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Playing Ace-King
There are two moves with Ace-King. You’ll either use it, or you’ll lose it.
There is so much material written about the Ace-King
it can be overwhelming. Today, some players will just blindly move all-in with Ace-King, while other players are callers and hope
to hit their hand on the flop.
The Simple Truths About Ace-King
It is the strongest drawing hand in no-limit poker, meaning
if you hit the Ace or the King you will have the best kicker. You will only flop top pair or better about 33% of the time. That means
your hand will not improve on the flop about 67% of the time.
-It is a slight underdog to any pair before
the flop.
-It is a big favorite to any other Ace-x hand.
-It is an opportunity
to double up or a disaster that knocks you out of the event.
There is a simple way to play Ace-King. Either use it or lose it.
If you can use it to accumulate chips without taking the worst of it, then raise, re-raise or move all-in. If you can't use it with
the expectation of being ahead, then lose it. In no-limit poker, a good fold is a good thing.
Example:
You have Ace-King.
It is early in the event. The blinds are $25-$50. You have $2,500. An early position player, with $2,000, raises to $150. What should
you do?
The worst thing to do is to just call. Since you have a drawing hand, you don't want your opponent to see a flop. Raise.
A raise can get your opponent to fold. To put maximum pressure on your opponent you should move all-in. Moving all-in is going to
cost your opponent the rest of his chips. Of course, moving all-in often signals to your opponent that you have Ace-King. Therefore,
he may decide to take a shot with a pocket pair and try to double up. Overall, it's early, you need to accumulate chips, and Ace-King
plays better when all the five board cards are revealed. Risk is good.
Missing on the Flop
Here is a typical situation in a no limit poker tournament. You are dealt the best drawing starting hand, Ace-King. You raise and get one or more callers. The flop comes and it misses your hand, as there is no Ace or King on the flop. What should you do when you have Ace King and you miss on the flop?
First,
you need to realize that Ace King is a drawing hand. This means that your Ace-King hand needs to improve to be a made hand; a hand
with at least one pair.
Second, you will only pair up on the flop about one-third of the time. That means you will not improve
your hand two out of three times.
Third, there are times when you want to move all-in on the flop and there are times you don't.
Knowing the right times to push all-in is very important in no limit tournaments. However, for the purpose of this article, you did
not move all-in.
Common Guidelines
How many opponents are you against on the flop?
If you have one or two opponents,
the best play is to make a continuation bet on the flop. Against more than two opponents, be prepared to check and fold.
What
if your opponent bets into you on the flop?
If an opponent bets into you on the flop, fold unless you have the right pot odds
to play a drawing hand. For example, if you flopped a straight draw you may have 10 outs or cards that can come on the turn to give
you a winning hand.
Are you pot committed?
If your pre-flop raise was so big as to make you pot committed you should move
all-in on the flop, regardless of the cards on the flop. For example, if you raised to $600 and have $600 left in chips, you must
move all-in on the flop.
Knowing the right way to play Ace-King on the flop is an important part of improving your poker game.
To
improve you poker game today, start with a free poker evaluation.
Poker Resources
How to Use Ace-King to Your Full Advantage
