How to Play Ace -
King
One of the biggest
mistakes that new poker players make is over
valuing hands. When a new player looks down and
squeezes out A-K, they feel like they have
struck gold. Yes, Ace-King, or
"big slick"
is a good starting hand, but to make maximum
profit, it is important to know how to play it.
The first thing to
understand is that A-K is a drawing hand, albeit
a strong one. If you hit either pair on the
flop, you make a strong hand with top pair, top
kicker. Obviously you also have the ability to
flop the nut straight, and if it is suited, you
have the nut flush to draw to. You do want to
remember that before the flop, A-K off suit is
the 9th best hand, and if it is
suited, you are holding the fifth best hand.
While it is a
strong hand, you have to look at it for what it
really is. You have Ace high with a king kicker,
and that is it. Experienced players understand
the strength A-K can have, but they also
understand the weaknesses. Novice players can
get themselves into a lot of trouble with the
hand, and that is what the top players are
waiting for.
The problem with a
volatile hand like A-K is that you need to play
it with the perfect amount of aggression to get
the maximum profit from it. Players often both
over play it after the flop and under play it
before.
Limping into the
pot with A-K already puts you in a bad spot, as
the more players you let see the flop, the
higher the chance you are going to be beaten. If
you limp in, and there are 5 callers total, and
the flop comes all medium to low cards, you are
probably beat. You have to play the hand
aggressively before the flop. You want anyone
with a low pair, or other drawing type hands out
of the pot. You can be sure you are going to be
facing solid hands when your raise is called,
however you also have control of the pot by
being the initial raiser. A-K is not the hand
that you want to be building a pot with, so do
not attempt to keep people in the hand with a
small raise.
While you
definitely want to be the one in control of the
pot when you have A-K, do not make the mistake
that many new players do and shove it all in
over the top of a re-raise before the flop
unless the situation obviously warrants it. If
you are getting re-raised here, the chances of
being up against AA or KK are pretty decent.
Firing a
continuation bet on the flop will usually earn
you the pot, whether you hit your pair or not.
You already told them you had a good hand by
making the pre-flop raise, and betting again
will usually induce a fold. If they call, or if
they re-pop you, you are probably up against
trips, and should shut down the aggression at
that point. If you do hit your hand, you need
to look to gain maximum value from it.
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