Used in most poker games. The highest-ranked hand wins. Suits are never used to break ties — only rank matters.
Royal Flush
A-K-Q-J-10 all the same suit. The best possible hand. Unbeatable.
Straight Flush
Five consecutive cards all the same suit. Higher top card wins.
Four of a Kind
All four cards of the same rank. Higher rank wins; kicker breaks ties.
Full House
Three of a kind plus a pair. Higher three-of-a-kind rank wins.
Flush
Five cards of the same suit, not consecutive. Highest card wins; compare next card down to break ties.
Straight
Five consecutive cards of mixed suits. Ace can be high (A-K-Q-J-10) or low (A-2-3-4-5).
Three of a Kind
Three cards of the same rank plus two unmatched kickers.
Two Pair
Two different pairs. Higher top pair wins; lower pair then kicker break ties.
One Pair
Two cards of the same rank. Higher pair wins; kickers break ties.
High Card
No combination — the highest card plays. Compare card by card to break ties.
The lowest five-card hand wins. Aces are always low (best). Straights and flushes are ignored — they do not count against your hand. The best possible hand is A-2-3-4-5, called the Wheel.
- Aces are always low — the best card in the deck for lowball.
- Straights and flushes don't count — they are completely ignored when evaluating the hand.
- To compare two hands, read the five cards from highest to lowest. The hand with the lower highest card wins. If tied, compare the next card, and so on.
- A 7-5-4-3-2 (a "seven-low") beats a 7-6-4-3-A.
- Pairs, two pairs, and trips are evaluated by rank as usual — paired hands lose to unpaired hands.
- Used in: Razz, the low half of Omaha Hi-Lo (8-or-Better), Seven-Card Stud Hi-Lo, Stud-8, and most "Hi-Lo 8-or-Better" games.
The lowest hand wins, but the rules are almost the opposite of A-5. Aces are always high (bad). Straights and flushes count against your hand. The best possible hand is 7-5-4-3-2 with no flush.
- Aces are always high — the worst card for lowball.
- Straights count against you — A-2-3-4-5 is a straight and a bad hand.
- Flushes count against you — five same-suit cards are a flush even if they rank low.
- The best hand must have five different ranks, highest card ≤ 7, no straight, no flush.
- A hand with 7-6-4-3-2 (a "seven-six") beats 8-5-4-3-2 (an "eight-low").
- Used in: 2-7 Single Draw, 2-7 Triple Draw, Badacey, RazzDeucey, Draw Deucey, and the 2-7 half of many split-pot games.
A four-card lowball draw game with a unique hand structure. A valid Badugi hand uses four cards of different suits AND different ranks. Aces are low. Any 4-card Badugi beats any 3-card hand, which beats any 2-card hand — regardless of card ranks.
4-Card Badugi (Best)
A♠ 2♥ 3♦ 4♣ — four different suits, four different ranks, aces low. The Badugi nuts.
3-Card Badugi
3♦ and 3♣ share a rank — 3♣ is discounted. Playable hand: A♠ 2♥ 3♦. Loses to any 4-card Badugi.
2-Card Badugi
Two spades, two hearts — one of each suit counts. Playable hand: A♠ 3♥. Loses to any 3- or 4-card Badugi.
- Any 4-card Badugi beats any 3-card Badugi, no matter the ranks.
- Within the same tier, compare hands from the highest card downward — lower is better.
- Duplicate suit or duplicate rank — discard the higher card(s) to find the playable hand.
- Used in: Badugi, 5-Card Badugi, Hi-Dugi, Razzdugi, Badugaha, Omahugi, and many hybrid games.
Played with a 36-card deck — all 2s, 3s, 4s, and 5s are removed. The reduced deck changes both the probability of each hand and the ranking order in most rule sets.
| Hand | Standard Rank | Short Deck Rank | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Royal Flush | #1 | #1 | — |
| Straight Flush | #2 | #2 | — |
| Four of a Kind | #3 | #3 | — |
| Flush | #5 | #4 | ▲ Beats Full House |
| Full House | #4 | #5 | ▼ Loses to Flush |
| Straight | #6 | #6 | — |
| Three of a Kind | #7 | #7 | — |
| Two Pair | #8 | #8 | — |
| One Pair | #9 | #9 | — |
| High Card | #10 | #10 | — |
- With 2s–5s removed, flushes are rarer than full houses — so flushes rank higher in most short-deck rule sets.
- The lowest straight is A-6-7-8-9. The ace plays low to connect with 6-7-8-9 only.
- A-2-3-4-5 (the wheel) is not a valid straight — 2s-5s don't exist in the deck.
- Note: Some venues keep the standard ranking (full house > flush). Always confirm the local rules before playing.
Sökö (also called Canadian Stud) adds two new hand categories between One Pair and Two Pair. A four-straight and a four-flush each beat one pair but lose to two pair and above.
Four-Flush
Four cards of the same suit (with one unmatched card). Beats a four-straight and one pair. Loses to two pair.
Four-Straight
Four consecutive cards of mixed suits (with one unmatched card). Beats one pair. Loses to four-flush and above.
- Full ranking order: Royal Flush > Straight Flush > Four of a Kind > Full House > Flush > Straight > Three of a Kind > Two Pair > Four-Flush > Four-Straight > One Pair > High Card.
- A four-flush must be exactly four cards of the same suit — the fifth card is a different suit.
- A four-straight must be four consecutive ranks — ace can be high or low (A-2-3-4 or J-Q-K-A with some house rules).
- Used in: Canadian Stud (Sökö).