Four of a Kind is one of the most self-explanatory hands in poker, but the way you get maximum value from it isn’t always obvious.
Stick around, and I’ll walk you through the basics of this hand so you know how to win the biggest pots possible with Four of a Kind.
What is Four of a Kind?
Four of a Kind is a poker hand that consists of four matching cards. For example, if you’re dealt a pair of aces in Texas Hold’em, and two more aces appear on the board, you’ve got Four of a Kind.
EXAMPLE
You have A♠ A♦
The board is: A♥ K♣ 2♠ A♣ 9♦
Your best five-card hand = A♥ A♠ A♦ A♣ K♣
Like Three of a Kind, this hand is easy to remember because its name describes exactly what it is. However, you might hear people refer to this hand as Quads. Again, this is because quad means four, and that’s the number of matching cards in your hand.
Where Does Four of a Kind Rank in Poker?
Four of a Kind is the third-best hand in poker. The table below shows where it ranks in relation to the very best hand, a Royal Flush, and other combinations, including the closely related Full House and Three of a Kind.
Poker Hand Rankings
Rank
Hand
Example
01
Royal Flush
02
Straight Flush
03
Four-of-a-Kind (Quads)
04
Full House (Full Boat)
05
Flush
06
Straight
07
Three-of-a-Kind (Set/Trips)
08
Two Pair
09
One Pair
10
High Card
The only time Four of a Kind isn’t the third-best ranked poker hand is when you’re playing lowball variants such as Razz. Lowball variants have different hand rankings because they give more value to low-value cards.
However, if you’re playing any of the most popular variants, including Hold’em, Omaha, Stud, and Five-Card Draw, Four of a Kind is right up there with the best poker hands you can make.
What Are the Odds of Making Four of a Kind in Poker?
The odds of making Four of a Kind with five random cards is 4,164 to 1 against. If we talk in terms of percentages, you have a 0.02401% chance of making Four of a Kind with five random cards.
Those figures look at the chance of making Four of a Kind from a general perspective. When it comes to poker, the only variant in which we’re dealt five random cards in one go is Five-Card Draw.
Therefore, if we really want to understand the mathematics of making Four of a Kind in poker, we need to look at specific scenarios. For the purposes of this discussion, we’ll look at the odds of making Four of a Kind in Texas Hold’em.
The odds will be slightly different in Omaha and Stud. However, because Hold’em is the most popular poker variant, I’ll use it to explain the basic math of Quads.
We’ll start with the chances of making Quads on the Flop:
Start Hand Combination
Chance of Making Four of a Kind on the Flop
Any two starting cards
0.03% (330 to 1 against)
A pocket pair (e.g., A♠ A♥)
0.24% (471 to 1 against)
As you can see, you’re more likely to hit Quads with pocket pairs than disconnected starting hands.
This tells us that starting hand selection is an important skill in poker. If you play the right hands before the Flop, you’ll give yourself a better chance of making strong hands on the Flop, Turn, and River.
Hitting Quads on the Turn and River
If we assume that you’ve hit Three of a Kind (aka Trips) on the flop, you have a 4.3% chance of making quads by the River. Broken down over two streets (the Turn and the River), the numbers look like this:
The probability of hitting Four of a Kind on the Turn when you have trips = 2.1%
The probability of hitting Four of a Kind on the River when you have trips after the Turn = 2.2%
How to Play Four of a Kind: 3 Basic Strategy Tips
Four of a Kind won’t lose very often, but that doesn’t mean you can play on autopilot. I’m not saying you need to play like Phil Ivey to win pots with this hand, but you won’t get maximum value without thinking.
These three tips will help you get more value from Four of a Kind:
1. Quads Don’t Come Around Very Often
Based on the odds I’ve outlined, the chances you’ll hit quads on the flop is 1 in every 3,333 hands. Most people play approximately 25% of the hands they’re dealt. Therefore, we can say that you’ll flop quads once every 13,332 hands (i.e., 3,333 x 4).
The lesson here is that Quads don’t come around very often. Even if you played 50% of your starting hands (I don’t recommend this), you’ll theoretically hit Quads once in every 6,666 hands.
You’ll typically see between 75 and 100 hands per hour at a six-max cash game table online. That means, in theory, you’d need to play for 66 hours to ensure you hit Quads. That’s a lot of time, which is why you can’t afford to play Quads poorly by not concentrating.
2. Consider What Other Players Could Have
In reality, you’re only going to win big pots with Four of a Kind if someone else has a strong hand. The good news is that boards capable of giving you a Four of a Kind could also give someone a Full House.
In short, you’re either going to win a big pot or a small one with Four of a Kind. It’s very unlikely that you’ll win a medium-sized pot unless someone tries to bluff you. Knowing this can help you adjust your betting strategy based on what you believe an opponent might have.
3. Be Aggressive
It might feel counterintuitive, but aggression is the best way to get maximum value from Quads. Linking back to my previous point, the cards in play usually mean that you’re going to win a small pot or a big pot with a Four of a Kind.
If that’s the case, bet aggressively. If your opponent is going to fold anyway, it doesn’t matter how much you bet. Conversely, if your opponent is going to call anyway (because they have a Full House), bet big.
Mistakes to Avoid with Four of a Kind
Aside from not playing Quads aggressively enough, I think the biggest mistake novices make with this hand is chasing too much. You have a 0.03% chance of flopping Quads with two random starting cards.
Even if you start with a pair, the odds of flopping Four of a Kind aren’t great. Moreover, the odds of hitting on the Turn and River are equally poor. Therefore, you shouldn’t invest too much money in the pot to chase Quads.
Conclusion: How to Play Four of a Kind in Poker
You can’t do a lot wrong if you make Four of a Kind. The key to playing this hand is betting aggressively when you think an opponent has a made hand, such as a Full House. Other than this, don’t chase Quads with poor pot odds, and always play responsibly.
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes, you can lose showdowns with Four of a Kind. The two hands that can beat Four of a Kind in poker are Straight Flushes and Royal Flushes. As the third-based hand in poker, Four of a Kind beats Full Houses, Flushes, and all other lower-ranked hands.
Four of a Kind requires you to use all four suits (Hearts, Diamonds, Spades, and Clubs). You need to use all four suits because this poker hand consists of four matching cards, e.g., K♦ K♠ K♥ K♣.
Four of a Kind is a rare hand to make in poker. The odds of making Four of a Kind with five random cards is 4,164 to 1 against (i.e., 1 in every 4,164 hands). If you’re playing Hold’em and have a pocket pair (e.g., A♠ A♦), the probability of hitting Four of a Kind on the flop is 0.24% (471 to 1 against).
