand in this system, a hand must consist of five unpaired cards with ranks of eight or lower. Straights and flushes don’t count against the low hand. The best possible low hand is A-2-3-4-5 (known as a “wheel” or “bicycle”), regardless of the cards’ suits.
Razz Poker Hand Rankings
Razz Poker, unlike the other poker variants discussed here, is a lowball game where the goal is to create the lowest-ranking hand possible instead of the highest-ranking one. Played similarly to Seven Card Stud, Razz Poker has players aiming to make the best (lowest) five-card hand out of the seven cards dealt to them.
The hand rankings in Razz Poker are as follows:
- Wheel (Five High): A, 2, 3, 4, 5 (deemed the best possible hand in Razz Poker).
- Six Low: A hand containing the lowest five unpaired cards, with the highest card being a Six (e.g., A, 2, 3, 4, 6).
- Seven Low: A hand containing the lowest five unpaired cards, with the highest card being a Seven (e.g., A, 2, 3, 5, 7).
And so on, up to hands containing face cards (K, Q, J) as the highest cards. Straights and flushes do not count against the player in Razz, as it is a lowball game. Moreover, the Ace is always counted as a low card in Razz Poker, making it the lowest possible card in the game.