Poker hands have different nicknames and knowing them will help you understand the terms used by your opponent. This is especially so if you are playing with seasons poker players.
Now, here are the Poker Hand Jargons:
Five of a Kind
Five of a king is a poker hand where you have four of a kind plus a joker. This is the best possible hand in games where there are wild cards.
Full Boat, Full House or Full
This is a poker hand with three of a kind and a pair kicker. This is usually one of the best hands you can have in a poker game.
Quads or Four of Kind
The second highest poker hand you can have in a game play without wild cards.
Set, Three of a Kind or Trips
Refers to a poker hand with three cards of the same rank.
Hole Cards or Pocket Cards
These are the cards that you have in your hand in a hold’em game. This is either two cards in Texas Hold’em or four cards in Omaha Hold’em.
Joker, Bug or Wild Card
The joker is the 53rd card being played in a poker game play with wild cards.
Royal Cards or Face Cards
They are the J’s, Qs and Ks in a standard 52-card deck.
Spade the Deck
This is where the dealer will have to show the face cards of the new deck being introduced in the game. It is necessary to avoid cheating in a certain game.
Made Hand
A made hand is already a complete card with a certain hand ranking. However, if the player is still betting in the hope of improving his card to the best hand in the game, then he is drawing to a made hand.
The Wheel
The wheel is a mad hand with A, 2, 3, 4, 5. In other cases, deuce-to-seven hand is likewise called the wheel.
Kicker
The unpaired cards in a four of a kind hand or in a full boat, this is the pair under the trips.
Muck
Muck the cards would be to put the card together with the discarded cards.
Showdown
This is where the remaining active players will have to show their hands and the highest hand will win the pot. In cases of tie, then the players, tying will have to split the pot for themselves.
Backdoor
This is a poker hand that improved in the turn and the river. Usually, a player draw hoping to improve his hand in the turn or the river but a backdoor win is actually a hand that did not improve on the turn but improve in combination with the turn and the river. This therefore kills the other hand on the table from someone who is lucky enough to draw two consecutive cards and both came from the turn and river.
The next subject will be the Poker Position Jargons. This will help you understand the position you should take in a poker table. This is of course if you have the option to choose where you will be seating.
