Explanation of Flush
We achieve a flush by having five cards that belong to the same suit.
For example, in Hold’em:
Board: K ♥ 5 ♥ 2 ♥
Hand 1: A ♥ T ♥
Hand 2: Q ♥ J ♥
In this scenario, both players' hands 1 and 2 form a flush during the flop. When multiple players end up with a flush , the player with the highest card involved in the flush is awarded the win.
Hand 1 features an Ace-high heart flush , whereas hand 2 has a King-high heart flush , which leads hand 1 to victory in this comparison. It’s noteworthy that hand 2’s flush is regarded as King-high; however, it’s often casually called a “Queen-high flush ” because the King of hearts is present on the board.
Board: K ♥ 5 ♥ 2 ♥ 3 ♥ 4 ♣
Hand 1: T ♥ 6 ♥
Hand 2: Q ♥ T ♣
In Texas Hold’em, you can also complete a flush using just a single hole card. In this case, both players form a King-high flush , but hand 1 utilizes both of its hole cards while hand 2 only uses one. Despite this, hand 2 prevails since its second highest card within the flush is a Queen. Thus, hand 1 represents a King-Ten-high heart flush , and hand 2 is a King-Queen-high heart flush . To simplify matters, hand 1 is commonly referred to as a “Ten-high flush ”, while hand 2 is called a “Queen-high flush ”.
Example of Flush in a sentence -> We flopped a diamond flush draw and successfully completed our flush on the river when the last diamond came in.
Incorporating Flush into Your Poker Strategy
Holding two cards that allow for a flush is generally favorable for playing with 100bb stacks, except when the board has paired cards. If our modest flush finds itself up against a stronger flush on unpaired boards at 100bb stacks, these instances can typically be classified as ‘coolers’—bad luck beats that we were not likely to fold our hand in.
Flushes made up of one hole card in Texas Hold’em are considerably less strong, and we should predominantly feel secure only in going all-in when we possess the nut flush on an unpaired board. Small one-card flushes tend to serve mainly as bluff-catching opportunities in Hold’em. This distinction emphasizes the importance of understanding relative strength of a hand rather than merely its absolute strength. Although having a completed flush is a strong position, it’s our relative strength that guides how much we should be willing to bet with our hand.
In Pot Limit Omaha, one-card flushes cannot occur because players are required to use exactly two of their four hole cards to make any hand. Any small made flush should be approached with great caution in Omaha, regardless of the board having no pairs. Given that flushes are significantly more frequent in Omaha compared to Hold’em, the risk of a non-nut flush being outclassed is notably greater.
See Also
High Hand , Two Pair , Three of a Kind , Straight , Full House , Quads , Straight Flush , Royal Flush , Hold’em , Omaha , Counterfeit , Effective Stacks