Top Hands Texas Holdem

1. Texas Holdem Top Hands %
2. Top 10 Hands Texas Holdem
3. Top Hands In Texas Holdem

Top 10 Best Starting Hands In Texas Hold'em Poker. 3 Pocket Queens. 4 Ace-King Suited. 7 Ace-Queen Suited. 8 Ace-King Offsuit. The 20 Best Starting Poker Hands. The best starting hands in Texas Holdem are big pairs and big cards. Of course, we all know the power of AA, KK and QQ, but JJ-TT are also premium hands. Some have a hate relationship with JJ and TT, but I love being dealt these.

One of the first books I ever read about Texas holdem strategy was Phil Hellmuth’s Play Poker Like the Pros. And one of the first lessons I learned from that book was the importance of tight play before the flop. Hellmuth presents a list of the top 10 starting hands in Texas holdem, and he suggests that you ONLY play hands from that list.

His list is a little different from the one I present below, though. His list consists of any pocket pair of 7s or better, plus ace king suited and ace queen suited.

My list is less bull-ish on pocket pairs, though. I also include some more high hands that have suited and connected value.

Of course, you should consider any guide to Texas holdem starting hands to be like training wheels on a bicycle. They’re great at first—maybe even necessary—but eventually, you shouldn’t need a starting hands chart at all. You’re just able to make good decisions based on the situations you’re in.

1- Pocket Aces

Unless you’re completely unfamiliar with poker or you’ve been living under a rock, you already know that pocket aces are the strongest starting hand in Texas holdem. It’s also one of the easiest hands to play correctly. Just bet and raise with it.

Since it’s impossible for any of the other players in the hand to have a better starting hand, betting and raising with pocket aces is always correct.

I have read that some players like to check with pocket aces if they’re in first position at a full table. The idea is that someone behind you will bet and maybe someone will even raise, giving you the opportunity to re-raise and maybe even put them all-in. (This applies mostly to no limit games.)

My friend Wes insists that checking with pocket aces is always a mistake, even in this limited set of circumstances. Sometimes I check with pocket aces just to get on his nerves.

Anyway, pocket aces pretty much play themselves. They often win even if the hand doesn’t improve over the course of the flop, turn, and river.

2- Pocket Kings

Playing pocket kings preflop is also dead simple. You just bet and raise with this hand repeatedly. Your goal should be to get all your chips into the pot before the flop. The only way you can possibly be dominated when you have pocket kings is if one of your opponents has pocket aces. And your opponents usually DON’T have pocket aces.

You’ll get calls from players with pocket jacks, pocket queens, or ace king or ace queen suited. In all those situations, you’re the favorite, so getting your money in the pot in that situation is the right thing to do.

Pocket kings get tricky when an ace shows up on the flop. Now you have to start thinking about what you’re going to do next.

You want to avoid making the mistake of overplaying your hand in this situation. Pocket kings aren’t the nuts, and once the flop has hit, the strength of your hand has likely changed. It’s okay to fold.

Position is important when that ace hits, because if you’re in late position, you can get a feel for what your opponent might be holding.

Don’t be afraid to fold pocket kings when an ace shows up on the flop, though. You shouldn’t automatically give up on the hand, either, but don’t play it like it’s the nuts.

Lots of players, especially newcomers or beginners, are really bullish on aces preflop—even if their other card is low in value and not of the same suit. Be willing to give your opponent credit for having that ace I the hole.

3- Pocket Queens

It’s even more important to avoid getting married to pocket queens than it is to avoid marrying pocket kings. You should bet and raise with pocket queens before the flop, although maybe less aggressively than you would aces or kings. You then need to be cautious if you see a king or an ace on the flop.

I almost never fold pocket queens before the flop, because the odds of my opponent having pocket kings or pocket aces are so low.

But the odds that someone still in the hand on the flop has one king or one ace preflop are good, so if I see one of those cards on the flop, I start getting more cautious. If I’m first to act, I’m usually good for a continuation bet, but if I get raised or re-raised, I’m willing to get away from the hand.

