The first step to online poker games for any novice player is to memorize the official online poker rankings. Once you know that a flush beats a straight and the royal flush is king, you are off to a good start.
Once you have understood the proper order of online poker rankings, you'll need to practice reading the board and figuring out which five-card poker hand is the best from any combination of pocket and community cards.
Here's a quick rundown of the most common poker hand rankings:-
Royal Flush
A royal flush is the best poker hand and tops the online poker rankings calculator chart. It always consists of A, K, Q, J, 10. It doesn't matter what suit the combination belongs to, but all cards must be of the same suit. It is basically an ace-high straight flush. A royal flush beats them all.
Straight Flush
A straight flush is any other hand consisting of five consecutive cards of the same suit. For example, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3 of diamonds or Q, J, 10, 9, 8 of hearts. If two players get a straight flush, the poker hand with the highest-ranking cards wins. A straight flush beats four of a kind. ?
Four of a kind
A four of a kind consists of four cards of one rank and the last card of another rank. For example, 7 of hearts, 7 of spades, 7 of diamonds, and 7 of clubs along with 10 of hearts. A four of a kind can beat a full house at any poker game variant.
Full House
A full house consists of three cards from one rank and two cards of another rank. For example, King of diamonds, a King of hearts, a King of spades, combined with a Jack of hearts and a Jack of diamonds. A full house beats a flush.
Flush
Flush is also known as a full boat. It consists of five cards, all from the same suit, no matter the sequence. For example, a 6 of hearts, an 8 of hearts, a Q of hearts, a 10 of hearts, and a 3 of hearts. A flush beats a straight.
Straight
A straight consists of five cards in sequential rank, no matter the suit. For example, a 10 of diamonds, a 9 of hearts, an 8 of spades, a 7 of clubs, and a 6 of diamonds. A straight beats a three of a kind.
Three of a Kind
Three of a kind consists of three cards from the same rank and two cards from any rank, of any suit. For example, a King of diamonds, a King of Hearts, and a King of Spades along with a Jack of hearts, and a 2 of Spades. A three of a kind can beat a two pair.
Two Pair
A two pair consists of two cards from one rank, two cards of another rank, and one card from another rank. For example, an Ace of diamonds, an Ace of hearts, a 4 of spades, a 4 of clubs, and a Queen of diamonds. A two pair beats one pair.
One Pair
One pair is simply a poker hand that consists of two cards of the same rank. For example a 5 of clubs, 5 of spades, a Queen of hearts, 8 of clubs, and a 7 of clubs. One pair only beats a high card.
High Card
A high card means you don't have any of the previous poker hands. So, in this situation, your hand is determined by the single highest ranking card you have. For example, if you had a King of hearts, a Queen of diamonds, a 7 of spades, a 3 of clubs, and a 2 of hearts, you would be betting with a king-high.
Bottom Line
You need to know the poker hand rankings before you are off to play poker online. If you don't know which hand is going to win, you can never win a game of poker without knowing you actually won. So, learn these important poker hand rankings before you are off playing online poker games.
