A Reader Asks,"Who Is The Winner?"

I receive many emails asking me to settle a dispute about the winner of a hand in Texas Hold'em. Some players are confused about spit pots when there is no clear winner. The other day a reader asked me the following question:

I have a question about a Texas Holdem poker hand. Some friends and I were playing the other night and we had an argument regarding the winner of this hand: the board showed 7 8 A Q K all mixed suits.
Player #1 had J 9
Player #2 had 4 6
Player #3 had 3 5
Who is the winner?

Answer: Since nobody has a pair, the winning hand is made of the five highest cards using a combination of the cards in the players hand and the cards on the board. In this case the five highest cards are: A K Q J 9. Player 1 is the winner.

For related information see:
Split Pots in Texas Holdem
How to Determine a Winning Poker Hands
Texas Holdem 101