In Texas Hold’em, if you’ve ever found yourself one card away from making a flush, you experienced a nut flush draw. What exactly is a nut flush draw, and what makes it an exciting hand to play? We explain below with examples.
To understand nut flush draw, you must first learn about flush. A flush in poker means you have five cards of the same suit. For example, you have two hearts in your hand of any value, and the flop is three hearts, again of any value. This is called a flush – any five cards of the same suit, ie, fives hearts, five clubs, diamonds, or spades. The sequence doesn’t matter. As long as there are five cards of the same suit, you have a flush.
A “nut flush draw” refers to the best possible flush that you make with your cards. The “nut” is a slang term for the absolute best hand you can make in that game. A nut flush draw, therefore, is when you have the chance to make the highest possible flush draw. This often means you hold an Ace or a King, which increases the likelihood that you have the best flush that no one can beat. Only a full house or straight flush can beat a nut flush draw.
Here’s an example: Let’s say you’re playing Texas Hold’em, and you’re dealt:
The flop:
You now have four spades and a high card (Ace). If another spade shows up on the turn (4th community card) or river (5th community card), you’ll make a flush. And since you hold the highest card in the spades suit, you have the nut flush draw. So, even if by luck your opponent also hits a flush, you will still be the winner because you have the nut.
You might hear someone say, “I had a nut flush draw on the flop but missed the river.” Or, a commentator saying, “The player raised on the flop with a nut flush draw—great spot for bluffing.”
A nut flush draw is the strongest hand in the game. This gives you a lot of scope to open up your game. You can bluff or raise, forcing others to contribute to the pot.
Since you have strong equity, there’s about a 35% chance that you’ll win the draw. There are different methods to calculate this, and they put the probability between 38% and 35%. With a one-in-three chance of winning the draw, you don’t have to worry about being dominated in the game. This means you can bet with confidence, and the players with lower flushes, top pair, or two pair will keep adding to the pot, thinking they might win.
There’s also a chance to bluff here, even if you don’t hit the flush. This works especially well when you’re in a late position and know the tight players that can be easily pushed off a hand.
The way you play a nut flush draw depends on your position and stack size.
This is the best setup. Let’s say the cards look like this:
If your opponent bets, you can call and keep the pressure on. If they check, you can choose to bet and take control. Having a late position gives you the flexibility to play both aggressively and loosely, depending on your opponent.
Let’s say you are holding the same hand ( A♠ T♠) but out of position. This means you are the first to act, also known as being under the gun. For example, the player before you raises pre-flop. Call the raise to stay in the game and see how the other players react. In the next round, you can raise and apply pressure on other players to fold.
Let’s say someone bets the pot on the flop, and you’re holding your nut flush draw. Should you call? This depends on a few things: the size of the pot and your odds of winning the draw. If you are facing an aggressive opponent, calling is the way to go.
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