Vedant Thadani has been an avid no-limit texas holdem player on the New Delhi circuit since 2005. Having learnt the game while pursuing a law degree at the University of Warwick, he continued to play on a regular basis during his masters' degrees in media and communication at Goldsmiths College, University of London. He returned to Delhi a year ago and is now working as a corporate and documentary film-maker. Having spent literally thousands of hours playing both in live gamesand online, he firmly believes that every hand he plays can prove to
be a unique learning experience.
be a unique learning experience.
Ace King. One of the most beautiful hands to look down at, and probably the most misunderstood. Even for semi-experienced players, it’s exceptionally easy to misplay Ace King from pretty much any position. So is there any specific strategy to playing it?
Well, firstly in poker, I feel that after mastering the basics of the game, it’s always a good idea to clear your head. The basic grid is well mapped out in your mind by now, and it’s time to get rid of pre-conceived notions. Doing this will allow you to think in a more unorthodox, lucid manner and will certainly improve your game in the long run. One of the easiest pre-conceived notions that one can have at this stage is that Ace-King is a premium hand and must always be played strongly, almost as if it were Aces or Kings. Undoubtedly, it’s a fair enough tactic but not quite as effective as most people would think. I’d like to stress here that I’m talking about cash games and not tournaments, where playing Ace-King faster has other implied advantages, such as making one’s opponents fold hands like 77 or even T-T pre-flop by applying pressure and forcing them to think for all their chips.
In a cash-game, players tend to play a wider range of hands in some situations and a more narrow range in some. Let me elaborate. In a 50-100 cash game, a 5x raise to 500 might end up getting called by 6 players, some of whom might have hands like 8-Js, 9-10, 2-4 suited, etc. etc. In a tournament, this would rarely happen. Also, in a cash game, it’s unlikely to see 3 opponents go all in against each other with 88 v A-Q v K-J, which is something one is quite likely to see in the later stages of a tournament when players are struggling to remain in contention. In fact, pre-flop all-ins are something of a rarity in deep stacked cash games, simply because the fact that the blinds remain static ensures that players don’t really mind waiting for better hands. Aces or Kings will do me just fine in a pre-flop all-in in a cash game but any other hand would require some serious, serious thought, unlike in a tournament where at some stage, any suited Ace would be an instant shove.
Which brings us back to Ace-King. I prefer to think of it as just any other hand and try to not get too carried away. Obviously this is a very difficult line of reasoning to adopt if one is card dead but overall, controlled aggression is advisable. At the end of the day, Ace-King is just like any other hand - it isn’t a high dealt pair which can warrant strong continuation betting in most situations. However, it isn’t smart to play it like deuces either, i.e. play post-flop only after hitting, otherwise fold.
So let’s consider playing Ace-King from early position in a semi-skilled, deep stacked cash game. Keeping in mind the frequency of raises from the other players, I might limp, raise or even limp-raise the hand. Limping is always a dicey option, simply because one might end up seeing a flop with 6 opponents, hitting top pair and be beat on the flop itself. Folding Ace-King on the flop after hitting is a fairly difficult thing to do for semi skilled players. It’s quite common to see someone limp Ace-King, hit a pair and then call off well-sized value bets on all three streets to someone with a better
hand. So, unless you’re confident enough to know that you’re capable of making lay-downs like that without agonizing over them, it’s best to raise. But how much?
The exact figure would obviously be influenced by the table’s betting patterns. Depending on how tight or loose you think your opponents are, raise an amount which would definitely make them think twice before calling. As I mentioned earlier, it’s easy to get multi-way action in cash games if you don’t raise a lot. Multi-way action is something that I’d much rather be a part of with 5-6 suited than with Ace-King. With Ace-King, I’d like to be against one or two opponents, who preferably would have high cards as well, given that I have the highest two. The odds of top pair top kicker holding up against fewer opponents is obviously much higher. So, in a 50-100 cash game with an average stack size of about 10,000, I’d raise anywhere between 600-1200, depending on table dynamics.
