KQo vs 22
Pair against two overcards — the classic coinflip, with the pair a shade ahead.
- KQo Win
- 48.3%
- Tie
- 0.9%
- KQo Lose
- 50.8%
- Card combinations
- 72
- KQo vs random
- 61.5% · #23
- 22 vs random
- 50.2% · #88
Win, tie and loss for KQo
When KQo and 22 get all in before the flop, KQo wins 48.8% of the time and 22 takes 51.2%. Broken down, KQo wins outright 48.3%, chops 0.9% and loses 50.8% — a margin of -2.5 points. Pair against two overcards — the classic coinflip, with the pair a shade ahead.
The same matchup shifts depending on how the suits overlap. With no shared suit the number is 48.4% (for example Ks Qh against 2d 2c); with both suits shared it is 49.2% (Ks Qh against 2s 2h). That is a spread of 0.76 points across the 72 distinct card combinations, and it comes almost entirely from whether the two hands are fighting over the same flush.
Add a third player holding a random hand and the split becomes KQo 40.1%, 22 31.3%, random 28.6%. KQo gives up 8.6 points and 22 gives up 19.9, so the underdog loses more than the favourite does. Extra players always eat into the leader's share faster than into anyone else's.
Taken on their own, KQo is worth 61.5% against a random hand (rank 23 of 169) and 22 is worth 50.2% (rank 88). The gap between them in the ranking is only 11.3 points, yet head to head the gap is 2.5 points, which is roughly what the ranking table predicts.
Framed as a run of one hundred identical all-ins, KQo scoops roughly 48 pots, splits about one, and loses the remaining 51. Against eight random opponents rather than this one specific hand, KQo would be down to 16.7% and 22 to 12.5%, so the shape of this particular confrontation matters far more than either hand's standing in the overall ranking.
From 22's side, 51.2% is the break-even point for calling an all-in at 0.95:1 pot odds. Put another way, the call is profitable as long as the amount you have to put in is less than 51.2% of the pot you are playing for. KQo holds the other 48.8% of that same pot.
Two caveats keep this figure honest. First, it is showdown equity across all 72 card combinations with five board cards still to come — there is no fold equity in it, so the value of shoving in practice is usually higher than the raw percentage suggests. Second, it assumes 22 really does hold exactly 22; against the wider range a player would actually get all in with, KQo's 48.8% moves. Use the individual pages for KQo and 22 to see how each of them fares against all 168 other holdings before treating this single pairing as the whole picture.
Overlapping suits move the number
200,000 simulated showdowns per condition. The example column shows one concrete four-card layout.
| Condition | Example | Combos | KQo Equity | Win | Tie | Lose |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No shared suit | Ks Qh vs 2d 2c | 12 | 48.4% | 48.0% | 0.8% | 51.2% |
| One shared suit | Ks Qh vs 2s 2d | 48 | 48.8% | 48.3% | 0.9% | 50.8% |
| Both suits shared | Ks Qh vs 2s 2h | 12 | 49.2% | 48.7% | 0.9% | 50.4% |
Who leads on each street, and how often it flips
Exact counts from the 48 unseen cards: all 17,296 flops × 990 turn-and-river pairs, and all 194,580 four-card turns × 44 rivers, for every suit combination — no simulation.
When the three flop cards are out, KQo is ahead 31.4% of the time and 22 68.6%, and the two hands are never level on the flop. "Ahead" means the better best-five-card hand from the cards showing plus the two hole cards; draws are not counted.
When KQo leads on the flop, 22 comes back on the turn and river 9.86% of the time. When 22 leads on the flop, KQo turns it around 29.4% of the time. The hand in front holds on to win 75.8% of the time from the flop and 86.0% from the turn (level spots left out).
With the turn out, KQo leads 40.0% and 22 60.0%. Counted exhaustively, KQo finishes with 48.82% equity (the 48.8% at the top of the page is a 200,000-hand simulation).
| After the flop | How often | KQo wins | Tie | 22 wins |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| KQo ahead | 31.4% | 89.8% | 0.367% | 9.86% |
| Level (same hand) | 0% | Never happens | ||
| 22 ahead | 68.6% | 29.4% | 1.14% | 69.4% |
| After the turn | How often | KQo wins | Tie | 22 wins |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| KQo ahead | 40.0% | 93.8% | 0.587% | 5.65% |
| Level (same hand) | 0% | Never happens | ||
| 22 ahead | 60.0% | 18.1% | 1.10% | 80.8% |
"Ahead" compares the best five-card hands available at that point (draws are not counted). "Flips" is the share of leads that end in a loss, with level spots left out.
Adding a random third hand
200,000 simulated showdowns, with the third hand dealt at random each time.
At a bigger table
| Random opponents | KQo | 22 |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 61.5% | 50.2% |
| 2 | 44.4% | 30.2% |
| 4 | 29.2% | 17.8% |
| 8 | 16.7% | 12.5% |
Related
FAQ
KQo or 22 — which is ahead preflop?
22 is the favourite. KQo takes 48.8% and 22 51.2%, a margin of 2.5 points, with 0.9% of hands ending in a chop.
Do the suits change KQo vs 22?
Yes. With no shared suit it is 48.4%, and with both suits shared it is 49.2% — a swing of up to 0.76 points.
What happens three-way?
With one extra random hand in the pot the split is KQo 40.1%, 22 31.3%, random 28.6%. KQo drops 8.6 points compared with heads-up.
How often does the flop leader lose in KQo vs 22?
The hand ahead on the flop goes on to lose 23.3% of the time (level spots left out). When KQo leads, 22 comes back 9.86%. When 22 leads, KQo comes back 29.4%. Exact counts over every flop, turn and river.
424 words / 30 distinct figures — Method