Poker Terminology – Straight Draws

Poker has a lot of colourful and unique terminology, and if you have been asked whether a “nut flush” is a new type of ice-cream sundae; you will appreciate that some of it can appear confusing and misleading. The different ways in which a straight can be made post-flop also has its idiosyncratic terms, and here we describe what they are, and the odds of making your hand.

Open-Ended or Outside Straight

This is where your pocket cards and two of the board cards combine to make a sequence of four consecutively ranked cards. For example your pocket cards are QT and the board shows KJ6. You need an ace or a ten to complete your straight, and the odds of doing so are calculated as follows:-

There are 8 cards that will complete your straight – 4 aces and 4 tens. There are 47 “unseen” cards after the flop and 46 after the turn. You divide 47 into 8, and 46 into 8, and add the two results together – 8/47 + 8/46 = 0.34. Consequently, you chances of drawing any of the cards you require to complete your open-ended straight are 34 in a hundred, or about 2/1.

Gutshot or Inside Straight

A gutshot straight is where one card is missing from the middle of the sequence, and you need an inside card to complete your straight. For example, your pocket cards are QT and the board shows K96. In this scenario, only a Jack will complete your straight, and as there are only four of those available in the pack, your odds of making the straight are calculated thus:-
4/47 + 4/46 = 0.17 or 5/1

Double Gutshot or Double Inside Straight

This scenario occurs when you have two opportunities of making a straight, and both require an inside card. This could happen when you are holding J5 and the board shows 789. As with the open-ended straight, you need one of 8 cards to complete your straight:-
A 6 will give you 56789
A T will give you 789TJ

Consequently the odds of achieving a double gutshot straight are the same as an open-ended straight – 2/1.

Knowing the odds of making your hand will help you determine whether or not it is worth continuing in the game and, whether you win or lose, now at least you will know the name of the hand you are aiming for!