Starting hand 159 of 169

42s Four-Two suited

Wins vs 1 random hand
36.8%
Wins vs 5 random hands
13.6%
Dealt
1 in 332
Opening guide
Fold

How to play it. Fold in almost every spot, except defending the big blind against a small raise.

42s pairs at least one of its cards on the flop 32.4% of the time and makes two pair or better 7.2% of the time.

Because both cards share a suit, it flops a flush or a four-card flush draw 11.8% of the time. Compare 42o at 33.3% heads-up.

The cards are close enough to make straights, so 42s gains value in pots with several players.

Win percentage by number of opponents

0% 25% 50% 75% 100% 37 1 25 2 19 3 16 4 14 5 12 6 11 7 10 8 10 9
Bars: 42s's equity against 1 to 9 random opponents. Dashed lines: a fair share of the pot (50% heads-up, 10% against nine). Above the line means the hand wins more than its share.

42s against common hands

Opponent42s equityVerdict
AA Pocket Aces 17.7% Big underdog
KK Pocket Kings 18.9% Big underdog
QQ Pocket Queens 18.3% Big underdog
JJ Pocket Jacks 18.6% Big underdog
TT Pocket Tens 18.6% Big underdog
77 Pocket Sevens 18.5% Big underdog
22 Pocket Twos 38.1% Underdog
AKs Ace-King suited 36.4% Underdog
AKo Ace-King offsuit 38.0% Underdog
AQo Ace-Queen offsuit 38.0% Underdog
KQs King-Queen suited 35.7% Underdog
JTs Jack-Ten suited 34.5% Underdog
76s Seven-Six suited 36.0% Underdog
72o Seven-Two offsuit 38.8% Underdog

All-in before the flop, averaged over every suit combination. 40,000 simulated boards per matchup.

42s on the flop

Pair one of your hole cards32.4%
Two pair or better7.2%
Three of a kind or better3.2%
Straight or better1.6%
Flush draw or better (four or more of a suit)11.8%

Exact, counted over all 19,600 possible flops.

Questions players ask

Is 42s a good poker hand?
42s (Four-Two suited) ranks 159 of 169 by heads-up equity and 128 of 169 against five opponents. Our simple opening guide puts it in the "Fold" group: Fold in almost every spot, except defending the big blind against a small raise.
How often are you dealt 42s?
There are 4 ways to be dealt 42s out of 1,326 possible starting hands, so it comes about 0.30% of the time, or 1 in 332 hands.
What are the odds of 42s against Aces?
All-in before the flop, 42s wins about 17.7% against AA (equity including split pots).