AA

Pocket Rockets, American Airlines, Bullets, Two Pips

AK

Big Slick (originally referred to A♠K♠, but the name has become common for any Ace-King, especially suited), Anna Kournikova (looks good but rarely wins), Machine Gun (AK-47), Walking Back to Houston (“I can see you learned to play in Houston. Those Houston players would come to Dallas and play that ace-king, but they’d always end up against a pair of aces. That’s why we call that hand ‘Walking back to Houston.’” - T.J. Cloutier, quoted by Barry Greenstein)

AQ

Little Slick, Big Chick, Mrs. Slick

AJ

Blackjack, Ajax, Jackass

AT

Johnny Moss, A-Team, Bookends

A8

Dead Man’s Hand (by analogy with Wild Bill’s aces and eights)

A3

Baskin-Robbins (plays off the number 31: 31 Flavors), Friday The 13th (An ace played low would be considered equivalent to 1)

A2

Acey-Deucey, Drinking Age

KK

Cowboys, Elvis Presley, King Kong, Ace Magnets (when the flop comes Ace high with no King)

KQ

Marriage, Royalty

KQ suited

Royal Marriage

KQ unsuited

Mixed Marriage

K♥Q♥

Valentine’s Day

KJ

Kojak, King John

KJ unsuited

Bachelor Hand (from “Jack-King-Off”)

K9

Canine, Dog, Fido, Sawmill, The Donk

K7

King Salmon

K3

King Crab, Alaska Hand, Three Kings

QQ

Cowgirls, Ladies, Siegfried and Roy, Four Tits, Bitches

QJ

Maverick (the theme song for the television series Maverick speaks of the title character as “livin’ on jacks and queens”)

QT

Q-Tip, Varkonyi (named after Robert Varkonyi, 2002 World Series of Poker main event champion, who rather liked this hand)

Q9

Quinine, “The Hellory”

Q7

Computer Hand

Q3

Gay Waiter, San Francisco Busboy (“Queen with a tray”)

Q3 suited

Posh Gay Waiter

Q♥3♥

Flaming Gay Waiter

JJ

Fishhooks, Hooks, Jokers, Kid Dyn-o-mite, Johnnies

JT

Cloutier (play on name: T. J. Cloutier)

J♣9♣

T.J. Cloutier (T.J. flopped three straight flushes with this hand in one year)

J8

Jeffrey Dahmer (“Ate Jack”)

J7

Jack Daniel’s (Jack Old No. 7)

J6

Railroad Hand

J5

Motown, Jackson Five

J4

Flat Tire (“What’s a jack for?”)

TT

Binary, Dimes, TNT, Boxcars

T5

Five and Dime, Woolworths

T4

Good Buddy, Over and Out, Roger That (play on radio code 10-4), Broderick Crawford

T2

Doyle Brunson, Texas Dolly (Brunson won the World Series of Poker Main Event with it twice in a row—1976 and 1977)

9♠9♣

Phil Hellmuth (winning hand of the 1989 World Series of Poker Main Event)

99

Wayne Gretzky (his jersey number), German Virgin (“nein, nein” means “no, no” in German)

98

Oldsmobile

96

Big Lick, Porno, Dinner for Two (play on number 69)

96 suited

Prom Night (“Sixty-nine suited”)

9♥6♥

Valentine’s Day

95

Dolly Parton (she sang “9 to 5″), Full-time job

94

Gold Rush, San Francisco (play off the number 49)

93

Jack Benny (play off his running gag of always being 39 years old), The Sik

92

Montana Banana

88

Octopussy, Little Oldsmobile, Snowmen, Infinities, Double Infinity

86

Maxwell Smart (Agent 86 in Get Smart)

83

Raquel Welch

77

Hockey Sticks, Candy Canes, Walking Sticks

76

Philadelphia, Union Oil, Trombones (from the song “76 Trombones”)

75

Heinz, Ketchup (play on Heinz’s 57 varieties)

74

Double Down, Blackjack hand

73

Hachem (named for Joe Hachem, winner of 2005 World Series of Poker Main Event who won the $7.5 million prize with this hand when he flopped a straight)

72 offsuit

The Hammer, Beer Hand (72 offsuit is the worst possible starting hand; this name implies that you would have to be drunk to play this hand.)

72 suited

Velvet Hammer

66

Route 66

63

Blocky

62

Ainsworth

55

Presto, Speed Limit, Nickels

54

Jesse James, Colt 45 (both play off the number 45), Moneymaker (winning hand of Chris Moneymaker, 2003 World Series of Poker Main Event champion)

52

Bomber (B-52 bomber)

44

Sailboats (looks like two sails), Midlife Crisis, Magnum, Luke Skywalker (“May the fours be with you”)

4♠4♣

Darth Vader (“Dark Side Of The Fours”)

42

Willie Mays

33

Crabs, Hooters

32

Can of Corn

22

Ducks (from “deuces”), Swans, Sleepers, Quack Quack

any pocket pair

Wired pair, Wired (for example, a starting hand of 8-8 might be called “wired eights” or “eights wired”)