Depending on how long you have been playing poker, you have probably won hands with every imaginable combination of starting cards in your hand. We have all started with a 3 and a 6 and ended up hitting a straight, but it never quite feels right when we do this. The reason being is because in situations like this we depended on luck instead of skill to win the hand. No matter if you are lucky or unlucky, the only assured income for all online poker players is rakeback. For example you can receive 30 % Ultimate Bet rakeback paid monthly into your poker account. While there is nothing wrong with getting lucky in poker or anything for that matter, a good poker player will never depend on luck to get him through a hand.

I understand this can be a touchy subject, as most poker players, no matter how much their game depends on luck, simply do not like to hear that they are simply lucky poker players, and not necessarily skilled poker players. That being said, in all honesty, with a few exceptions, if you are playing any other combinations besides the ones I am about to show you, then you my friend are depending on luck to win poker hands.

In no particular order, here are the top fifteen starting poker hands:
A-A, A-K, A-Q, K-K, Q-Q, J-J, 10-10, 9-9, 8-8, 7-7, 6-6, 5-5, 4-4, 3-3, 2-2

If you find any of the above combinations in your pocket, then what exactly should you do? There are truly endless options here, but if you want to play it safe and protect your chip stack, while at the same time slowly building it then I would recommend the following:

If you get A-K, A-Q, or any pocket pair of 10’s or above than I would move all in before the flop. This may sound funny as it is likely all of your opponents will fold and you will not even be able to play the hand, but it is by far the safest way to go. By moving all in pre-flop, and getting your opponents to fold you will eliminate the possibility of another player; one who is depending on luck; making a straight, a flush, a full house, or three-of-a-kind; in which case you would end up losing all of your money. Now, would you rather win $10 right off the bat by buying the pot, or lose $100 or more by playing the hand and allowing your opponents to catch a hand?

If you have any of the pairs from 9‘s on down to 2’s, then you should play the hand completely differently. If it is not overly expensive always try to see the flop when you have these cards. If you make a set (three of a kind) with the cards on the flop you should move all in and buy the pot to avoid another player making a hand that could beat yours on the turn or the river. If you do not hit three of a kind then it is time to fold (unless all other players check giving you the opportunity to see another card).

When you are just starting out in the world of Texas NL Hold’Em poker, if you stick to this strategy, and only play these fifteen hands you will nine times out of ten come out on top. Sure there will be times when someone will call your all in and end up catching a hand, but these are rare exceptions; and the exact reason you should only ever bring 5-10% of your bankroll to any given poker table at a time.

Once you feel completely comfortable playing these hands and only these hands, they are a few other hands that you can incorporate into your reservoir of playable hands; such as having an ace and another card of the same suit in your pocket, giving you the possibility of hitting an ace high flush. But these hands and the others are for another discussion after you have mastered playing the top fifteen hands I have discussed in this article.
Please do keep in mind that above all else, the practice of playing on the fifteen top poker hands is mostly about teaching yourself control; something that is of the utmost importance to all professional poker players; and something that will ensure you are a profitable poker player!