When Hold’em is played in a professional cardroom (be it online or in a brick-and-mortar casino), a dealer button acts as the theoretical point that the cards are being dealt from. This button moves one position clockwise around the table at the conclusion of every hand.

Although the order of the best poker hands to start with is sometimes contested, this list will give you a rough idea of which hands are stronger than others: #1. Pocket Aces (A♠ A♥). The very best starting hand in Texas Hold'em. The Order of Play in Texas Hold’em By Consumer Dummies When Hold’em is played in a professional cardroom (be it online or in a brick-and-mortar casino), a dealer button acts as the theoretical point that the cards are being dealt from. Texas Hold'em, Pot-Limit Omaha, and many limit poker games all use a system involving the small blind, big blind, and dealer button, with all other table positions relative to those three spots. The small blind is always seated to the left of the dealer button, and the big blind to the left of the small blind. Every beginning player, therefore, needs to understand the poker hand rankings to determine the strength of each player’s hand and, subsequently, the winner. In this guide, we present the Texas Hold’em hands order of value, from bottom to the highest hand in poker (the rankings apply to Omaha too).

The player in the position immediately to the left of the dealer (that is to say, clockwise) posts an automatic bet called the small blind, and the player immediately to his left (or two places to the left of the dealer) posts an automatic bet known as the big blind. These are forced bets that players must make in order to get dealt into the game. All other players get to see their hands “for free.”

Players decide whether to play or fold (quit) in a clockwise position, starting with the player immediately to the left (clockwise) of the big blind. Any players who fold are no longer eligible for the pot and are skipped over in subsequent betting rounds for that specific hand.

In Hold’em, your position relative to the other players is critical. When you’re in the beginning of the betting order, your cards have to be of higher quality than the cards you would normally play in later position — especially if lots of players are left in the hand — because you have no idea what evil may lurk beyond.

Likewise, if you’re riding at the back of the calling order, you can afford to play looser hands (those that aren’t as high quality) and hope to catch cards to break people’s dreams. In fact, pot odds (the amount you bet relative to the amount you would win) say that sometimes you should call, even when you have a lesser hand.

Hand Rank > FAQ : Quiz

Learning the rank of hands in Texas Hold'em is just as important as learning the rules themselves. Be sure to know what beats what, so you won't be surprised the next time that flush beats your straight. Check out the hand rank FAQ to help answer questions you might have about the ranking of hands in Texas Hold'em.

The hands are in order from top to bottom, decreasing in value as you move down.

Texas Hold'em Poker Winning Hand Order

Rank of hands.

#1 Royal flush.

An ace-high straight flush. It's just a straight flush really, but it's made with the 5 highest value cards.

A royal flush is the absolute best possible hand in the game of Texas Hold'em. You will rarely (if ever) see this hand.

#2 Straight flush.

5 cards of the same suit in sequential order. This is essentially the best hand in the game, only coming second to it's bigger brother; the royal flush.

#3 Four of a kind.

Four cards of the same value. Virtually a guaranteed winner.

Unfortunately you rarely really win as much money with it as you would like, as it's unlikely that other players in the pot will make a hand that they're happy to call lots of bets and raises with. Still, better than nothing!

#4 Full house.

Three of one and two of another. Or you could think of it as 3-of-a-kind + 2-pair. Also known as a 'boat'.

This is the most common out of the 'big hands' you will see in Texas Hold'em. You can win a nice chunk of money if another player ends up making a weaker hand like a flush or a straight.

If you think your opponent has a weaker full house than you, take advantage of Zeebo's theorem.

#5 Flush

Five cards of the same suit.

As long as there are no pairs on the board (e.g. 448JK or 27TAA), this will be the strongest type of hand anyone can make.

Beginner players love to chase flushes, and it usually results in losing money. Make sure you learn about pot odds before you chase your next flush.

Tip: If you're playing online, use the four colour deck feature. This turns the club cards green () and the diamonds blue (). So less chance of mistaking 4 diamonds and 1 heart as a flush.

#6 Straight.

Five cards in sequence.

This hand is beaten by a flush, so don't make the rookie mistake of over-valuing the straight when there are a number of cards of the same suit on the board. It is actually harder to make a flush than a straight.

#7 Three of a kind.

3 cards of the same value.

A 'set' is when you have 3 of a kind whilst holding a pocket pair. A set tends to be one of the most profitable hands in Texas Hold'em. It's handy to know the difference between sets and trips.

#8 Two pair.

Two pairs of course.

Don't make the mistake of thinking that this hand is stronger than 3 of a kind. It's actually easier to pick up two-pair than it is to get 3 of a kind.

#9 Pair.

Two cards of the same value. Almost like 'two of a kind' really.

A very common hand that can actually win a fair number of pots for you. Just be careful not to go overboard with this hand. The higher the pair the better.

#10 High card.

Texas Hold'em Poker Order Of Hands

Just the highest value card.

If two players have the same value high card, you look at the next highest card (and so on) to find the winner.

This is not really much of a hand, but occasionally the winner of the hand will be decided on who holds the card of highest value. Don't expect to win any big pots with this one. It's usually there to determine the winner as a last resort.

Texas Holdem Poker Hand Order

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