A straight flush is five consecutive ranks in one suit. The ace-high version, 10-J-Q-K-A of one suit, is a royal flush. It is the highest possible hand in standard high poker, but players can still split a pot when they share the same best five cards.
Where straight flush ranks
Every straight flush beats four of a kind and all weaker categories. Within the category, compare the top card of the five-card run. A nine-high straight flush loses to a ten-high straight flush; a royal flush is the ace-high endpoint, not a different suit hierarchy. Use the complete hand-ranking chart to compare different categories.
A five-card example and how to compare it
9♠ 8♠ 7♠ 6♠ 5♠
9♠ 8♠ 7♠ 6♠ 5♠ beats A♥ J♥ 9♥ 7♥ 2♥. The second hand is an ace-high flush, but it has no five-card sequence. Compare categories before comparing the highest individual card. Having both a straight and a flush somewhere in seven cards is not enough: the same five cards must do both jobs.
Test a Texas Hold'em showdown
You and one opponent have reached showdown on this board. Decide whether you win, lose or split, and name your best five cards before revealing the answer.
| Cards | Holding |
|---|---|
| Shared board | 5♠ 6♠ 7♠ K♦ 2♣ |
| Your hole cards | 8♠ 9♠ |
| Opponent's hole cards | A♠ 4♠ |
Reveal the comparison
You win with a nine-high straight flush. Your opponent has an ace-high flush: A♠ 7♠ 6♠ 5♠ 4♠. Their ace cannot replace your connected nine-high run. No sixth card is used to compare these hands.
Your best five: 5♠ 6♠ 7♠ 8♠ 9♠
A low ace and a royal flush
A-2-3-4-5 of one suit is a five-high straight flush. An ace can also finish 10-J-Q-K-A, but Q-K-A-2-3 is not a sequence. If a royal flush is on the board, everyone still in the hand uses that same unbeatable five-card hand and splits the pot. A private pair cannot improve it.
Common mistakes with straight flush
- Four consecutive suited cards are a draw, not a made straight flush.
- Spades do not beat hearts at showdown; the rank of the run matters.
- An extra ace outside a five-card straight flush does not act as a kicker.
How often does straight flush occur in five cards?
Exactly this category occurs in 40 of 2,598,960 random five-card hands (0.001539%). There are ten possible five-rank runs, from ace-low to ace-high, and four suits. Ten times four gives 40 straight flushes, including four royal flushes. The other 36 exclude royals. This page's probability includes all 40; the probability table shows royals separately.
This model uses a standard 52-card deck, no wild cards and no known cards. It is not the chance of your best five from seven at a Hold'em river, or your chance of beating the other player. The five-card probability explorer compares categories under the same assumptions.
What to practise next
Continue with four of a kind and its conditional odds. At the play-chip training table, name the five cards you use before reading the showdown result. A hand's category alone does not tell you whether to call a bet; pot odds and equity address that separate question.
Rules checked against PokerStars' standard hand rankings. Counts checked against University of Hawaii's five-card calculations (2 January 2005 edition). Original examples are checked with the Hold'em Sim evaluator; counts are re-derived using combinations. AI-assisted text and checks reviewed 30 October 2026.