# Poker tie breaker rules

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poker-tie-breaker-rules/496234>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [May 13, 2009, 12:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poker-tie-breaker-rules/496234 "2009-05-13T00:40:24Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 4\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![Earl\_Snake-Hips\_Tucker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/earl_snake-hips_tucker/32/3269_2.png) [@Earl\_Snake-Hips\_Tucker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Earl_Snake-Hips_Tucker)\
**Post date:** [May 13, 2009, 12:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poker-tie-breaker-rules/496234/1 "2009-05-13T00:40:24Z")

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When two (or conceivably more) players have tied hands. . .

But one gets it using a wild card, and the other person does not, is it considered a tie, or does the natural hand trump the wild card hand?

Not interested in any commentary about ranking and kickers. I’m on top of that. When I say “tied,” I mean “tied.”

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**Author:** ![gazpacho](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/6f9a4e/32.png) [@gazpacho](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gazpacho)\
**Post date:** [May 13, 2009, 12:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poker-tie-breaker-rules/496234/2 "2009-05-13T00:55:13Z")

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When I played poker my group of friends would split the pot between the two tied hands. We made no distinction between natural and hands with wild cards.

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**Author:** ![Xema](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/x/9de053/32.png) [@Xema](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Xema)\
**Post date:** [May 13, 2009, 12:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poker-tie-breaker-rules/496234/3 "2009-05-13T00:58:43Z")

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Unlike, say, golf, poker has no highly standardized set of rules that apply everywhere. Wiki has this [to say](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wild_card_(poker)):

> [@](#):
>
> Two exceptions to standard poker practice sometimes seen in home games are the double-ace flush rule, and the natural wins rule. The latter rule states that between hands that would otherwise tie, the hand with fewer wild cards wins. This is not common in casinos and should be treated as an exception to standard practice

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**Author:** ![Turble](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/8dc957/32.png) [@Turble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Turble)\
**Post date:** [May 13, 2009, 3:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poker-tie-breaker-rules/496234/4 "2009-05-13T15:26:18Z")

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The wiki has it right; not used in public poker rooms but not uncommon in home games as a house rule.

The only wild card games I’ve ever seen in public cardrooms are draw games using a Joker and there is no distinction in hand rank between wild card hands and natural hands.

Home games might have all kinds of wild cards, deuces wild, one-eyed jacks, follow the queen, etc. It doesn’t really matter what the tie breaker rule is so long as it is consistently applied … probably best to just follow the local custom to keep the game friendly. If you are new a group, ask about the rule _before_ you get involved in a monster pot with a fistful of wild cards.