If I’m in late position with pocket queens, I’m often good for a bet if no one has acted, but I’m probably not going to raise or re-raise aggressive players in early position.

Pocket queens are a great hand, but they’re not the same as pocket kings or aces and shouldn’t be played as if they were.

4- Ace King Suited

Ace king is often called “big slick,” and if the 2 cards are suited, some players call the hand “super slick.” Players fall in love with this hand, as well they should, but it’s important to remember that ace king suited is a speculative hand. If you don’t catch something that helps on the flop, ace king is one you need to be willing to get away from on the flop.

In David Sklansky’s hand groupings, the best possible hands are in “Group 1.” These hands include pocket jacks, queens, kings, or aces. They also include ace king suited.

But there’s a big difference between ace king suited and any of these pocket pairs. In fact, even pocket jacks has a huge difference in strength from pocket aces.

The trick to playing ace king is to avoid overvaluing the hand. Yes, you should bet and probably even raise with this hand preflop. You just need to be ready to get away from the hand on the flop.

It’s also important to pay attention to your opponents’ tendencies. Ace king suited is easily dominated by pocket queens, kings, or aces.

But you also have lots of possibilities with this hand, including the possible nut flush. My favorite move in Texas holdem is to hit 4 to a flush with ace king suited and then play it really aggressively.

This is a classic semi-bluff. You probably don’t have the best hand on the flop, but you still have a roughly 1/3 chance of hitting the nut flush. Combine that with the possibility that your opponents might fold in the face of your aggression, and you have a situation with a lot of expected value.

5- Pocket Jacks

This is the lowest pair in David Sklansky’s top tier hand grouping. This might also be the biggest trouble hand in Texas holdem. It’s easy to overvalue pocket jacks, especially if you haven’t had a lot of playable hand in your time at the table. (I don’t know anyone who enjoys folding for an hour straight.)

The most important factor to consider when playing pocket jacks is position. If you’re in early position, betting or raising with pocket jacks is a good idea, but be cautious when someone plays back against you. From late position, raising is okay against a single opponent, but against multiple bettors and raisers, you might be in trouble.

When the flop hits, it’s time to pay attention. You’ll see overcards on the flop 2/3 of the time, and chances are good that someone has at least a queen in the hole if they’re still in the pot with you. What you’re really hoping for with pocket jacks is to pick up a small pot uncontested preflop, or to hit the flop hard enough that you can play back at someone with big cards.

Pocket jacks are almost always playable, but they’re small pot hands that you need to be willing to get away from.

6- Pocket 10s

I still raise preflop with pocket 10s, especially if I’m in late position, but I’m more cautious with them in late position. I’m almost always in trouble when a high card hits on the flop, and if 2 high cards hit on the flop, I gotta get out of there.

The best case scenario with pocket 10s is the same as with any smaller pair. You’re really hoping to hit a set, which happens rarely, but when it does… you’re going to win a big pot.

Don’t be afraid of making a continuation bet on the flop, though. Just be ready to get away from the hand if one of your opponents starts playing back at you.

Don’t forget, though, that your opponent doesn’t know what you’re holding. Even if an overcard hits, it might not be the overcard that your opponent needs. By making a continuation bet, you can sometimes get your opponent to fold and take down a small pot right away on the flop.

The number of players makes a difference, too—especially preflop. If you’re playing at a full table, your pocket 10s might or might not be the best hand. But if you’re playing at a table with 5 or 6 players, it’s often going to be the best preflop hand out there. This means you should play it aggressively before the flop.

7- Ace King (Not Suited)

Ace king offsuit doesn’t play much differently than ace skin suited, but the difference is big. If you can run the guys holding smaller pairs off before the flop, you’ll be doing well. If you miss the flop, you really have no choice but to slow down. Since you don’t have the flush potential or the semi-bluff potential with the unsuited ace king, it’s a trickier hand to play.

Still, ace king is a premium hand, because you have 6 cards that will improve your hand on the flop. If you see an ace on the flop, you have the best possible pair with the best possible kicker. If you see a king on the flop, you have the top visible pair with the best possible kicker. Someone with pocket aces has you beat, but that’s unlikely.

