It is always the best five cards that make a five card poker hand that determines the winner loser or split. Holdem is played with seven cards, and the two cards that are not part of the best five card hand count for absolutely nothing in determining if a pot is won lost or split.

It's primarily a skill game, although luck plays a huge role. In any single given hand, luck is the predominant factor in who will win or lose. However, poker players don't play a single hand. They play hand after hand after hand & and overall, skill dominates.

Poker has a gambling element to it, which leads some players to question if poker is just down to luck. Although there is a serious amount of luck involved in poker, the fact the same big names regularly win in cash games and tournaments shows that there is skill involved.

But most people who play poker seriously know different though. Poker is 100% a game of skill in the long run. However there is a large element of luck in the short term. Professional poker players mitigate the luck aspect by consistently making mathematically superior decisions and therefore winning in the long run.