Ak overated

[steak]

Who thinks AK off suit is over rated?

To me it is the most over-rated hand in poker but If Im short stacked or desperate its good enough for me.

What really makes me laugh is when these guys push all-in after the flop no matter what comes thinking A-high is the best hand.

If you miss the flop, even if you have that feel out bet.. Dont be afraid to toss it.. Dont go broke becuase it looks so nice pre-flop.. Its still a coin flip against 2-2.

[Doc]

The strength of AK off suit IMO is a matter of the table you are playing at.

I could be wrong, maybe kid will come in and tell me, but one of the first things I try to determine is if the table is playing very tight and only top teir hands in which case it is garbage but if the table is full of loose idiots it can be a monster.

[speedealer]

In no limit ring games this is your best chance to double up against players who overplay AK, AQ. No ace or king on the board, and all it is, is the no pair nuts.

If I flop a set, i want that ace or king on the flop. Now, I know that I am going to double up against a weak player. Especially if I have position.

IMO, AK, in early position is a trap hand a lot of times. I would rather limp and see what happens in back of me.

speedealer

[iamkidpoker]

ya, it depends a lot on your situation and if it is a ring or tourney play. If you are low stacked, AK is an all in hand preflop. It cracks me up to see a raise, a reraise then an all in when they have ak. They have to know they are at a coin flip at best. In a ring game. AK can hurt you bad. Mainly because everyone calls at lower limits especially with any ace. So if you hit your top pair top kicker, there is probably at least one person that called with an ace also, and if you dont two pair you are screwed. Also, you have to worry about sets, and other draws. In a ring game, i usually dont want a big pot when i have ak. Let me find an article i have about AK.

[iamkidpoker]

While looking for the over playing ace king article, i have this one to add. Trap hands in No Limit.

This article is, generally speaking, for poker players who are making the switch from limit hold em to no limit, although newer NL players can benefit from it as well.


1) QQ. Too many players commit far too many chips to this hand, especially preflop. Yes you will win some monster pots when you run up against JJ and all undercards flop. But in any decent game, committing your stack with an unimproved QQ is a loser in the long haul. See our related hand quiz.

2) AK or AQ where you flop pair of aces. This is the classic hand that good NL players will kill amatuer players on. Think about it - if you hold AK and flop comes, i dunno, say As 10h 3c, what hand is going to pay you off? On your lucky days at weak tables, AJ and AQ MAYBE. More often than not other players are only going to call you if you're beat. I'm not saying this isn't a good hand - it is. I am just saying you don't want to overplay it, especially when you're out of position. Bottom line: if you're consistently putting all your money in the middle on top pair, you're in trouble long-term, especially at higher limits.

3) Split or bottom two pair. These hands are easily the WORST good hands in poker - it's very easy to feel committed to them, but they rarely result in a good payoff vs. a player of any quality and they are so easily outdrawn it's goofy. See our article on 2 pair in NL.

4) One card straights. If I had a nickel for every time someone with a one card straight [say they hold A8, board 45K76] had paid off my nut straight - well it would be a lot of nickels, but I wouldn't need them because of all the money I got from being paid off. These hands have no value when you make them and someone with 89 in that situation is gonna kill you - and that's what good players wait for: situations where they have a good hand and someone else has a chance at a sucker 2nd best.

5) Trips with a bad kicker. You know, those BB specials where you hold 93o and flop comes J99. If there's a lot of action and you don't fold, you're in trouble. What kind of hand - that you can beat - is going to give you any action here? 92? C'mon. fold. If someone shows you AJ, say nh and move on.

It is also important to understand that at very low levels with very weak players these rules don't apply as well. Bad players aren't nearly as patient. They will pay you off with weaker hands. They will try to steal when they shouldn't. Like the man said, play your players not just your cards.

[speedealer]

1 thru 5, this advice alone could make weakies - solid, in NLHE ring games.

And it seems like in every NL game, everywhere, you see people constantly losing their stack with these hands.

Jeez, I guess I should start playing more NLHE again. NOPE - too F**king boring for me.

speedealer