However, if I get re-raised, I’d reiterate that one should proceed with caution. Carefully think about the player who’s re-raising you and what kind of day they’ve had. Think about their stack size, how much they’ve bought in for and what kind of frame of mind they’d be in. Some players tighten up considerably when they’re losing, while some might become more loose in a frantic rush to try and recover their money with any two cards. Weigh your decision carefully, see their body language, the way they’ve pushed their chips in, their position at the table and how skilled you think they are. Unless it’s a very short stack, where you’re pretty much obliged to go all-in, one should usually just call and see the flop. Re-re-raising with Ace-King would pretty much force your (semi-skilled) opponent to fold any hand that you have beat or are probably even flipping against, ensuring that the only time you’d end up getting called is by Aces or Kings, which is a nightmarish situation to have gotten yourself into.
Now, for the third option, i.e. the limp-raise. This is a tactic that fairly skilled players employ frequently from early position even on a slightly aggressive table. It’s basically the pre-flop version of slow-playing and involves limping into a pot, waiting for someone else to raise and then re-raising the pot. Doing this with Ace-King can be a good move if your table image is tight. In this case, it will intimidate your opponents and might allow you to win the pot pre-flop itself. Also, it might allow a ‘tight’ player to steal the pot post-flop, even on a 7-high board against a hand like 88 or 99, simply because limp-raising is usually associated with very high pocket pairs. Now, if your table image is that of a loose player, the odds are you will definitely get called by hands that you have dominated, as well as by any other decent hand. Good players definitely widen their range of starting hands against ‘maniacs’. But as I mentioned earlier, proceed with caution in this situation because if you don’t flop a pair, it’ll be quite difficult for you to make someone fold 88 or 99 on a 7-high flop, given your table image. But if you do flop a pair, I’d advise you to slow-play it to some extent – your table image will allow you to get called so long as you don’t over bet hugely and effectively throw your opponent out of the hand. Obviously this won’t apply on a very draw-heavy board, in which case you should attempt to end the hand there itself. Slow-playing or value betting can induce a hand like JJ or TT into calling you all the way on a board like 9-2-K-7-5. And of course, if you do get extremely lucky and your opponent hits top-top with A-Q or K-Q, your table image will allow you to win a very big pot if you play it well.
What if you limp-raise with Ace-King from early position and get re-re-raised back? Here, unless you’re playing against a very short stack or fairly looseplayer, I’d suggest that you just fold. You’ve shown massive strength by limp-raising to start with and if your opponent, knowing that, is still raising you, he most definitely has KK-AA. Even if you factor in QQ, you’re at the wrong end of a coin-flip against one of the three hands, drawing very thin against the second and drawing almost dead against the third.
What if you’re in fairly late position and the pot is already raised? Well, depending on the raiser’s table image, the size of the raise and the number of callers, decide on whether to flat call or re-raise. Again, the main aim is to avoid seeing a flop against a lot of marginal hands. Always try and observe your opponents’ reactions to their hole cards as well as their body language. My point here is that one should try and take stock of not only the action that’s already happened on the table but try and gauge what might happen later as well. If you flat call the raise, is it likely that the three players behind you will flat call as well? If yes, then re-raise, if not, a simple flat call will suffice. Playing Ace-King from late position is obviously a lot easier but it’s not always advisable to make a continuation bet if your opponent checks to you. The pot’s anyway not big enough for you to risk a significant portion of your stack. Unless you’re very confident of forcing a fold, it’s better to see a free card and hope to try and improve your hand.
At this stage, I’d like to re-iterate that a regular poker player should be intelligent enough to factor in how good he or she is running on a particular day. We’ve all had days where it seemed impossible to hit a pair or even get dealt a half decent starting hand. We’ve also had amazing sessions where every third or fourth hand is good enough to raise with, and it seems impossible to miss a draw. Factor in your luck – not just while playing Ace-King but any hand. Make the best of it while you’re running hot but as soon as your streak starts to end, tighten up considerably and reduce your bet sizes slightly. There is just no point in limp-raising Ace-King on a bad day – that said, make sure you don’t limp it either. ‘Textbook’ poker is the best way to combat bad luck, so ensure you raise, thereby simplifying your later decisions.
