1. Poker Opening Hands Chart
2. Poker Professor Starting Hands Chart
3. Poker Opening Hands Chart

For a certain segment of new hold’em players, starting hand charts can be fascinating. Even those with many years of experience who have little need to consult such charts still find them interesting as debate-starters.

In hold’em there are 169 different combinations of hands you can be dealt. For those of us who enjoy working with numbers or creating lists with which to organize our lives, there’s something appealing about the idea of ranking all of those hands from 1 to 169, even if we know such a list probably might have only limited value when it comes to actual game play.

In truth, there are actually a lot more possible combinations of hole cards in hold’em — 1,326 of them, in fact. But that total also considers suits as distinct, when in fact before the community cards come the suits are all essentially of equal value.

These hands also have a little o after them-Yellow for a hand that has been selected. So in any given chart, all the hands that are yellow are part of the respective range.The percentage numbers indicate what percentage of the total starting hands is included in a particular hand range. When starting out in the 6 Max game, it is recommended to err on the side of playing too tight, then loosening as you get a feel for the players and site conditions. The Starting Hand Charts included here are aimed at providing the player with a solid tight starting range. These Hand Charts are for a single limped or unopened pot.

1. Poker hands fall into one of ten categories. The highest is a royal flush, followed by a straight flush, then four of a kind, a full house, a flush, a straight, three of a kind, two pair, one pair.
2. The following charts will open in a new window and might take a few seconds to load, so please be patient. Poker Hand Rankings Chart A list of the standard poker hand rankings, from best to worst.
3. The basic idea of poker is to play the strongest poker hands in early position, good hands in mid-position and a few more hands in the late (aka strongest) position. Over time, you'll naturally want to shake things up a bit. For now, stick with this and you'll never find yourself in trouble holding 7-2 off-suit.

That is to say, is of the same value as when playing preflop, while and are also of equivalent value. So, too, are the different combinations producing the same pocket pairs all equal before the flop in terms of their relative worth. While there are six different ways to get pocket aces — , , , , , — you're equally happy no matter what suits the cards are.

So we get rid of all of those redundant hands and say that in Texas hold'em there are 169 “non-equivalent” starting hands, breaking them down as follows:

• 13 pocket pairs
• 78 non-paired suited hands (e.g., with two cards of the same suit like or )
• 78 non-paired unsuited hands (e.g., with two cards of different suits like or )

Notice now the non-paired combinations of hole cards neatly divide into equal groups, both of which are six times as large (78) as the smaller group of pocket pairs (13). The total of 169 combinations represents a square, too — 13 x 13 — another curious symmetry when it comes to hold'em hands.

Still, that’s a lot of starting hand combinations — too many for most of us humans to keep in our heads — which is one reason hand ranking charts are appealing and even can be useful, since they help players think about certain two-card combos as “strong” or “average” or “weak” as possible starters.

Setting aside the idea of actually ranking the 169 hands from best to worst, we might think for a moment about other ways of categorizing starting hands in hold’em, using that initial breakdown of hands into pocket pairs, non-paired suited hands, and non-paired unsuited hand as a first step toward coming up with further, smaller groups that are easier to remember.

The 13 pocket pairs we might group as big or “premium” (, , and ), medium ( through ), and small ( through ).

Meanwhile, we might divide each of the other groups into “connectors,” “one-gappers,” and “two-gappers” (and so on), further thinking of them also as “big,” “medium,” and “small” while also keeping separate suited and non-suited combinations.

These categories of non-paired hands are created by thinking about straight-making possibilities (affected by connectedness) and flush-making possibilties (affected by suitedness). There are more ways to make straights with “connectors” — that is, two cards of consecutive rank like — than with two-gappers, three-gappers, and so on. So, too, do you have a better chance of making a flush with suited hole cards than with non-suited hole cards.

Another possible group to create would include “ace hands” — i.e., non-paired hands containing one ace — that can be thought of as “big aces” (e.g., , ), “medium aces” ( down to ), and “small aces” ( to ). Or “king hands,” too. We like keeping these groups in mind, as hands with big cards like an ace or king can connect with flops to make big pairs.

