No doubt about it, a straight is a very good hand to have in your high hand.  You want to keep it together if you can - and by if you can, we mean, of course, if it's the right thing to do.  Sometimes its not, because when you have seven cards to make two hands, you likely have more than a straight going on.  Let's look at some of the possibilities:

• Straight and two singletons
• Natural straight and a pair
• Straight with the bug and a pair
• Straight and flush
• Straight and two pair
• Straight and three pair
• Straight and three of a kind 

Each of these situations calls for its own strategy, but fortunately none of them are too complex.

Straight and two singletons

Put the straight in your high hand and the two singletons in you 2nd high hand.  If you can make a six or seven card straight, place the smallest straight in your high hand and the two largest cards possible in the 2nd high hand.  This gives you the best opportunity to win the bet outright.

Natural straight and a pair

The manner of your straight figures in here.  If you can preserve both the straight and the pair, you're golden - place the straight in your high hand and the pair in your 2nd high hand. 

Unfortunately you are not always looking at this option.  Most often in this situation you will have a straight and have the one of your straight cards paired, making it impossible to play both the straight and the pair.  In most of these cases yo still want to keep the straight for your high hand.  The anomaly is if your straight is broadway (A,K,Q,J,T) and your K, Q, J or T is paired, then you are actually better off to put the high pair in your high hand, and make an ace high 2nd high hand.  If you have a broadway straight and your ace is paired, keep the straight and make put the extra ace in your 2nd high hand.

Straight with the bug and a pair

As above, if you can get the pair into the 2nd high hand without busting up your straight, then this hand plays itself.  Put the straight in the high hand and the pair in the 2nd high hand and collect your winnings.

In most other situations you are still better off putting your straight in the high hand, but there are a few exceptions.  Break your straight and put your pair in your high hand if the straight's high card is ten or higher and:

• Your high off card is a face card higher than the straight's high card, and your pair is at least 77.
• Your high off card is not a face card, and your pair is at least 99.

That mouthful needs some examples.  Set the following hand:

If you keep the straight, your high off card is a 7.  Not a face card.  In order to play our pair here it would have to be at least 99.  As it is not, we will play our straight in the high hand.  This leaves us with 7,4 in the 2nd high hand, nearly a guaranteed loser, but we are most likely going to achieve at least a push here and live to fight another day.

Set the following hand:

We can make only a 9-high straight using the bug.  Keep the straight together in your high hand.

Set the following hand:

We can make a J-high straight using the bug. This gives us a high off card of K.  We also can make a pair higher than 77.  In this case we will bust up the straight and se the hand thus:

2nd high hand: 

High hand: 

This gives us the best opportunity to win both hands and the bet.

Straight and flush

If you can make a straight or a flush for your high hand and it does not effect the quality of your 2nd high hand, the there's really no choice to make, a flush is a stronger hand, so you should set that as your high hand.  If, as is often the case, your choice between straight or flush does impact the quality of your 2nd high hand, then you have a choice to make. You should set the straight in the high hand instead of the flush if:

• You can get at least a Jack high in the 2nd high hand.

Straight and two pair

Just like a straight and one pair, if you can make your straight in the high hand and still get a pair into the 2nd high hand, then that is your only play.  For times when making the straight breaks up both your pairs, then you are almost always better off breaking up your straight and setting your hand as if it were simply a two pair hand.  The exception to this is when your top pair is only 44, and you do not have an ace (or the bug).   In those rare conditions your best move is to play the straight in the high hand.

Straight and three pair

You should always play this hand as if it were three pairs, and ignore the straight.  Set the high pair as your 2nd high hand, and your lower two pair as the high hand.

Straight and three of a kind

You should play the straight in the high hand and a pair in the 2nd high hand.  The lone exceptions comes when your three of a kind comes from holding two aces and the bug, and playing AA in the 2nd high hand breaks the straight.  In this case, play the straight and set an ace high 2nd high hand.