according to many poker experts...A/K suited is a top 5 hand...however from what ive seen A/K is the one hand that is overplayed the most. A pocket pair with the possibility of a set is always very desirable. I have seen many go all in with A/K only to lose to AA or another pair. The top picture cards suited is what most desire..however..unless those cards show up on the flop or turn you could be getting into mucho trouble. I have myself chased to the river and had money go down the tube waiting for the card that never comes. My view on suited connectors is that its another overplayed hand...even if you hit the flush...will it hold up..let's say 6/7 suited..is that gonnna be high enough to win...what do others think
aks and akos are both great hands but people put to much faith in starting hands period. i play this hand very aggressively but i do keep in mind that i have to flop to it or be against an opponent that i can bluff. its a great all-in hand but like any starting hand it can be beaten. suited connectors are my fav. b/c of all the differnt kinds of flops you can hit(2pair/trips/boat/straight/flush/straight flush).when you hit you can win a large pot and can easily fold when you miss. they are much easier to play than say 99/1010/jj.keep in mind that starting hands are important but it is only one of many many things that factor in to winning. heres to running good:drink:
Both hands can be overplayed...for that matter it's possible to overplay any hand. Because no-limit and limit are two completely different games your question needs to be answered twice.
NL: There's no question that AK suited or not is a great hand preflop. It's better in a tournament than in a cash game because if the blinds are high enough (late in a tourney) it's worth taking a chance at a coin-flip to win them. When the blinds aren't large, as in a cash game, AK needs to be played carefully. It's a big raising hand, but not a big-raise calling hand...if you get my drift. You have to be able to dump it if you don't hit the flop; if you fall in love with it you'll go broke.
Suited connectors are good raising hands (especially in late position) because you may win the pot immediately, and if not, you know whether you've improved on the flop. If you haven't then you dump it and lose no more. They are also good hands because you can win a big pot if you do flush or straighten if your opponents are likely to go to a showdown holding top pair, etc. You can limp with them as well but if you do you give up the folding equity you gain when you raise.
Limit: AK is a great hand but it can't stand to play in a multi-way pot, so raising (and re-raising) is essential. You have to limit the field so that your top pair hand can win. You mush get rid of the players who are holding drawing hands. As in NL, don't get married if you whiff the flop and can see that your opponents have hit.
Suited connectors are great limping hands in limit. You hope everybody plays, builds a huge pot, and you get to collect when your flush or straight hits. Is 67s going to be able to win? When the 3rd flush card drops and you bet, if you get raised your chances aren't great; check/call your way to showdown. If you get called don't stop betting; your opponent can have the lone ace of the suit and be hoping to catch the 4th flush card. Don't let him draw for free.
In limit, you often have the right odds to chase, so don't be worried about it. It's the right play even though you're an underdog to hit. In no-limit you almost never have the odds you need unless your opponents underbet the pot. That doesn't happen often, so normally you only play a hand that can build a draw from late position...it limits your exposure.
Normally, I am more happy when a straight draw appears than I am when the flush draw does (even though my connectors are suited). Everybody can see the flush when the 3rd one hits, but straights are often hard to recognize.
NL: There's no question that AK suited or not is a great hand preflop. It's better in a tournament than in a cash game because if the blinds are high enough (late in a tourney) it's worth taking a chance at a coin-flip to win them. When the blinds aren't large, as in a cash game, AK needs to be played carefully. It's a big raising hand, but not a big-raise calling hand...if you get my drift. You have to be able to dump it if you don't hit the flop; if you fall in love with it you'll go broke.
Suited connectors are good raising hands (especially in late position) because you may win the pot immediately, and if not, you know whether you've improved on the flop. If you haven't then you dump it and lose no more. They are also good hands because you can win a big pot if you do flush or straighten if your opponents are likely to go to a showdown holding top pair, etc. You can limp with them as well but if you do you give up the folding equity you gain when you raise.
Limit: AK is a great hand but it can't stand to play in a multi-way pot, so raising (and re-raising) is essential. You have to limit the field so that your top pair hand can win. You mush get rid of the players who are holding drawing hands. As in NL, don't get married if you whiff the flop and can see that your opponents have hit.
Suited connectors are great limping hands in limit. You hope everybody plays, builds a huge pot, and you get to collect when your flush or straight hits. Is 67s going to be able to win? When the 3rd flush card drops and you bet, if you get raised your chances aren't great; check/call your way to showdown. If you get called don't stop betting; your opponent can have the lone ace of the suit and be hoping to catch the 4th flush card. Don't let him draw for free.
In limit, you often have the right odds to chase, so don't be worried about it. It's the right play even though you're an underdog to hit. In no-limit you almost never have the odds you need unless your opponents underbet the pot. That doesn't happen often, so normally you only play a hand that can build a draw from late position...it limits your exposure.