In any case, you can see how these criteria for making categories can help when it comes to building those starting hand charts. And in fact most of those charts feature a similar ordering of hands, with...

• the premium pocket pairs and the big aces (suited and non-suited) up at the top;
• medium and small pocket pairs and big-to-medium suited connectors and one-gappers in the middle;
• and non-paired hands with less potential to make big pairs, straights, or flushes toward the bottom.

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However, there are problems with relying so heavily on starting hand charts that you don’t take into account factors that can make a given hand gain or lose value. Such as the flop. Or the turn. Or the river. Or other factors — including how your opponents are playing their hands — that can quickly affect the value of your starting hands.

After all, as anyone who’s played even a few hands of hold’em well knows, even if is the highest-ranking starting hand and a non-suited ranks as 169th, a couple of deuces among the community cards is all it takes to make the best hand worst and the worst hand best.

Learning the relative value of starting hands is definitely an important first step when it comes to getting started in hold’em. Other aspects of game play such as the importance of position, knowing when and how much to bet or raise, and thinking about opponents’ holdings and playing styles as hands proceed are good to learn, too, and help show how a great starting hand might not be so great five community cards later.

Poker is not blackjack, a game in which similar hand-ranking guides are sometimes used to inform players’ decisions about how to play. In poker you want to be wary about becoming too reliant on those pretty starting hand charts. They can be great for indicating which hands might be worth playing (and which should be thrown away), but troublesome if allowed to outweigh all of the other important factors that arise as a hand plays out.

That said, starting hand charts can be useful, especially for those new to hold’em. They also can be a big help when picking up other games, too, like pot-limit Omaha or the various stud games, if only to get an early idea what hands tend to play better than others.

But for many such charts ultimately are only themselves a way to get started, before the experience of playing helps players more instinctively recognize both hand groupings and how hands tend to compare in terms of profitability.

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I didn’t consider implementing poker ranges in my first few years of playing poker. One of the problems I used to experience at the tables was what to do with hands that weren’t so obviously strong (AA, AK – raise, raise, raise!) or so obviously weak (27o, J4o – ditch ‘em faster than green grass through a goose). Hands like K9o and 86s always gave me pause when it was folded to me. “Should I open… limp… or just fold?” I’d have to ask myself these questions all the time.

The answer to this problem was to create my own poker ranges. Bringing my off-the-felt analysis to on-the-felt play simplifies the game and ensures I’m making good opening hand decisions.

Finding ranges made by others online can help as a start, but they need to be tweaked and analyzed to fit your games and stakes. You can incorporate your own play style and the population tendencies at your stakes, with your own experiences and hand histories to help guide you in creating them.

The Poker Ranges You’ll Need

Here are the ranges that you’ll have to devise for the current stakes and games you play:

• Opening Ranges – Know what hands you’ll open in various positions (cash and MTT/SNG) as well as at different levels of the MTT/SNG (Early Stages, Mid-Stages, Late Stages).
• 3betting Ranges – You need to know which opponents you’ll 3bet and what you’ll 3bet with, both for value and as semi-bluffs.
• 4betting and 3bet Defending Ranges – Same considerations as your 3bet range.

The Importance of Building Ranges

There are three main reasons why we’d want to build ranges:

1. Simplification – by creating ranges that we drill into our heads, we’ve simplified our game. We’ve put these common spots into our unconscious competence, so we can act without thinking. We’re letting our subconscious mind direct our plays, so our conscious mind has more resources to devote to analyzing more difficult, less common situations. This has the added benefit of allowing for more multi-tabling, which in turn will increase your hourly.
2. Comfort – with your subconscious making decisions for you, you’ll be more comfortable and feel less stress at the tables. You’ll be more likely to avoid tilt and can continue playing longer sessions. Stress at the tables can lead to poor decisions, and making your subconscious work for you will be a great stress reliever.
3. Bringing off-the-felt analysis to on-the-felt play – by spending time off-the-felt, creating a thoughtful range that takes into account your position, blind structure and opponent type, you’ll be able to bring your stress-free analysis of the game onto the felt. How many times have you reviewed a hand history and thought, ‘Why did I fold TT? It’s obvious he’s opening 30%+, and TT dominates him!’ When you’re working on your game off-the-felt, you’re doing so without the stress of in-game play, which allows for more clear and level headed thought. You can spot patterns and weaknesses easier off the felt. Creating your ranges then using them in-game is a way to bring your level-headed, stress-free thoughts from off-the-felt analysis to on-the-felt play.