Well, firstly in poker, I feel that after mastering the basics of the game, it’s always a good idea to clear your head. The basic grid is well mapped out in your mind by now, and it’s time to get rid of pre-conceived notions. Doing this will allow you to think in a more unorthodox, lucid manner and will certainly improve your game in the long run. One of the easiest pre-conceived notions that one can have at this stage is that Ace-King is a premium hand and must always be played strongly, almost as if it were Aces or Kings. Undoubtedly, it’s a fair enough tactic but not quite as effective as most people would think. I’d like to stress here that I’m talking about cash games and not tournaments, where playing Ace-King faster has other implied advantages, such as making one’s opponents fold hands like 77 or even T-T pre-flop by applying pressure and forcing them to think for all their chips.
In a cash-game, players tend to play a wider range of hands in some situations and a more narrow range in some. Let me elaborate. In a 50-100 cash game, a 5x raise to 500 might end up getting called by 6 players, some of whom might have hands like 8-Js, 9-10, 2-4 suited, etc. etc. In a tournament, this would rarely happen. Also, in a cash game, it’s unlikely to see 3 opponents go all in against each other with 88 v A-Q v K-J, which is something one is quite likely to see in the later stages of a tournament when players are struggling to remain in contention. In fact, pre-flop all-ins are something of a rarity in deep stacked cash games, simply because the fact that the blinds remain static ensures that players don’t really mind waiting for better hands. Aces or Kings will do me just fine in a pre-flop all-in in a cash game but any other hand would require some serious, serious thought, unlike in a tournament where at some stage, any suited Ace would be an instant shove.
Which brings us back to Ace-King. I prefer to think of it as just any other hand and try to not get too carried away. Obviously this is a very difficult line of reasoning to adopt if one is card dead but overall, controlled aggression is advisable. At the end of the day, Ace-King is just like any other hand - it isn’t a high dealt pair which can warrant strong continuation betting in most situations. However, it isn’t smart to play it like deuces either, i.e. play post-flop only after hitting, otherwise fold.
So let’s consider playing Ace-King from early position in a semi-skilled, deep stacked cash game. Keeping in mind the frequency of raises from the other players, I might limp, raise or even limp-raise the hand. Limping is always a dicey option, simply because one might end up seeing a flop with 6 opponents, hitting top pair and be beat on the flop itself. Folding Ace-King on the flop after hitting is a fairly difficult thing to do for semi skilled players. It’s quite common to see someone limp Ace-King, hit a pair and then call off well-sized value bets on all three streets to someone with a better
hand. So, unless you’re confident enough to know that you’re capable of making lay-downs like that without agonizing over them, it’s best to raise. But how much?
The exact figure would obviously be influenced by the table’s betting patterns. Depending on how tight or loose you think your opponents are, raise an amount which would definitely make them think twice before calling. As I mentioned earlier, it’s easy to get multi-way action in cash games if you don’t raise a lot. Multi-way action is something that I’d much rather be a part of with 5-6 suited than with Ace-King. With Ace-King, I’d like to be against one or two opponents, who preferably would have high cards as well, given that I have the highest two. The odds of top pair top kicker holding up against fewer opponents is obviously much higher. So, in a 50-100 cash game with an average stack size of about 10,000, I’d raise anywhere between 600-1200, depending on table dynamics.
