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Rank of Hands

The rank of hands remains the same no matter which type of poker game you play.

In a nutshell, a poker hand consists of five cards. Poker hands fall into one of several categories, such as flush, straight, or two pair. The player with the highest ranking hand is the winner.

Example cards: Ace of hearts, King of hearts, Queen of hearts, Jak of hearts, Ten of hearts

Royal Flush

A royal flush is an ace high straight flush.

Example cards: Nine of clubs, eight of clubs, Seven of clubs, Six of clubs, Five of clubs

Straight Flush

A straight flush is a five-card straight, all in the same suit.

Example cards: Queen of diamonds, Queen of spades, Queen of Hearts, Queen of clubs, Ten of hearts

Four of a Kind - Quads

Quads, or four of a kind, are four cards of equal rank.

Example cards: Jack of spades, Jack of hearts, Jack of clubs, Eight of hearts, Eight of clubs

Full House or Full Boat

A full house, or full boat, contains a set (three) of cards of one rank and a pair of another rank.

Example cards: Ace of hearts, Six of hearts, Queen of hearts, Ten of hearts, Eight of hearts

Flush

A flush is any five cards, all of the same suit.

Example cards: Jack of hearts, Ten of spades, Nine of hearts, Eight of clubs, Seven of hearts

Straight

Five cards of sequential rank. Every possible straight will contain either a 5 or a 10.

Example cards: Queen of hearts, Queen of spades, Queen of diamonds, Eight of hearts, Five of clubs

Three of a Kind or Set

Three cards of the same rank.

Example cards: Nine of hearts, Nine of spades, Three of diamonds, Three of spades, Six of diamonds

Two Pair

A two pair is two cards of one rank and another two cards of another rank.

Example cards: Nine of hearts, Nine of spades, Four of diamonds, Three of spades, Six of diamonds

Pair

One pair is two cards of the same rank.

Example cards: Nine of hearts, Eight of spades, Four of diamonds, Three of spades, Six of diamonds

High Card:

The hand with the highest card(s) wins.

In the event of a tie with either four of a kind, three of a kind, two pair, or one pair, the highest unpaired side card or 'kicker' in a player's hand wins the pot.

For example: Player A: Kc, Kh, 6s, 6h, Qh
Player B: Ks, Kh, 6s, 6h, 9d

Player A wins the hand with Q kicker.

Some games are called Hi/Lo Games (Seven Card Stud Hi/Lo and Omaha Hi/Lo) because to win the pot, not only do you need to consider the rank of hands explained above (Hi) but also the lowest hand (Lo). The pot is then split between two winning hands: the high one and the low one.

We've covered the high hands above. A low hand is a hand that contains five different cards inferior or equal to 8. Ex: A- 2- 4- 7- 8

PartyPoker.net offers two games where the pot is split between the best high hand and the best low hand - Omaha Hi/Lo and 7 Card Stud Hi/Lo. Hi/Lo games are played with an 'eight qualifier' for the low hand, where a player must have five unpaired cards lower than eight in order to win the low part of the pot.

Straights and flushes do not count toward a low hand, and aces are treated as the lowest card. Hands with five cards of equal rank share the low pot equally, regardless of suit.

In Hi/Lo games, as played on PartyPoker.com, the best possible low hand is a 5-high straight, called a wheel or a bicycle. Should two or more players have wheels/bicycles, the low portion of the pot is split. All wheels/bicycles are equal regardless of suit.

If nobody gets five different cards inferior or equal to eight, then there is no low hand and only the highest hand is taken into consideration to elect the winner. There will only be one winner and the pot won't be split.