Although there are variations of poker where the worst hand, rather than the best hand, wins, most versions use the same standard ranking of hands. In every version except three-card poker (see Chapter 7), a player's final hand consists of five cards. From lowest hand to highest, here's what you need to know about poker hands.

High Card

A high-card hand is one in which the five cards contain no pairs and the cards are of differing suits. If no other hand exists, the player with the highest card in her hand wins. For example, if one player holds 2-4-5-9-J, and another player holds 2-3-7-10-K, the player with the king wins the hand. If high cards are identical — two players have jacks high, for instance — the winner is determined by the next highest card. If those two cards are identical, the third highest card breaks the tie, and so on down the line.

Pair

A pair is any two cards of the same denomination. If two players have identical pairs, the winner is determined by the high card among the three nonpair cards (which is also called a “kicker”). When cards are shown, the hand is announced by the pair and high card — for example:“Pair of 3s, 7 high.”

Two Pair

This hand consists of two cards of the same face value, plus two other cards of the same face value, and one singleton. If two players have the same high pair, the second pair determines the winner. If both pairs are identical, the hand with the highest singleton wins. When cards are shown, the hand is announced like this: “Two pair, 10s over 7s.”

Three of a Kind

This hand is three cards of the same face value, plus two mismatched cards. Unless the game allows for wild cards, it's impossible to tie with this hand, since there are only four cards of any given value in a deck. If there is a tie in a wild-card game, the highest nonmatching card determines the winner.

Straight

A straight is five cards of mixed suits, consecutively numbered. The ace can be a high or low card to finish a straight: high in 10-J-Q-K-A, and low in A-2-3-4-5. When two players have straights, the sequence with the highest card is the winner.

Flush

A flush is any five cards of the same suit, not in numerical order. If two players have flushes, the highest-value card determines the winner.

Full House

A full house is a combined pair and three of a kind. Ties are determined first by the value of the three of a kind, then by the pair. For example, if one player has three 6s and two 4s, and another player has three 5s and two 3s, the player with the 6s wins. If the game includes wild cards and both players have three 6s, the player with the pair of 4s wins.

Four of a Kind

This hand consists of four cards of the same face value, plus a singleton. When two players each have four of a kind, the winner is determined by the highest face value of the matching cards. As with the three-of-a-kind hand, ties are impossible unless wild cards are used, but in that event, the kicker becomes the tie-breaker.

Straight Flush

A straight flush is five consecutively numbered cards of the same suit, with the highest card a king or lower. As with a straight, the sequence with the highest card breaks a tie. For example, a diamond straight flush of 6-7-8-9-10 beats a spade straight flush of 2-3-4-5-6.

Royal Flush

This is the highest standard poker hand, consisting of the five highest cards — 10-J-Q-K-A — all in the same suit. This is also known as an ace-high straight flush. If two players have royal flushes, it's a tie; there is no tiebreaker.

Five of a Kind

Five of a kind is the highest poker hand in a wild-card game. It consists of four cards of the same rank, plus a wild card. When two players each have five of a kind, the winner is determined by the highest face value of the matching cards.

As a rule, card rooms never use wild cards. The exception is draw poker, where the joker is wild. In games where the joker can be used only as an ace — to fill an ace-high straight, for example — the joker is called “the bug.”