3 CARDS · 52-CARD DECK
Teen Patti rules & hand rankings
Learn the six hand categories, compare ties and practise with three-card examples. These are general card rules, not a claim about an untested APK.
By Teen Patti Fieldnotes editorial desk · Reviewed
Set up a card-only practice round
Use one standard deck with 52 cards and remove the jokers. Deal three cards per person. For this learning exercise, write down the category order, the ace rule and the tie rule before showing hands. Keep the practice independent of wagers or prizes.
The traditional game includes blind and seen play. Here, “blind” means the cards have not been viewed and “seen” means they have been viewed. The learning examples focus on recognising hands and comparing them. Actual app controls and round rules must be checked in that app’s own instructions.
Six hand rankings, strongest to weakest
- 01Trail / trio8♠ 8♥ 8♦ · Three equal ranks. An 8-trail outranks a 7-trail.
- 02Pure sequence5♥ 6♥ 7♥ · Consecutive ranks, all in one suit.
- 03Sequence5♣ 6♦ 7♠ · Consecutive ranks with mixed suits.
- 04Colour / flushA♣ J♣ 8♣ · One suit without consecutive ranks.
- 05Pair9♠ 9♦ K♥ · Two equal ranks; compare the pair before the side card.
- 06High cardA♠ J♦ 8♣ · The remaining hands; compare ranks from highest to lowest.
Category comes first: a low sequence outranks a high colour under this order. For example, 4♣ 5♦ 6♠ outranks A♥ J♥ 8♥. A higher card inside a weaker category cannot overcome the category difference.
Compare equal categories and agree ace handling
- Trail: compare the shared rank. Three kings beat three tens.
- Sequence categories: compare the rank run under the agreed ace rule. K-Q-J beats Q-J-10 in the usual descending order.
- Colour and high card: compare the highest card, then the next, then the lowest. A-J-8 beats A-10-9.
- Pair: compare pair rank first, then the remaining card. 9-9-K beats 9-9-J; 10-10-2 beats either.
- Exact rank ties: agree the tie outcome before dealing. Avoid inventing a suit hierarchy if the table rules do not specify one.
Ace treatment varies. Pagat’s Teen Patti rule reference places A-2-3 above A-K-Q and excludes K-A-2 as a run. Some tables use another ace ordering. The examples on this page do not settle that choice for a third-party app.
Exact three-card hand counts
Calculation assumptions: one uniformly shuffled 52-card deck, three distinct cards, order ignored, zero jokers, and 12 valid rank sequences including A-2-3 and Q-K-A while excluding K-A-2. There are C(52,3) = 22,100 equally likely combinations.
- Trail / trio
- 52 combinations · 0.2353%
- Pure sequence
- 48 combinations · 0.2172%
- Sequence
- 720 combinations · 3.2579%
- Colour / flush
- 1,096 combinations · 4.9593%
- Pair
- 3,744 combinations · 16.9412%
- High card
- 16,440 combinations · 74.3891%
Derivation: trail = 13 × C(4,3) = 52; pure sequence = 12 × 4 = 48; mixed-suit sequence = 12 × (4³ − 4) = 720; colour = 4 × C(13,3) − 48 = 1,096; pair = 13 × C(4,2) × 12 × 4 = 3,744; high card = 22,100 minus the other five counts = 16,440. Percentages are rounded independently.
These are original combinatorial calculations for the stated model. They describe a fresh three-card hand, not an app’s random-number generator, a winning probability against several opponents or the outcome of a future deal.
Three practice comparisons
- Pair comparison
- J♠ J♦ 4♣ beats 10♥ 10♣ A♠ because pair rank is compared before the side card.
- Category comparison
- 3♥ 4♥ 5♥ beats K♣ K♦ K♠? Under this order, the king trail wins: trail ranks above pure sequence.
- High-card comparison
- A♣ Q♦ 8♠ beats A♥ J♠ 10♦ because the second-highest rank decides the comparison.
Name the category before judging the individual ranks. Then explain the first rule that decides the result. You can practise entirely with a deck and this page.
Rules reference and calculation record
These values describe the card model used in this guide. They are rules and arithmetic references, separate from any app’s software requirements or random-number generator.
- Deck and hand size
- 52 cards · 3 distinct cards per hand · jokers excluded
- Hand categories
- 6: trail, pure sequence, sequence, colour, pair and high card
- Total possible hands
- 22,100 unordered combinations: C(52,3)
- Sequence model
- 12 rank sequences, including A-2-3 and Q-K-A; K-A-2 is excluded.
- Calculation detail
- View category counts, percentages and the full derivation
- Ace and tie handling
- Agree the table’s ace ordering and tie rules before comparing hands
The hand counts apply to a fresh three-card deal under the stated model. They do not predict a future deal or a result against other players.
References: Teen Patti rules reference · Calculation assumptions and arithmetic