However, if I get re-raised, I’d reiterate that one should proceed with caution. Carefully think about the player who’s re-raising you and what kind of day they’ve had. Think about their stack size, how much they’ve bought in for and what kind of frame of mind they’d be in. Some players tighten up considerably when they’re losing, while some might become more loose in a frantic rush to try and recover their money with any two cards. Weigh your decision carefully, see their body language, the way they’ve pushed their chips in, their position at the table and how skilled you think they are. Unless it’s a very short stack, where you’re pretty much obliged to go all-in, one should usually just call and see the flop. Re-re-raising with Ace-King would pretty much force your (semi-skilled) opponent to fold any hand that you have beat or are probably even flipping against, ensuring that the only time you’d end up getting called is by Aces or Kings, which is a nightmarish situation to have gotten yourself into.
Now, for the third option, i.e. the limp-raise. This is a tactic that fairly skilled players employ frequently from early position even on a slightly aggressive table. It’s basically the pre-flop version of slow-playing and involves limping into a pot, waiting for someone else to raise and then re-raising the pot. Doing this with Ace-King can be a good move if your table image is tight. In this case, it will intimidate your opponents and might allow you to win the pot pre-flop itself. Also, it might allow a ‘tight’ player to steal the pot post-flop, even on a 7-high board against a hand like 88 or 99, simply because limp-raising is usually associated with very high pocket pairs. Now, if your table image is that of a loose player, the odds are you will definitely get called by hands that you have dominated, as well as by any other decent hand. Good players definitely widen their range of starting hands against ‘maniacs’. But as I mentioned earlier, proceed with caution in this situation because if you don’t flop a pair, it’ll be quite difficult for you to make someone fold 88 or 99 on a 7-high flop, given your table image. But if you do flop a pair, I’d advise you to slow-play it to some extent – your table image will allow you to get called so long as you don’t over bet hugely and effectively throw your opponent out of the hand. Obviously this won’t apply on a very draw-heavy board, in which case you should attempt to end the hand there itself. Slow-playing or value betting can induce a hand like JJ or TT into calling you all the way on a board like 9-2-K-7-5. And of course, if you do get extremely lucky and your opponent hits top-top with A-Q or K-Q, your table image will allow you to win a very big pot if you play it well.
What if you limp-raise with Ace-King from early position and get re-re-raised back? Here, unless you’re playing against a very short stack or fairly looseplayer, I’d suggest that you just fold. You’ve shown massive strength by limp-raising to start with and if your opponent, knowing that, is still raising you, he most definitely has KK-AA. Even if you factor in QQ, you’re at the wrong end of a coin-flip against one of the three hands, drawing very thin against the second and drawing almost dead against the third.
What if you’re in fairly late position and the pot is already raised? Well, depending on the raiser’s table image, the size of the raise and the number of callers, decide on whether to flat call or re-raise. Again, the main aim is to avoid seeing a flop against a lot of marginal hands. Always try and observe your opponents’ reactions to their hole cards as well as their body language. My point here is that one should try and take stock of not only the action that’s already happened on the table but try and gauge what might happen later as well. If you flat call the raise, is it likely that the three players behind you will flat call as well? If yes, then re-raise, if not, a simple flat call will suffice. Playing Ace-King from late position is obviously a lot easier but it’s not always advisable to make a continuation bet if your opponent checks to you. The pot’s anyway not big enough for you to risk a significant portion of your stack. Unless you’re very confident of forcing a fold, it’s better to see a free card and hope to try and improve your hand.
At this stage, I’d like to re-iterate that a regular poker player should be intelligent enough to factor in how good he or she is running on a particular day. We’ve all had days where it seemed impossible to hit a pair or even get dealt a half decent starting hand. We’ve also had amazing sessions where every third or fourth hand is good enough to raise with, and it seems impossible to miss a draw. Factor in your luck – not just while playing Ace-King but any hand. Make the best of it while you’re running hot but as soon as your streak starts to end, tighten up considerably and reduce your bet sizes slightly. There is just no point in limp-raising Ace-King on a bad day – that said, make sure you don’t limp it either. ‘Textbook’ poker is the best way to combat bad luck, so ensure you raise, thereby simplifying your later decisions.
By Vedant Thadani
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