How to Create Your Poker Ranges

Start by building your own hand table in Excel (or just download this one that I built) like the following example (6-max Mid-level Open Ranges of a micro stakes SNG):

Different colors divide ranges into sub-ranges. For example with Opening Ranges:

• Use one color for your default opening range (dark blue in the example above)
• Utilize another color (green) for an expanded range when there are fish in the blinds
• Use another color (yellow) for an even more expanded range when there are nits in the blinds
• You can use as many colors as you want to differentiate ranges. You can even toss in some bluffs vs regs (red) if you feel it necessary.

Don’t try to memorize the ranges you build. Constant use will help to naturally ingrain them in your Unconscious Competence. Just print, laminate and have at the ready as you play online, and eventually you’ll end up memorizing them (or make flash cards to ensure they get in that noggin quicker).

Consider your opponent’s ranges

When creating your Opening Ranges, you’ll have to have a good idea of what your opponents will likely call or re-raise with. For 3betting Ranges, you’ll have to be aware of what your opponents are likely opening with and what they’ll continue with. And for your 4betting and 3bet Defending Ranges, you’ll have to have a good sense of what your opponents 3bet with and what they’re likely to continue in the hand with. This exercise takes plenty of experience at your stakes. You’ll want to devote a week to creating your ranges, putting them to the test in your sessions and assessing the effectiveness of your ranges through hand history reviews. Then go back and adjust your ranges based on what you’ve found.

Using well thought out, strategic ranges like this won’t turn you into a robot; it will enable you to have an effective game plan to use vs. your opponent’s ranges. You will be bringing your off-the-felt intellect, problem solving skills and controlled emotions to your on-the-felt play.

How do I know my ranges are good?

You can do a few different things to test the precision of your ranges at your stakes and game type:

1. Use Flopzilla

This program gauges the effectiveness of each hand in your range vs. an expected opponent’s range. For example, how well does ATs on the BTN fair vs. a BB cold call range of 30%? “Oh, it has 62% equity? Yep, it’s an open.”

2. Review the Profitability of Specific Hands

Don’t know if A9s should be in your Cut-off open range? Run a filter in your poker tracking software for this hand (I use PokerTracker 4), and specifically when you Raised First-In with it in the CO. Review at least 20 hands in your history and ask yourself if this is an overall profitable hand to open with. Did you lose or win an unexpected amount with it? Do you often wind up with a kicker issue when called, or terrible equity when you call an opponent’s 3bet? Do the players at your stakes call with hands much weaker, allowing you to extract value from them post-flop?

3. Get Help from a Study Group or Forum

Post your ranges in the appropriate threads and solicit feedback. This is a more subjective way to check your ranges, but it could give you insights into aspects of your range that you never considered.

4. Get Feedback on Your Poker Ranges

Your coach (or respected friends) will have plenty of thoughts on how your ranges would fare vs. your opponents, so use his feedback to adjust your ranges, test them on-the-felt, and make adjustments as necessary.

Poker Opening Hands Chart

After going through these four modes of feedback, put them into play. Once you’re confident in your ranges, laminate them and use them all the time. *Remember: When you move up in stakes, move to a new site or game format you’ll need to adjust your ranges.

It’s a time consuming process if you do it correctly, but well worth it. Try to enjoy the process, because as your skills increase and you progress through the levels, you’ll be revising your ranges over and over to account for the population tendencies of your new stakes. I hope this first time creating ranges leads to two, three, four, even five or more times for you!

Poker Professor Starting Hands Chart

Please share with me your own poker ranges by emailing them to sky@smartpokerstudy.com. I’d love to review them for you and offer you some feedback.

Until next time, study smart, play hard and make your next session the best one yet!

Poker Opening Hands Chart

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