Starting Hand Values
| Class A: | AA, AK, KK, QQ | Raise, re-raise in any position. |
| Class B: | AQ, JJ, 1010, 99 | Raise in any position, call early and middle raisers. Re-raise late raiser. |
| Class C: | Ax suited, AJ, A10, 88, 77 | Call in early position, raise in late position, call middle and late raisers, fold to an early raise. |
| Class D: | KQ suited, 66, 55, 44, 33, 22, suited connectors. | Call in late position, fold to early and middle position raises, call a late raise. |
| Class F: | 72, 95, K3, J7, etc... | Fold. Hands that should rarely be played. |
All pocket cards have been ranked A, B, C, D or F and the appropriate play is listed corresponding not only to the rank of your hand but also largely to your position at the table. (If you are unsure of which position you're in please read our article on Position Play)
For example, let's say you're holding QQ (two queens) and you're sitting in the small blind position. Two players have called before your turn comes. QQ on the chart rates as a class A hand, meaning you can and should raise and re-raise from any position at the table. A raise at a beginner level should be four or five times the big bling, if you're playing a No-Limit $0.50 game the big blind would be fifty cents so you would come in with a standard raise of $2.00 on top of the big blind, making it $2.50 total. The strength of class A hands is that you're usually dominating your opponent before the flop therefore, you'll want them to commit as many chips as possible before any community cards are dealt.
Let's take a look at another scenario: The person sitting to the left of the big blind has raised four times he big blind. You're sitting at the dealer position and are holding KQ (king queen) of hearts and everyone else before you has folded. While KQ suited is certainly a solid starting hand, according to this chart you would fold it in this situation. When someone raises in the first position at the table, he or she is aware that no one else has acted yet and is willing to bet that his cards are likely better than anyone else's. Often times when you call this raise, you'll be in a dominated position going up against hands such as AK (ace king) or maybe even KK (cowboys). So you'll often end up losing a lot of chips when you both hit the same pair but your opponent has a better kicker. Even if you opponent is out of line and is raising with a hand like 55 (pocket fives) you're less than 50% likely to win the pot and will find it hard to bluff someone who has made a substantial raise before the flop.
Additionaly, you'll notice that following the chart will cause you to fold many more hands than you'll play. This is basic poker strategy. If you stick by these guidelines you'll play fewer hands than your opponents, but be heavily involved when you do because of your big raises. As an added bonus, you'll have an easier time bluffing since you play fewer hands your opponents will often think you have a very good hand each time you do play a pot. This is called Tight but Aggressive play, and is generally accepted as the most profitable way to play Texas Hold'em.
An astute observer may notice that we've left many hands off the chart that contain an ace in them. Specifically, A2 till A9 unsuited have been ranked as class F hands. These hands are known as Weak Aces and are commonly overplayed. Again, playing these hands will often have you dominated by bigger aces or pocket pairs. For more on playing weak aces please visit our article on Playing Weak Aces.