How to Learn Poker Hands

Last Updated: May 6, 2021

Poker hands are rated according to the likelihood that a player will receive them. Equivalent poker hands are rated according to which player holds cards of the highest values, called the stronger hand. You can learn poker hands for most poker games using a memory device called a mnemonic. It's important to memorize the rankings of poker hands because asking during a game will give away your hand and may cause you to lose your stake.

Steps

1
Remember the lowest-ranking poker hands with the numbers 0, 1, 2, and 3.
- 0: High card. You have 0 pairs, and the value of your hand is dependent on the value of your highest card. Remember that a 2 is the lowest card and an ace is the highest.
- 1: One Pair. You have 2 cards of the same value in different suits such as the 2 of clubs and the 2 of hearts.
- 2: Two Pairs. You have two pairs of cards of the same value in different suits such as a 2 of clubs and a 2 of hearts as well as a 3 of spades and a 3 of diamonds.
- 3: Three of a Kind. You have 3 cards of the same value in different suits such as a 4 of clubs, 4 of spades, and 4 of diamonds.
2
Divide the hands with the straight. This hand falls in the middle of the poker hand rankings. A straight is 5 cards of consecutive values in any suit. For example, a straight might consist of a 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6 in any combination of suits or it might be a 10, jack, queen, king and ace of any combination of suits.

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3
Memorize the order the highest-ranking poker hands by counting the number of letters in the name of the hand.
- 5: Flush. This consists of 5 cards of any value the same suit such as a 2, 6, 7, 9 and jack of diamonds.
- 9: Full House. This is a combination of one pair and three of a kind.
- 11: Four of a Kind. This is 4 cards of the same value in all 4 suits such as a 9 of clubs, 9 of diamonds, 9 of spades and 9 of hearts.
- 13: Straight Flush. This consists of 5 cards of consecutive values in a single suit such as a 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6 of diamonds.
- 18: Royal Straight Flush. This is a straight flush with an ace as a high card such as a 10, jack, queen, king and ace of spades. This is an unbeatable hand.