In poker, unlike other casino games, it is important to know and understand the poker order to have a chance to win and earn money. But, before anything, there are some basic rules referring to all games of poker no matter where you live or play the game. First of all, poker is a five card game. You can play games with seven or nine cards, but you will usually use only your five best cards to create a winning hand. Texas Hold’em, the most popular poker game played in Canada, is a game of only five cards without extras, though there are plenty of other varieties with more cards to choose from to make your best hand.

Within each group, the ranking of your five cards will determine the winner. For example, if you and your opponent have a pair, then the one with the highest pair wins; meaning: Ace beats a King. If you and your opponent have a “Straight”, whoever has the highest straight wins.

However, in a case of a tie, for instance a pair of aces or a high “Flush” ace, you will always look at the five cards for a tie-breaker. With 13 different cards and 4 different suits, a total of 52 cards and more than 2,597,960 different hand options, it can be complicated!

Eventually, after learning all the cards and their order you can maneuver between them and create groups of winning hands and take the pot easily. The card ranking is:

1) Royal Flush: The cards 10, Jack, Queen, King and an ace of the same suit.
2) Straight Flush: A row of any five cards of the same suit.
3) Four of a Kind: 4 cards of the same value.
4) Full House: A triplet and a couple.
5) Flush: 5 cards of the same suit.
6) Straight: 5 cards in ascending order (by the players’ choice, the ace could be higher than a king or lower than 2).
7) Three of a Kind: Three cards of the same value. Two Pairs: 2 pairs of cards of the same value, with each one being a pair by itself (if not, the hand is considered four of a kind, which is a much better hand).
9) One Pair: 2 cards of the same value.

Just because poker didn’t originate in Canada doesn’t mean Canadians can’t master and dominate the game, even when playing against Americans!