A lot of players have trouble with big slick, but you needn’t have trouble with it. Play it strong preflop, then slow down on the flop if you miss the flop. If you hit the flop, hit the gas. Most of the time, especially at the lower stakes, all you need to do to play profitable poker is to fold your bad cards and bet and raise with your good cards.

Some advanced players will call this “ABC poker.”

But ABC poker is the beginning of poker wisdom. If you can’t play good ABC poker, you’ll have no chance of doing well with more complicated, multi-level strategies.

8- Ace Queen Suited

I’ve seen poker writers call ace queen suited the worst possible best hand. I’m not sure that’s the case, but ace queen suited is much weaker than ace king suited, even though a lot of players don’t make a distinction.

At a full table, you’re probably going to do just as well by folding ace queen suited from early position as anywhere else. If you’re in middle or late position, ace queen suited is a betting and raising hand, but it’s a hard hand to play from early position.

If there’s a lot of betting and raising preflop, the only sensible move is to fold the ace queen suited and wait for a better hand. Chances are that if a lot of people are betting and raising, someone has a reasonably high pair or at least ace king. In either of those cases, your ace queen suited is thoroughly dominated. Don’t put money in the pot if you’re sure you’re dominated.

The best time and way to play ace queen suited is when you have position and everyone else has demonstrated weakness. You’re hoping to hit an ace or a queen on the flop. You also have a shot at the nut flush, but that gap between ace and queen represents a king which can be a lot of trouble.

It’s easy to miss the flop entirely with ace queen suited, too. If that’s the case with you, it might be your best bet to not bet at all, but just check and fold.

Ace queen suited is considered a trouble hand, but it doesn’t have to be. You just need to be willing to fold it in the face of aggression or in the face of a flop that doesn’t fit your cards.

9- Ace Jack Suited

I don’t play ace jack unsuited at all, and ace jack suited is only barely playable. I’d really rather have a pair of 8s or 9s than ace jack suited. In fact, ace jack suited has all the same problems as ace queen suited, only more so.

Ace jack suited is really best suited for play from late position when you see weakness from your opponents. It might also be more playable at a short-handed table.

You need to hit the flop hard with this hand if you’re going to get into a confrontation with another player. Even if the highest card on the flop is a jack, you’re still very vulnerable to other higher cards on the turn and the river.

Of course, your best case scenario is to hit a big flush, but that’s unusual. But that possibility warrants mentioning, because without the flush possibility, ace jack isn’t even playable most of the time.

I’ve seen ace queen suited called the worst best starting hand, but I think that’s because more people realize just how weak ace jack suited really is. If they weren’t sure about that, ace jack suited would certainly be at least as bad.

10- King Queen Suited

I like king queen suited. I think it’s an easy hand to play.

If you’re in early position, limp in with king queen suited, but only if you’re at a passive table. If you’re at an aggressive table, you’re probably better off folding king queen suited from early position.

You can also limp with king queen suited from middle or later position, and if everyone seems weak, you can even raise with king queen suited from late position.

One of the beauties of king queen suited is that it’s pretty easy to tell where you’re at after the flop. You either have a flush or a strong flush draw, or you don’t. You either have a straight or a strong straight draw, or you don’t. You’ve either hit a high pair or not. Either way, you have an okay kicker.

You should never play king queen suited as aggressively as pocket aces or pocket kings, but this shouldn’t be a trouble hand, either. Pay attention to your position, and pay attention to how well the flop fits your hand. Then play accordingly.

Conclusion

You can safely ignore any of this advice about the top 10 Texas holdem starting hands and still win at poker. This is a card game, not chess. So many factors, including random chance, affect your outcome that even if you make mistakes, you can come out ahead.

In fact, with only a little bit of searching, you’ll find other lists of the top 10 starting hands in Texas holdem that include different hands from what I’ve included here. I think most people will agree that between this list and 1 or 2 of those other lists, almost all the playable opening hands will be covered.

If you’re playing for lower stakes, ABC poker should be enough to make you profitable. Bet and raise when you think you have the best hand, and fold or check when you think someone else does.

Which hands would you include on your list of the top 10 Texas holdem starting hands and why?

