The complete Poker cheat sheet — hand rankings, odds, starting hand charts, and position strategy on one page.

Whether you’re brand new to Poker or need a quick refresher mid-game, this cheat sheet covers everything you need to make better decisions at the table.

Hand Rankings (Highest to Lowest)

Rank Hand Example Probability
1 Royal Flush A♠ K♠ Q♠ J♠ 10♠ 0.000154%
2 Straight Flush 5♥ 6♥ 7♥ 8♥ 9♥ 0.00139%
3 Four of a Kind 9♣ 9♦ 9♥ 9♠ J♣ 0.024%
4 Full House K♣ K♦ K♥ 7♠ 7♣ 0.144%
5 Flush 2♦ 5♦ 8♦ J♦ A♦ 0.197%
6 Straight 4♣ 5♠ 6♦ 7♥ 8♣ 0.392%
7 Three of a Kind Q♣ Q♦ Q♠ 5♣ 8♥ 2.11%
8 Two Pair J♣ J♠ 4♦ 4♥ A♣ 4.75%
9 One Pair 10♣ 10♦ 3♠ 7♥ K♣ 42.3%
10 High Card A♣ J♠ 8♦ 5♥ 2♣ 50.1%

Quick memory trick: Royal Flush → Straight Flush → Four → Full → Flush → Straight → Three → Two → One → High. Notice: the “F” hands (Four, Full, Flush) are in the middle, and pairs count down (Three, Two, One).

Starting Hand Strength (Texas Hold’em)

Tier 1 — Premium Hands (Always Raise)

  • A-A (Pocket Aces) — The best hand. Raise big pre-flop.
  • K-K (Pocket Kings) — Nearly as strong. Raise big.
  • Q-Q (Pocket Queens) — Strong but vulnerable to A or K on flop.
  • A-K suited — Best non-pair. Needs to hit the flop.

Tier 2 — Strong Hands (Raise or Call)

  • J-J — Good but plays cautiously post-flop
  • A-K offsuit — Big Slick. Raise, but fold if you miss the flop
  • A-Q suited — Strong but dominated by A-K
  • 10-10 — Solid mid pair

Tier 3 — Playable Hands (Call or Raise in Position)

  • 9-9, 8-8 — Mid pairs, set mining
  • A-J suited, A-10 suited — Good suited aces
  • K-Q suited — Needs to connect with the board
  • J-10 suited — Best drawing hand

Tier 4 — Situational (Play in Late Position)

  • 7-7, 6-6, 5-5 — Small pairs, set mine only
  • Suited connectors (8-9s, 7-8s) — Call to see a flop cheaply
  • A-x suited — Any ace with a suit can make nut flush

Fold These (Most Situations)

  • 2-7 offsuit — Worst hand in Poker
  • Unsuited disconnected low cards (3-8, 2-9, etc.)
  • Any hand with no face cards, no pair, no suit match, no connection

Key Odds to Know

Situation Odds You’ll Hit It
Flopping a set (pocket pair) 7.5:1 ~12%
Flopping two pair 49:1 ~2%
Completing a flush draw (flop → river) ~1.9:1 ~35%
Completing an open-ended straight draw (flop → river) ~2.2:1 ~32%
Making a flush draw on turn only ~4.2:1 ~19%
Hitting an overcard (two overcards) ~6.7:1 ~13%
Running into Aces when you hold Kings ~220:1 ~0.45%

Position Strategy

Position matters more than your cards in most situations.

Position Strategy
Early (UTG, UTG+1) Play only Tier 1 and top Tier 2 hands. You’re first to act every round.
Middle (MP1, MP2) Add Tier 2 hands. Still cautious.
Late (Cutoff, Button) Add Tier 3 and 4 hands. You see everyone act first — huge advantage.
Blinds (SB, BB) Already invested money. Defend with decent hands but don’t throw good money after bad.

Quick Betting Rules

  • Pre-flop: Raise with premium hands. Call with speculative hands in position. Fold everything else.
  • Post-flop: Bet if you hit. Check-fold if you missed (unless bluffing). Semi-bluff with draws.
  • The rule of 2 and 4: Multiply your outs by 4 on the flop (two cards to come) or by 2 on the turn (one card to come) to estimate your winning percentage.

Outs Quick Reference

Draw Outs Flop → River Turn → River
Flush draw 9 35% 19.6%
Open-ended straight 8 31.5% 17.4%
Gutshot straight 4 16.5% 8.7%
Two overcards 6 24.1% 13%
Set (pocket pair) 2 8.4% 4.3%

Pre-Flop Action Summary

Your Hand Early Position Mid Position Late Position
A-A, K-K Raise big Raise big Raise big
Q-Q, A-Ks Raise Raise Raise
J-J, A-Ko Raise/Call Raise Raise
10-10, A-Qs Call Raise/Call Raise
9-9, A-Js Fold/Call Call Raise
Suited connectors Fold Fold/Call Call
Small pairs Fold Fold/Call Call
Trash Fold Fold Fold

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