For instance, if you have ace-king on the river of an ace-ten-four-three-deuce board, then your hand isn’t just a pair of aces. It’s important to remember when you make a poker hand, you are making your own personal best five-card hand. The ace of spades would not be utilized in the hand at all. If you don’t have a qualifying hand, you can even play the board (although in that situation the best you’re going to do is chop the pot with your opponent).įor example, if there’s a board with four diamonds on it and you’re holding the ace of diamonds and the ace of spades then you’d use the ace to make an ace-high flush.

You must always make the best five-card hand possible and sometimes that will include using just one card from your hand. Do I Have to Use Both My Hole Cards in Texas Hold’em? So never, ever fold them in those situations. Some live casinos even award massive bad beat jackpots to players who get those hands cracked in their cash games. Make it easy for yourself when you are just starting out and never fold those hands. Even most seasoned poker pros would never fold those hands unless the board state was truly exceptional.

Be responsible and just get your money in the middle. If you’re a new poker player, you should never, ever fold those hands. Should I Ever Fold a Straight Flush or Quads?įolding a straight flush or quads is almost always a bad play. If you need a quick way of remembering, just think suits>sequences, and that should help. Quite often players will miss a straight that completes on the river while it’s hard to ignore at least three cards of the same suit. Keep in mind that straights can be disguised slightly easier than flushes so they do have some extra value in that sense. In reality you are significantly more likely to flop a straight over a flush. People tend to give more weight to putting together a five-card sequence of numbers than assembling five cards that are all the same suit. This is one of the most common misconceptions about poker hand rankings. In this situations ace-high is the best possible hand.Ĭommon Poker Hand Questions Does a Flush Really Beat a Straight? If no players are able to make a hand, then the player with the highest face value card wins the hand. Video Poker Guide: Play the Best Online Video Poker Games.

Texas holdem poker hands odds chart