If you’re a beginning poker player and want to learn not only
which hands beat which hands, but how to read the board and
possible hands while playing Texas holdem, you’ve found the best
page available to help.

While it’s important to understand how each hand ranks in
comparison to others hands it’s equally important to understand
how to read the board of community cards, how to read possible
draws, and how to read what hands your opponents may be holding.
Each of these subjects is covered below.

New players should make sure to read each section in order
below. But if you already know how to play poker and are
familiar with the rank of poker hands you can skip to the
sections following the hand rankings section. But it’s never a
bad idea to refresh your knowledge and it only takes a couple
minutes to read the extra sections.

Texas Holdem Hand Rankings

The following list is ranked from highest five card hand to
lowest five card hand. Start reading from the top down and the
first hand you find that a player holds is the winning hand. See
how to break ties below the hand rankings.

Remember that you always make your best five card hand out of
the two hole cards and five community cards. You can use both of
your hole cards and three community cards, one hole card and
four community cards, or just the five community cards, but you
always use exactly five cards to make a hand.

• Royal Flush

  A royal flush consists of an ace, king,
  queen, jack, and ten of all the same suit. In other words,
  an ace high straight that’s also a flush is a royal flush.
  An example of a royal flush is the ace of clubs, king of
  clubs, queen of clubs, jack of clubs, and ten of clubs.

• Straight Flush

  A straight flush is a straight and a
  flush that isn’t ace high. Straight flushes can be anywhere
  from king high down to five high. Two examples of straight
  flushes are king of spades, queen of spades, jack of spades,
  ten of spades, and nine of spades or the five of hearts,
  four of hearts, three of hearts, two of hearts, and ace of
  hearts. In the case of the second example, the ace is
  counted as a one, or the lowest card in the deck. So if a
  straight using an ace as a one is in a tie the ace is always
  used as a low card for tie purposes, not high.

• Four of a Kind

  A four of a kind includes all four
  cards of the same rank in the deck. The fifth card doesn’t
  matter. An example of four of a kind is eight of spades,
  eight of hearts, eight of clubs, and eight of diamonds.

• Full House

  A full house consists of three of a kind
  and two of a kind. An example of a full house is the jack of
  clubs, jack of diamonds, jack of spades, seven of hearts,
  and seven of spades.

• Flush

  A flush has all five cards the same suit. The
  rank of the cards doesn’t matter as long as all five cards
  are the same suit. Any five hearts is a flush or any five
  clubs, etc.

• Straight

  A straight has five cards in sequential
  order. The suits don’t matter in a straight.

• Three of a Kind

  Three of a kind consists of three
  cards of the same rank. Example of three of a kind hands
  include a hand with three jacks or a hand with three sevens.
  Other names for three of a kind include trips or a set. When
  the word set is used it usually means a hand with a pocket
  pair and one matching card on the board making three of a
  kind.

• Two Pair

  Two pair consists of two different pairs of
  matching ranks. Two sixes and two eights is an example of a
  two pair hand.

• One Pair

  One pair is simply two cards of the same
  rank. Two nines or two aces are examples of a pair.

• High Card

  A high card hand is one that doesn’t have
  any of the hands listed above. The highest ranked card is
  designated as the high card for the hand. If the highest
  card you have is a king you have a king high hand.

How to Break Ties

When two or more hands are tied for the highest hand one of
two things must happen. The first thing is you must decide if
one hand is actually higher than the other / s based on a few
simple rules that we cover next.

Moving from the top of the hand rankings above down, in a
Texas holdem game it’s impossible for more than one player to
have a royal flush unless the royal flush has all five cards on
the board. If all five cards on the board are used in this way
by every player remaining in the hand, all of the players tie.

It’s possible for two players to have straight flushes. In
the case of two or more straight flushes, straights, or flushes,
the player with the highest card in her straight or flush has
the highest hand. If one player has a queen high straight and
another has a nine high straight, the player with the queen high
straight wins.

In the event of two or more players holding a full house, the
player with the highest three of a kind has the better hand. If
two or more players hold two pair hands, the player with the
highest pair wins. If each player has the same high pair the
player with the highest second pair wins.

