Online Poker Rules

Poker refers to a group of card games that aim is to always make up the best ranked five cards poker hand. However there are different variants of game so the rules vary slightly. This article refers to the poker rules that are common to most variants.

A poker hand must always consist of five cards. In some variants where more cards are in play, only the best five cards that make up the highest ranking poker hand count as the player's five-card poker hand. All other cards that are not part of the five-card hand have no bearing on the ranking.

When playing poker each card has its own ranking that follows from the regular ranking of cards in a 52-card deck. The ranking is as follows: Ace (the highest ranking card), K, Q, J, 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2 (the lowest ranking card). Ace can also be used as 1 and when done so it carries the lowest card rank.

Ranked poker hands are of the following ascending order:

High Card – a hand that consists of higher ranking cards than the opponent's hand.

One Pair – a hand that has one pair of matching cards. For example: A, 9, 9, 5, 3.

Two Pair – a hand that had two pairs of matching cards. For example: K, K, 9, 2, 2.

Three of a Kind – a hand that consists of three matching cards. For example: A, Q, Q, Q, 4.

Straight – a hand that uses all five cards to make a run of consecutive ranked cards. For example; A, 2, 3, 4 , 5 or 9, 10, J, Q, K.

Flush – a hand that consists of five cards all of the same suit, but in no particular order.

Full House – a hand that is made out of three cards of the same rank plus a pair of cards of the same rank. For example: K, K, K, 2, 2 or 7, 7, 7, A, A.

Four of a Kind – a hand that consists of four cards of the same rank. For example: 4, 4, 4, 4, A.

Straight Flush – a hand that is made for five cards of the same suit in consecutive ranking order. The highest Straight Flush is 10, J, Q, K, A all of the same suit, and is often referred to as a Royal Flush.

When comparing poker hands to determine the winner of the hand; the poker hands are first compared by category. So a Two Pair hand will be compared to the Three of a kind hand. The Three of a Kind hand will win as it is of a higher category.

It is only when poker hands are of the same category, will the ranking of the individual cards be taken into account. So if two players have a Two Pair hand; player A has 10, 10, 3, 3, A and player B has Q, Q, 2, 2, A , the second player will win as the pair of Queens trumps the Pair of Tens, even though the player with the Pair of Tens has a lower pair that is higher that lower pair of the other player.

Another good example is a case where player A has a Full House of 'Kings full of Fives' (K, K, K, 5, 5) and player B has a Full House of 'Sixes full of Aces' (6, 6, 6, A, A). Although the Aces are higher ranked than the Fives, player B will lose the hand as the three Kings trumps the three Sixes.

Suits have no bearing on ranking in most poker variants so a Straight Flush of Hearts and a Straight Flush of Diamonds, both with the same ranking cards, for example; A, 2, 3, 4, 5 will have to split the pot between them.