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STARTING HANDS FOR HOLD'EM

   Also known as "pocket cards", the strength of your hand depends on two basic rules. The value of your hand (high cards, pairs or connectors) and the number of players. The amount of players change the odds of hands being higher than your own, so the more players you are up against the higher your pocket cards  will have to be. We suggest with 6 or more players to only call or raise the following hands.  

Raise or re-raise with these hands:

    Pair of "Bullets"

    Pair of "Cowboys"

    Pair of "Ladies"

    Ace with King "kicker"

    Pair of "Fishhooks"

    Ace with Queen "kicker"

    Pair of Tens

Call 1 or 2 bets with these hands:

    Ace with Jack "kicker"

    King with Queen "kicker"

    Queen with Jack "kicker"

    Jack and Ten of the same suit

    Ace and any card of the same suit

   These are just guidelines. Take into account the types of players and the amount of action on the table (explained later). We suggest sticking to these hands at first until you gain more experience.