When two or more players have the same high hand of a pair,
or three of a kind, or something similar, the rest of each
player’s hand is considered.

Two players each have a pair of aces for their high hand.
Player A has A A K J 5 and player B has A A J 7 4. Player A wins
the hand because her next highest card after the tied pair of
aces is a king and player B only has a jack. In the event the
third card is the same you then compare the fourth card.

If two or more hands have the exact same five card hand then
the pot is split between the winning hands. The suits all have
the same rank as far as value is concerned. Hearts is not worth
more or less than spades, etc.

How to Read the Board

When you start playing Texas holdem it’s important to learn
how to read the board not only to determine what you hold but
also what your opponent could possibly have. This is important
because you don’t want to be caught by surprise when you think
you have the best hand and commit a large amount of money to the
pot when another player actually has a better hand.

You start the hand with the ace of clubs and the jack of
clubs and the flop has the queen of clubs, nine of clubs, and
ace of diamonds. This looks like a good flop for you because you
have a pair of aces and a chance to hit an ace high flush. The
turn is the two of clubs, completing the best possible flush.
The river is the queen of hearts.

While you still have the best possible flush, when the board
paired on the river it means you no longer have the best
possible hand. Whenever the board pairs it means there’s a
possibility that one of your opponents may have a full house.

In the example we just used a player starting the hand with
an ace and queen would have hit the full house on the river. The
same is true for a player starting with pocket nines.

Most of the time in Texas holdem you’ll still have the best
hand with a flush in these situations, but you always need to
know what the best possible hand is before deciding how much to
risk in the pot.

Other hands to watch out for include possible straights and
boards that have a high likelihood of having two pair.

Good starting hands often have two high cards, so any flop
that holds two or three high cards has a chance to create pairs
or straight possibilities for your opponents who hold high card
starting hands.

Even flops with middle and smaller cards may offer straight
possibilities, especially in unraised pots. In an unraised pot
the blinds get to see the flop for free or a half bet, so even
on a flop with lower cards they may have hit two pair or a
straight draw.

One of the best ways to practice reading the board is by
dealing out hands at home and figuring out every possible hand.
Then start dealing pocket cards for multiple players and play
each one independently in your mind. This way you see many
different pocket cards in combination with the board cards.

If you’re still struggling to see all of the possibilities
and hands ask a more experienced player to work with you as you
practice to point out things you may be missing.

How to Read Draws

Reading draws kind of goes hand in hand with the last section
about reading the board, but you also need to learn how to
factor in the chances of hitting your draws.

Texas Holdem Top Hands %

If you have four cards to a straight after the turn there’s
only a few cards left in the deck that can complete your
straight. If your straight draw is open ended, meaning you can
hit a card on either end to complete it, you have eight cards
left in the deck that can help you.

A hand of seven, eight, nine, ten will complete with any six
or jack. You’ve seen your two hole cards and four board cards,
so the deck still has 46 unseen cards. Eight of these cards
complete your straight and 38 of them don’t. So the odds of you
completing your straight are 38 to 8. This reduces to 4.75 to 1.

In more simple terms this means that on average if you played
the exact same situation 46 times you’d complete your straight
eight times and miss it 38 times.

Of course the actual deck of remaining cards doesn’t have 46
cards because the other players have cards, but you haven’t seen
them so you have to include them as unseen cards in the deck for
your calculations.

You use the odds in combination with your possible draws to
determine if it’s profitable to bet, raise, check, or fold.

This can become somewhat complicated when you have multiple
ways to make a hand. Usually each possible draw has a different
chance of winning if you hit it. In the example above you stand
a good chance of winning the hand when you hit your straight,
but if you miss your straight but pair one of your cards on the
river you’ll have a pair, but the odds of it being good are
slim.

Learn how to read all of your possible draws and how to
determine the odds of each draw being successful and winning if
you hit it. This will help you win more often playing Texas
holdem.

