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Exclusive Netbettor Texas Hold'em Article: "If there's a hand that can make you feel like you're zigging instead of zagging, ace high is certainly the one".
Playing Ace High Part I This week we’re going to take a look at those pesky ace high hands, and see what we can do about getting you to play them optimally. As usual, we’ll look at the factors you need to consider before you make your move (be it call, raise or muck), and demonstrate how you should weigh each of these factors. Factor 1) Take into account the size of the pot Factor 2) Know your opponents. That being said, you’ll sometimes find people who will play their hands in a very predictable manner if you raised before the flop. Some will almost always check raise with top pair or better, but will lead out with a flush or straight draw. Others will bluff routinely at ‘baby flops’ (flops that are ten high or smaller), but will tone it down if the flop brings an ace or king. When you can find these tendencies, be sure to exploit them . Factor 3) Account for the number of players in the pot. At this point you probably feel pretty good about your hand. Could the 4 or the 3 have hit one of your opponents? Yeah, that’s possible. But it’s somewhat unlikely, and even if someone did catch a piece of the flop you likely have a 25% chance of improving to a winning hand by the river. In any case, when both opponents check you have a complete no-brainer bet here. In fact, I would he hard pressed indeed to construct an argument for checking here. "As a rule you play ace-high in a more straightforward manner as the number of players contesting the pot increase".
But now let’s change things around. You have that same A Q offsuit, and find yourself embroiled in a seven way pot for one bet each. Again you’re in the cut-off, and again the flop comes 8 What should you do? Check!!! The one reason to bet here would be if you had the ace of spades, and felt confident that betting here would prompt your opponents to all check to you on the turn, thereby allowing you to see the river for free. If this isn’t going to happen, just let it go by. One of the main reasons you bet in the first example is because you have every right to assume your hand is currently best right now, and a bet on the flop will greatly improve your chances of winning unimproved (either by taking the pot right there, or by showing down the best hand on the river). In this second scenario you are not going to win with ace high. It’s a zoo pot, which means the best hand at the river is taking it down—and that best hand won’t be a no-pair hand. If the pot had been raised pre-flop you could make a case for betting, since the pot is so big (14 small bets if we assume seven players) that it’s worth tossing out one small bet if it has a chance of getting you a free card on the turn, or perhaps protecting your hand. But in a seven small bet pot, with seven players currently active, the risk just isn’t worth the reward. As a rule you play ace-high in a more straightforward manner as the number of players contesting the pot increase. The reasoning goes like this; let’s say you’re up against just one opponent, and you have AJ. The flop comes nine high, and you suspect that if you ran out the turn and the river (with no betting) against your opponent's unseen hand that you will win unimproved about 60% of the time. Now, there’s nothing wrong with that reasoning. In fact, 60% is probably close. But, as the number of players increases, the chances that you will finish with the best hand decreases exponentially.. Against 5 players, for example, you usually won’t find your hand holding up 16% of the time. Not only could someone have already caught a pair, but someone may catch a pair later on in the hand. Also, with more players in the greater the chance that your hand has been put in a ‘reverse domination’ situation (an example of this would be when AK goes up against K6, and a six drops on the flop. The AK had the K6 dominated pre-flop, but with the six on the flop the K6 now has the AK drawing to three outs). To encapsulate: As more players join the fray, your chances of winning with ace-high go down faster than the reward for winning goes up. For this reason, you shouldn’t feel compelled to bully the field with an unimproved AK on the flop if you have a gaggle of callers active in the hand. The fact that you raised pre-flop is not a justification for betting the flop with what is now a mediocre hand. Next week we’ll look take a deeper look into playing ace high on the flop, and work in some more sample hands. Until then, good luck! Return to Exclusive Netbettor Poker Articles Other Poker Strategy Articles: |
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, you can almost always check and fold and feel good about it. If, however, you have that same A