Hole Cards in Poker

Hole cards are the private cards that are dealt to a player that no-one else can see. These cards are not shared and form the basis that a player will use in determining initially whether to play a hand or not and ultimately whether they win the hand. These cards are not usually shown until showdown, although a number of community card variants have a number of the hole cards dealt face up.

Players often have a quantified range of starting hands that they will play in early, middle and late positions. The earlier the position, the more chance that a player holds a big hand behind you and so players often restrict themselves to playing premium hands.

In community card games, the hole cards are used in combination with the board cards to make the best 5 card hand. The more premium the hole cards, the greater chance a player has of making a winning hand, the reason why starting hand requirements are so important.

As is the way with poker, whilst the starting hands are important, players don't know what cards you actually have, so players will use the board to represent hole cards that they don't necessarily have. Very dishonest, i know. For instance, if players associate you with only getting involved with big aces, you should be looking to mix up your game so that you get opportunities to steal pots, particularly when an ace is dealt. You will often be able to represent an ace, and take down a pot with nothing but rags.