Top 10 Hands Texas Holdem

Reading Your Opponents Possible Hands

Continuing the discussion from the last two sections, once
you learn all there is to know about your possible hands and
draws and the odds you can start using the same things to
determine what hands your opponents can possibly hold and their
chance of completing hands that may be able to beat your hand.

You’ll need to learn what hands your opponents like to play
and which ones they don’t play if you want to get the best
possible reads, but even if you don’t know anything about your
opponents you can still make educated guesses based on the
board, what you hold, and the betting action throughout the
hand.

Remember in an earlier section we mentioned that many good
starting hands have high cards. Other popular starting hands
include pocket pairs and suited hands including an ace. As the
level of competition improves the starting hand possibilities
tend to change. Staring hands with an ace and suited small card
are more likely at the lower levels than at the higher levels of
competition.

Look at the list of good starting hands included in the next
section and then compare them with the current board. Which
hands fit with the way your opponent is playing the hand? Don’t
forget that not every player will follow the guidelines listed
below.

Some players, especially at the lower levels, play any ace or
any hand with an ace and any card the same suit as the ace.

At lower levels you’ll often see hands where a player with an
ace and a small off card hit two pair and beat a hand with a
pair of aces and a large second hole card that doesn’t pair up.
This may seem like playing better starting hands doesn’t pay
off, but in the long run the player starting with ace queen is
going to win more hands than the player starting with ace three.

It’s also important to always consider the players in the
blinds. If they get in for free or half a bet they could have
any two cards. Even for a small raise many players won’t fold
anything from the blinds because they’re already invested in the
pot.

You need to consider a wide range of things when trying to
guess what your opponents hold, but with practice you can start
narrowing down their possible hands quickly. As you gain more
experience you can get to the point where you’ll often have a
good idea where your opponents stand in a hand. You’ll still be
surprised sometimes because players do all kinds of crazy things
at the holdem table, but the more you know the better you’ll be
in the long run.

Another big part of reading your opponent’s possible hands is
watching them play, even when you aren’t in the hand, and
remembering everything they do. If they have a big pocket pair
do they always raise before the flop? Do they ever bet into a
draw or do they always check and call? Thinking about these
questions and learning the answers to them and others will make
your play more profitable over time.

Best Starting Hands

Here’s a list of the best starting hands in Texas holdem. The
list is roughly listed from best to worst, but hand values
change somewhat based on the level of competition, the makeup of
the game, and your ability to play well after the flop.

Not all of these hands can be played from every position or
in every game. But if a hand isn’t listed here you should avoid
playing it in any Texas holdem game.

Top Hands In Texas Holdem

Two card hands followed by a small “s” means suited. For
example, K Q s means a king and queen of the same suit.

As you become a long term profitable Texas Holdem player
you’ll find situations where you may be able to play a few hands
profitably that aren’t on the list. You may be able to play 10 9
s or 4 4 from late position profitably in a few games, but don’t
even think about trying it until you’re already a profitable
player.

On the other hand you’ll find many games where hands like K J
and below on the list can’t be played profitably. As a rule of
thumb, while you’re learning how to be a better player, it’s
always better to be tight than loose. So only play the best
hands while learning how to play.

You also need to understand how position relative to the
dealer button changes the value of starting hands and what you
can and can’t play for a profit. We have an entire page
dedicated to position so you should study it to make sure you
completely understand how to use it.

Conclusion

Even experienced Texas holdem players make mistakes when it
comes to reading the board of community cards and trying to
determine what their opponents hold. Once you learn what beats
what, you still have a great deal to learn if you want to be a
winning player.

Start by making sure you know the ranking of all of the
possible hands, and then learn how to read the board. Use your
hole cards with the board to determine not only the best hand
you can form, but also the best hand your opponents could
possibly have.

The next step is learning the odds of you hitting your hands
and using this information to determine the best way to play the
rest of the hand. Finally, you can start using all of the things
you’ve learned to start making educated guesses about what your
opponents have and are drawing to.

Winning Texas holdem players use all of these things and more
on every hand to give themselves the best chance to win. But
don’t panic if this seems like a lot to take in at once. You
don’t have to learn it all in one sitting. Bookmark or print out
this page and go over it often while you’re learning to be a
better player.