Between hands in the same category the rank of the individual cards decides which is better, as described in more detail below.

Any hand in a higher category beats any hand in a lower category (so for example any three of a kind beats any two pairs). The categories of hand, from highest to lowest, are listed below. See ranking of suits for details.)Ī poker hand consists of five cards. (Note however that suit ranking is sometimes used for other purposes such as allocating seats, deciding who bets first, and allocating the odd chip when splitting a pot that can't be equally divided. In standard poker - that is to say in the formal casino and tournament game played internationally and the home game as normally played in North America - there is no ranking between the suits for the purpose of comparing hands - so for example the king of hearts and the king of spades are equal. There are 52 cards in the pack, and the ranking of the individual cards, from high to low, is ace, king, queen, jack, 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2.

Hand probabilities and multiple decks - probability tables.

The 9-4-3-2-A hand contains only four qualifying low cards (the Nine is disqualified), and the 4-3-3-2-A hand only has four cards of different ranks (pairs are also not permitted). Thus 8-7-6-5-4 qualifies as a low hand in Hi/Lo games, whereas 9-4-3-2-A and 4-3-3-2-A do not. In other words, to qualify as a low hand, you must have five different cards ranked Eight or below.

In Hi/Lo games, there is always an Eight qualifier for the low. You will notice that the 'wheel' is also a Five-high straight on the high end of the board, which makes it a very powerful holding in Hi/Lo games. The best possible low hand on Omaha Hi/Lo (and Stud Hi/Lo) is 5-4-3-2-A, which is often known as the wheel (or bicycle). Thus the Ace is doubly important in Hi/Lo games � it is the best card for the low side of the pot as well as for the high end.įlushes and straights are completely ignored for the purposes of the low pot. In fact, the Ace is the best possible low card, then the Deuce, then the Trey. In Hi/Lo poker an Ace counts as a low card when you are calculating the low part of the board. The first card to consider is the highest card of your five, then the next highest card and so on. (Paired cards only qualify as one low card, not two!) Your lowest five cards count, but these cards must all be different ranks. Indeed, even experienced players make mistakes reading the low board from time to time. Low hands in poker can often be confusing for newcomers to the game.

Can ace be low in poker