What is a Flush in Poker?

Flush in poker is a powerful hand that can help you win a lot of money in the pot if you play it right.

Essentially, it’s a five-card hand with all cards having the same suit. For example, you can have a two, five, nine, jack, and king of diamonds in your hand, which makes a flush. Please notice that a flush doesn’t have to have all five consecutive cards. Five consecutive cards are a straight, and if they all happen to be in the same suit, you’ll have a straight flush, which is one of the highest-ranking hands in poker. 

So, what’s a flush in poker? It’s five cards of the same suit.

What Beats a Flush in Poker?

Flush is a pretty strong hand, as it beats one pair, two pairs, three of a kind, and straight hands. One pair is a simple pair of two cards of the same value, and two pairs are two different pairs of same-value cards, such as two fours and two jacks. Three of a kind is also pretty self-explanatory. Finally, a straight is five consecutive cards. For example, a straight is three, four, five, six, and seven. They don’t have to have matching suits or colors.

However, there are several hands that can beat a flush, and they are:

• Full house — Three of a kind + a pair (three jacks and two eights, for example)
• Four of a kind — Four cards of the same rank (four aces, for example)
• Straight flush — Five consecutive cards of the same suit (seven, eight, nine, ten, and jack of clubs, for example)

There are some players who also consider a royal flush to be a different hand in the game of poker. It’s basically a straight flush, but with the following cards: 10, jack, queen, king, and ace. This is believed to be the strongest hand in poker variations that do not use jokers.

What is a Flush Draw?

A flush draw refers to a situation where you have four cards of the same suit, and you need just one to complete your hand.

For example, you might have two hearts in your hand with two more appearing on the flop, but that hand by itself doesn’t mean anything. You’ll need the fifth heart to complete a hand, and it means you should get it on the turn or the river. There are various strategies used when players have a flush draw, so make sure to check them out to learn what to do in such situations.   

Final Thoughts

Poker hand rankings are similar in the majority of poker versions, including in the two most popular ones – Texas Hold’em and Omaha. Even if you decide to play poker games in online casinos against live dealers or by yourself, you’ll still be able to use the hand rankings to determine what to do.