Learn How To Play Poker Guide To Poker Card, Pocket And Hand Name Nicknames

In the poker online free learn to play poker free guide we will interpret some of the bizarre words and phrases used in poker to name the different cards hand combos. By the end you will not be completely confused when trying to play poker and words such as Jay Birds, Dead Mans Hand and Ashtray (to mention just a few) are being bandied about!!

Firstly lets see what the popular nicknames for individual cards are. After that we'll move on to, and rank in order or power, the pocket cards, by that I mean the 2 cards you are given at the start of the game.

Here we’ll define pocket pairs and the better meaning playable) unpaired starting hands. Finally you’ll learn some of more popular and famous hands.

Depending on where you play you may hear the 13 cards used in poker called several different names. A letter or number symbol is also often used to identify the cards.

- Ace - Bullet, Rocket (A)
- King - Cowboy, Monarch (K)
- Queen - Lady, Dame, Dyke (Q)
- Jack - Knave, Hook, Fishhook, (J)
- 10 - Dime (T)
- 9 - Niner (9)
- 8 - Snowman, Fat Lady, Ocho (8)
- 7 - Hockey Stick (7)
- 6 - Boot (6)
- 5 - Spot (5)|Jesse James
- 4 - Sailboat, Sharp Top, Four spot (4)
- 3 - Trey, Crab (3)
- 2 - Deuce, Duck (2)

Now when a poker game starts you're given 2 cards known as pocket cards.

Statistically about every 16 times you'll be lucky enough to get a pair with the same value, for example, 2 Kings, such pairs are called pocket pairs.

In order of relative strength or potential they are:

- AA - Pocket Rockets, Rockets, Bullets, or American Airlines
- KK - Cowboys, King Kong, Gorillas, Kangaroos, Monarchs, or Krispy Kreme
- QQ - Ladies, Hookers, or Siegfried & Roy
- JJ - Fishhooks, Hooks, Jokers, or Jay Birds
- TT - Dimes or Tension
- 99 - Gretzky, Popeye's, or Phil Hellmuth
- 88 - Snowmen, Fat Ladies, Dog Balls, or Race Tracks
- 77 - HockeySticks, SunsetStrip, or Mullets
- 66 - Route 66, Kicks, or Cherries
- 55 - Presto, Speed Limit, or Nickels
- 44 - Magnum, Sail Boats, or Middle Age
- 33 - Crabs or Treys
- 22 - Ducks, Pocket Swans, or Deuces.

You'll always at least want to go onto the flop with pocket pairs but of course once every 16 isn't often.

The following unpaired pockets though, are ones you may play depending on the risk and cost in the game and what you're reading from other players, in order of potential, they are:

- AK - Big Slick or Walking back to Houston
- AQ - Little Slick, Big Chick, or Doyle Brunson
- AJ - Blackjack, Ajax, or Jackass
- AT - Bookend or Johnny Moss
- A5 - High Five
- A4 - Topped Four
- A3 - Ashtray or Baskin and Robbins
- A2 - Hunting Season or Acey-Deucy
- KQ - Marriage (if suited) or Mixed Marriage (if not suited)
- KJ - Kojak, King John, or Tucson Monster
- KT - Kate or Katie
- QJ - Maverick or Oedipus
- QT - Quentin Tarantino
- JT - Days of Old
- T9 - Paint Plus Connector
- 98 - Oldsmobile
- 87 - RPM
- 76 - Union Oil
- 65 - Medicare
- 54 - Jesse James or Colt.

There are loads of names for larger hand combinations and finishing hands, here are a few of the better known ones.

- KKK - Alabama Night Riders or Three Wise Men
- TTT - Thirty Miles of Bad Road
- 222 - Huey, Dewey and Louie.
- AA88Q - Dead Man's Hand
- AKQJT - Broadway
- A5432 - Wheel
- 3 of a Kind - Set (if you hold a pocket pair matched by a 'board card')
- 3 of a kind - Trips (if one is in your pocket and two are 'community cards')
- Full House - Boat or All The In-Laws
- 4 of a Kind - Quads or Quad Set.

I hope this was a fun and useful article, if you are at the stage of learning the card names then I suggest when you play you play free poker online where you can learn without fear of loss.

For loads more learn how to play poker free poker online lessons and to get into some action and play online free poker get over to the http://www.NoPayPOKER.com free poker online site. At NoPay you'll find free poker online lessons covering beginner to expert levels, and you can play poker online free totally risk free for real cash prizes.