Tie Breakers
Split pots are anticlimactic and slow down the game.
Compare suits instead!
Two-Player Ties
- Flush
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Compare the suits of the flushes, regardless of rank.
Compare ranks only between flushes of the same suit, in which case the flush with the highest ranked non-community card in it wins. example
- Full House
- A full house with higher ranks beats a lower ranked full house. (The rank of the triples in the full house is more important.) With equal ranks, compare the suits of the non-community cards in each player's pair in the Full House. example
- High Card
- If the highest non-community card in your hand ties with another player's, compare those cards' suits. Otherwise the highest ranked non-community card wins.
- Pair
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A higher ranked pair beats a lower pair, but a ties can occur two ways:
- When the pair is in community cards, ignore the pair and instead use the High Card tie breaker.
- When two players each pair the same community card, compare the suits of the non-community cards in each player's pair.
- Rags 'n Riches
- If multiple players have this type of hand, settle it with the High Card tiebreaker.
- Straight
- Higher ranked straights win over lower ones. With multiple straights of equal rank, the highest non-community rank that each player's straight has in common is the "determining rank." Compare suits of each player's card of the determining rank. example
- Straight Flush
- As if this would ever happen! In case it does, use the same tie breaker rules as Flush, above.
- Triples
- Higher ranked triples win over lower ranked triples. However, when the triples appear in the community cards, ignore the triples and use the High Card tie breaker.
- Two Pairs
- If high and low pairs both tie, compare suits of the non-community cards in the two pairs, with preference to the higher pair. Otherwise the highest ranked of the two pairs wins.
Three-Player Ties
In the unlikely event of a triple-tie, play single elimination three-player Roshambo (rock, paper, scissors) until there is a winner. You may use Pilatch cards to represent your choice of rock, paper, or scissors, where only the suit matters.
Please note:
- This list does not indicate rarity or value of hands, which can differ by game.
- This list assumes a single-deck game.
- Games that allow players to use a number of community cards that is greater than or equal to that game's valued hand size, will not benefit from these tie breakers in all cases.