Knowing the strength of your pocket cards and knowing when to play them is an important part when playing Texas Hold’em.
| Tier 1 The best starting hands |
| Ace-Ace |
| King-King |
| Ace-King, suited |
| Queen-Queen |
| Jack-Jack |
|
|
| Tier 2 Very strong starting hands |
| Ace-Queen, Ace-Jack, Ace-10, all suited |
| Ace-King |
| King-Queen, suited |
| 10-10 |
| Ace-10, King-Jack, Queen-Jack, Jack-10, all suited |
| Ace-Queen, Ace-Jack |
| 9-9 |
| King-Queen |
| King-10, Queen-10, suited |
|
|
| Tier 3 Hands that are playable in most positions, but not as strong |
| 8-8 |
| Jack-9, 10-9, both suited |
| 7-7 |
| 10-10 |
| 9-8, 8-7, both suited |
| Ace with any other suited card |
| King-Jack, Queen-Jack, Jack-10 |
|
|
| Tier 4 Decent hands that are best played sparingly and in late position |
| Any low pair (e.g. pairs below 7) |
| Connected suited cards, such as 8-7, 5-4, 4-3 |
| Ace-10, King-10, Queen-10 |
| King-9, Jack-8, both suited |
|
|
Any hand not mentioned is generally regarded as a weak hand and should only be played in situations where you have an advantage on your opponent.
For example:
Late position with no callers against the blinds or against weak players.
