When you have a ‘flush’ in poker, it means you have a hand that is made up of five cards of the same suit. For example, Queen, Jack, 8, 6, 2 that are all hearts would be a flush.
What is a flush in poker?
In poker, a “flush” is a hand that consists of five cards of the same suit, not in sequential order. It ranks higher than a “one pair” or “two pair” hand but lower than a “full house” or a “four of a kind.” The strength of a flush is determined by the highest-ranking card within the flush. Here’s how flushes work:
- Definition: A flush is formed when a player has five cards of the same suit (hearts, diamonds, clubs, or spades) but not in numerical sequence. The cards can be of any rank within that suit.
- Example: A typical example of a flush would be having the 2, 5, 8, 10, and King of spades. All five cards are spades, but they are not in sequential order, which is why it’s a flush.
- Flush Rankings: If multiple players have a flush, the player with the highest-ranking card within their flush wins. If two players have the same high card, the next highest card in the flush is compared, and so on, until a winner is determined. If all five cards are the same among two or more flushes, it’s a tie, and the pot is split.
- Ace-High vs. King-High Flush: In standard poker hand rankings, an Ace-high flush (e.g., Ace, King, 10, 8, 4 of the same suit) is higher than a King-high flush (e.g., King, Queen, 9, 7, 2 of the same suit).
- Royal Flush: The highest possible flush is known as the “Royal Flush.” It consists of the Ace, King, Queen, Jack, and 10 of the same suit. The Royal Flush is the best possible hand in many poker variants and is unbeatable.
Flushes are strong poker hands, and the likelihood of getting one depends on the number of cards of the same suit available in the deck and the community cards on the board in games like Texas Hold’em or Omaha. Understanding hand rankings, including flushes, is essential for playing and winning at poker.