Ace Low Straight Texas Holdem Game
Ace Low Straight Texas Holdem Tournaments
Texas Holdem Rules Ace Low Straight

Under high rules, an ace can rank either high (as in A♥ K♥ Q♥ J♥ 10♥, an ace-high straight flush) or low (as in 5♦ 4♦ 3♦ 2♦ A♦, a five-high straight flush), but cannot simultaneously rank both high and low (so Q♣ K♣ A♣ 2♣ 3♣ is an ace-high flush). It could be argued the range, in which the term rag ace incorporates, is smaller or greater than the one shown. For example some would say that a rag ace ranges from A2 to A6, but in my opinion the best way to determine an ace rag is in the range A2 to A9. In a nutshell, a rag ace is an ace with a low kicker. How to play aces with low kickers. A Straight is a five-card combination which is ranked in order but does not hold the same suit. An example of this winning combination is 3-4-5-6-7. The Ace can be taken as either a high or low card. For example, it can be used as one in an A-1-2-3-4 combination or it can also be used as the highest card in a 10-J-Q-K-A combination. An ace is the highest ranking card in Texas Hold'em and can be played either high or low. This means that if you are dealt an ace preflop, there is a fair chance that you hold one of the strongest hands at the table. If you are all-in with an opponent and they do not have a pocket pair or a better ace, you are the favorite to win the hand.

Royal Flush

Ace high Straight Flush.

Ace of Spades King of Spades Queen of Spades Jack of Spades 10 of Spades in a single suit. Also frequently referred to as 'Broadway'.

Straight Flush

Five consecutive cards of the same suit.

Five sequential cards in the same suit. The highest type of Straight Flush is a Royal Flush, and the lowest is an A-2-3-4-5 hand (if Aces are low or high/low). This type of hand is referred to as a 'Steel Wheel'. Other Straight Flushes with special names include:

King of Clubs Queen of Clubs Jack of Clubs 10 of Clubs 9 of Clubs - Off Broadway (because it's shifted down one rank from a Royal Flush, or 'Broadway').

Four of a Kind

One of each suit in a single rank.

Also known as Quads. Many of the Four of a Kind hands have their own nicknames:

King of Clubs King of Diamonds King of Hearts King of Spades - Four Horsemen (of the Apocalypse)
Queen of Clubs Queen of Diamonds Queen of Hearts Queen of Spades - Village People (four Queens)
10 of Clubs 10 of Diamonds 10 of Hearts 10 of Spades - Larry, after Larry Fortensky (four-ten-sky), Elizabeth Taylor's eighth husband
4 of Clubs 4 of Diamonds 4 of Hearts 4 of Spades - Yacht Club (because the 4 resembles a sail)
3 of Clubs 3 of Diamonds 3 of Hearts 3 of Spades - Forest (four 'trees')
2 of Clubs 2 of Diamonds 2 of Hearts 2 of Spades - Mighty Ducks (because the 2 resembles a duck)

Full House

Three of a Kind and One Pair.

A Full House is called as 'X over Y' where X is the Three of a Kind and Y is the Pair (e.g., in a A-A-A-Q-Q hand, you would call it as 'Full House, Aces over Queens').

A Full House is sometimes called a boat or a full boat. When called a Boat/Full Boat, the hand is announced as 'X full of Y' (e.g., the same A-A-A-Q-Q hand would be called a 'Full Boat, Aces full of Queens'). Some Full House hands have special nicknames:

Ace of Clubs Ace of Diamonds 2 of Clubs 2 of Diamonds 2 of Hearts - Marksman (bows and arrows)
7 of Clubs 7 of Diamonds 7 of Clubs 4 of Diamonds 4 of Hearts - Sailing rednecks
3 of Clubs 3 of Diamonds 3 of Clubs 2 of Diamonds 2 of Hearts - Nits and Lice, Mites and Lice

Flush

Five cards of the same suit.

Any five cards, all of which are in the same suit. A Flush all in hearts is referred to as 'Valentine's' while a flush all in clubs is known as a 'Golf Bag'.

Straight

Five consecutive cards.

Five cards in sequential order (but not all in the same suit, or it would be a Straight Flush). Also known as a Run (in many melding/counting games, such as gin and its variants, cribbage, and canasta, a Straight is referred to as a Run, and the name has carried over into poker).

6 of Clubs 5 of Diamonds 4 of Hearts 3 of Spades 2 of Clubs - Rabbit (the lowest Straight Flush if Aces are high)
5 of Clubs 4 of Diamonds 3 of Hearts 2 of Spades Ace of Clubs - Wheel, Bicycle, Bike, Spike, First Street, Little Wheel (the lowest run if Aces are low or high/low)

Three of a Kind

Three cards of the same rank. Also known as Trips, a Set, or Triplets. Three-card combinations that have special names include:

Ace of Clubs Ace of Diamonds Ace of Hearts - Beatles reunion
King of Clubs King of Diamonds King of Hearts - Three Wise Men, Christmas Special (both references to 'Three Kings'), Alabama Night Riders, Ku Klux Klan (KKK is an abbreviation for the Ku Klux Klan, and 'Alabama Night Riders' is a colloquial term used to refer to this group, which has a history of carrying out their acts at night in rural ateas)
Queen of Clubs Queen of Diamonds Queen of Hearts - Six Tits
Jack of Clubs Jack of Diamonds Jack of Hearts - Hart, Schaffner, and Marx (Three Jacks)
10 of Clubs 10 of Diamonds 10 of Hearts - Dallas to Fort Worth (the I-10 connects these two Texas Cities), San Jose to Gilroy, Gilroy, Thirty Miles of bad road (the distance between San Jose and Gilroy, California, used to be 30 miles, although the two cities are now adjoining)
7 of Clubs 7 of Diamonds 7 of Hearts - 21, Slot Machine, Jackpot (all named after results in other casino games like Blackjack and Slots)
6 of Clubs 6 of Diamonds 6 of Hearts - The Devil, The Beast, Lucifer, Devil's Area Code
5 of Clubs 5 of Diamonds 5 of Hearts - Washington Monument, Pork Chop Sandwiches
4 of Clubs 4 of Diamonds 4 of Hearts - Grand Jury
2 of Clubs 2 of Diamonds 2 of Hearts - Huey, Dewey, and Louie (three ducks)

Two Pairs

Two pairs, each with two cards of the same rank. Notable named two pair combinations include:

Ace of Clubs Ace of Diamonds 8 of Clubs 8 of Diamonds - Dead Man's Hand (Arrows and Nooses)
King of Clubs King of Diamonds Queen of Clubs Queen of Diamonds - Mommas and Poppas
King of Clubs King of Diamonds 9 of Clubs 9 of Diamonds - Pair of Dogs (because it's K9K9-- two canines)
Queen of Clubs Queen of Diamonds 3 of Clubs 3 of Diamonds - San Francisco Waiters (Queens with Trays/Treys)
Jack of Clubs Jack of Diamonds 5 of Clubs 5 of Diamonds - Jackson Five (Jacks and Fives), Motown, Roc

Ace Low Straight Texas Holdem