Confusion about Split Pot? Maybe this will clear things up.

[Providence 777]

Disclaimer, I'm not a poker player, I only learned the basic rules a month ago, but here's what I found when asking friends who know better than me, and consulting the internet.

Split Pot

happens when two or more players have the absolute best five-card hand that's exactly the same. Here's the breakdown:

• Identical Hands: Forget about the suits of your cards or any leftover cards you hold. The winning hands need to be identical down to the fifth card by rank.
  
• Community Cards Key: These play a big role. Often, the community cards will form the core of the shared winning hand.
  
• Kicker Doesn't Apply: Kickers (cards beyond the core five-card hand) don't come into play for splitting the pot. Even if your leftover cards are different, as long as the core five match your opponent's, it's a split.

Here's an example:

• Board shows: [K-K-Q-Q-8]
  
• Player A has [Q-J]
  
• Player B has [A-2]

Both Player A and B end up with the same best hand: [Q-Q-Q-K-K]. Since their five-card hands are identical, the pot is split, even though their leftover cards differ.

The Kicker

In Texas Hold'em, the kicker only applies to break ties between hands of the same rank when they are not identical. In other words, it comes into play when the core five-card hands are NOT the same, but the hand rank (e.g., one pair, two pair, etc.) is identical.

Here are some examples of when the kicker applies:

• One Pair: If both players have a pair, the player with the higher kicker wins the pot. For instance, [A-K] vs. [A-Q]. Both have a pair of aces, but the player with the king kicker wins.
  
• Two Pair: Similar to one pair, if both players have two pair, the player with the higher kicker accompanying the highest pair wins.
  
  For example, [A-A-5-2] vs. [A-A-4-3]. Both have two pair (aces and deuces), but the first player has the higher kicker (5) accompanying the highest pair (aces), so they win.

Essentially, the kicker becomes the deciding factor when the highest cards forming the hand rank are identical, and you need to compare the remaining unmatched cards to determine the winner.

Remember, the kicker does not come into play when splitting the pot. Splitting only occurs when two or more players have the absolutely identical best five-card hand.

As I said, I'm not a poker player, but what I read up has answered some questions about various hands that I played that had unexpected outcomes, it seems these are the rules Prominence Poker is using.