Poker Hand Rankings

The most fundamental thing to learn about playing poker is the rankings of the possible hands. Not knowing what hand beats which other hands is the biggest mistake you can make as a poker player. It can be the most costly mistake. Luckily, it’s also one of the easiest mistakes to avoid, provided you’re willing to memorize the rankings of poker hands:

Royal Flush
The best possible hand. To achieve this you need an Ace, King, Queen, Jack, and 10 of the same suit.

Straight Flush
Five cards of the same suit in sequential order.

Four of a Kind
Four cards of the same value

Full House
Three of a kind and a pair. The player with the higher value three of a kind, wins in the event of a tie.
If both player have the same three of a kind then the player with the highest pair wins.

Flush
A hand containing five cards of the same suit. If two players have the same hand the winner is the player holding the highest valued cards.

Straight
Five cards of any suit in ascending order. The ace can be either high or low and the high straight wins the tie.

Three of a Kind
Three of a kind is simply three cards of the same rank.

Two Pair
Two sets of pairs. The player holding the highest pair takes the pot in the event that more than one player is holding two pairs.
If two players are both holding the same two pair then the player with the highest fifth card (i.e. the kicker) takes the pot.

One Pair
Two cards or the same rank.

High Card
Highest card takes all in the event there is a complete absence of the above hands.