Normally, I am more happy when a straight draw appears than I am when the flush draw does (even though my connectors are suited). Everybody can see the flush when the 3rd one hits, but straights are often hard to recognize.
AK, suited or not, is a very good starting hand, but in NL cash games you have to be able to fold it preflop in certain situations. For example, you are playing NL 1-2 blinds, someone open raises to 7, you hold AK and reraise to 15, its folded around and the initial raiser comes over the top to say 60. I fold my AK in this spot more often than not.
Of course if i am playing a maniac who is raising every other hand, i probably move all in in that spot, but against most players the smart move here is to just lay down the hand and find a better spot. In fact there are times i would fold QQ in the exact same scenario if i read the raiser to be a tight player who would only make that move with KK or AA.
Like you indicated, pocket pairs are GREAT hands in NL cash games. You can usually play them for relatively cheap and when you hit your set no one will put you on big hand.
Hands like KQ decent starting hands, but even if you hit your top pair there is still no guarantee you have the best hand. For example, you hold KQ in a 4 way pot and the flop is Q-j-9. Someone bets, you reraise (eveyone else folds) and he makes a big reraise on you. That should generally be an easy fold unless this guy is a maniac.
As for hands like 76s, they have to be played carefully. But if you hit your flush you will generally pay off someone else if they have a higher flush.
Of course if i am playing a maniac who is raising every other hand, i probably move all in in that spot, but against most players the smart move here is to just lay down the hand and find a better spot. In fact there are times i would fold QQ in the exact same scenario if i read the raiser to be a tight player who would only make that move with KK or AA.
Like you indicated, pocket pairs are GREAT hands in NL cash games. You can usually play them for relatively cheap and when you hit your set no one will put you on big hand.
Hands like KQ decent starting hands, but even if you hit your top pair there is still no guarantee you have the best hand. For example, you hold KQ in a 4 way pot and the flop is Q-j-9. Someone bets, you reraise (eveyone else folds) and he makes a big reraise on you. That should generally be an easy fold unless this guy is a maniac.
As for hands like 76s, they have to be played carefully. But if you hit your flush you will generally pay off someone else if they have a higher flush.
That is a mistake in my opinion. If it is your "death hand," you should be looking at whether you are playing it too strongly or too predictably. Playing a hand that ranks in the top 5 out of 169 starting hands can't always be wrong. Try posting a hand history for discussion...RJH1914 said:
"That sounds like Rj"
it was me..u were at the table hence i thought you'd get the joke...lol
wat is the bad blood between u and rj anyway? i notice u 2 always at each other at the tables....i lead the league in donkey plays at intertops and nobody ever gives me much grief anymore, well maybe after i leave the table.....lol i really hope this is just a friendly rivalry between u 2 guys everybody else on the site puts up with everybody else....
it was me..u were at the table hence i thought you'd get the joke...lol
wat is the bad blood between u and rj anyway? i notice u 2 always at each other at the tables....i lead the league in donkey plays at intertops and nobody ever gives me much grief anymore, well maybe after i leave the table.....lol i really hope this is just a friendly rivalry between u 2 guys everybody else on the site puts up with everybody else....
The main problem with AK in NO LIMIT is CALLING ALL IN BETS with it. And I'm talking large bets. I see people do it all the time. It can be correct in tournaments, espceially late in the tourney or if short stacked, but not usually in live games. Yet players do it all the time.
AK is a drawing hand. If you're calling an all-in bet you're hoping for a coin-flip, that is, your opponent holding a pair lower than kings. Otherwise the rest of the time (usually) you will be a longshot to aces or kings.
Moving in is quite different because you can win the pot if your opponent folds, or if you win the coin flip, or you out-run aces or kings. But the main difference is your opponent folding, which adds a lot of ev.
So generally you shouldn't find yourself all-in with AK before the flop unless you are the one who made the bet (and you should frequently be moving in with it, as there aren't a lot of flops which will improve you to the best hand and give you action too.).
AK is a drawing hand. If you're calling an all-in bet you're hoping for a coin-flip, that is, your opponent holding a pair lower than kings. Otherwise the rest of the time (usually) you will be a longshot to aces or kings.
Moving in is quite different because you can win the pot if your opponent folds, or if you win the coin flip, or you out-run aces or kings. But the main difference is your opponent folding, which adds a lot of ev.
So generally you shouldn't find yourself all-in with AK before the flop unless you are the one who made the bet (and you should frequently be moving in with it, as there aren't a lot of flops which will improve you to the best hand and give you action too.).
yorick said:
Very sharp post, I don't want to be all in with AK in a cash game pre flop in almost any circumstance. I want all my chips in when I'm a decided favorite, and AK just doesnt do that for me before the flop. Against weaker opposition I think you can almost always find much better odds post flop than you can pre-flop.
