It takes more than understanding poker hands and how they rank in order to be a successful poker player. You should also be fluent in the most common nicknames that poker players give these hands. Knowing poker hand nicknames will help you fit in at a poker table and insure that you understand what is going on.
While understanding the nicknames for poker hands is important keep in mind they may vary regionally. In addition, the may become obsolete or modified over time.
A pair of aces is often referred to as pocket rockets because it is the best starting hand in Texas Holdem. This hand is also called American Airlines because of the abbreviation AA used to describe both the airline and the pair. Some poker players also refer to two aces as bullets.
In Texas Holdem a pair of kings is often described as cowboys or King Kong. Some players call two kings ace magnets. This nicknames sarcastically points out that with this hand the last card you want to see is the ace, which means it is bound to come up.
Most of the most common nicknames used to describe a pair of queens are derogatory. These include four tits, bitches, Sigfried and Roy, or Canadian Aces.
A pair of jacks is considered the highest medium pocket pair. This hand is referred to as fishhooks or hooks because of the visual appearance of two JJs. Another common nickname for this hand is J- Birds.
A pair of eights has several nicknames. It is called snowmen or dog balls because they both look like the number eight. It is also called a little Oldsmobile because Oldsmobile had a model number 88 used to describe a model that was smaller than a 98.
A pair of sevens is sometimes called mullets or hockey sticks because of the similarity to the shape of a number seven.
A pair of cherries has been given the nickname cherries due to the similarities between the shape of the fruit and the number six. Other poker players will refer to a pair of sixes as Route 66 for obvious reasons.
A hand containing a pair of fives is often referred to as presto or speed limit at a poker table.
A pair of fours has a few clever nicknames as well. It is often referred to as sailboats, playing in the fact that the number four resembles a sailboat. It can also be referred to as a magnum, paying tribute to a .44 magnum handgun.
A pair of threes is sometimes called treys after a three pointer in basketball, or crabs because of their similarity in shape to the number three.
A hand with a pair of two is often called ducks. This nickname is due to the likeness of the number two and a duck.
A hand with an ace, king combination is often called an Anna Kournikova because it looks good, but never wins. It also goes by the name big slick or Santa Barbara, referring to a devastating oil spill of the cost of Santa Barbara.
An ace, queen combo is nicknamed a big chick as a play on the nickname for an ace, king hand.
A hand containing and ace, jack combination is commonly referred to as black jack. However, jackass and ajax are also popular nicknames for phonetic reasons.
An ace, ten combinations is sometimes called bookends or a Johnny Moss, based on the assumption that Moss has been playing poker since the age of ten.
Almost any combination of cards that makes up a hand has at least one nickname, if not more. It is important to familiarize yourself with these nicknames in order to be a successful poker player.