Playing Big Aces Post Flop (Poker)
Welcome to our strategy guide to playing big aces after the initial deal the flop has been dealt.
Big Aces following the flop could still be a dominating hand. Again, big aces constitute AK, AQ and AJ and are a strong drawing hand in any Holdem game. In Hold'em a pair is very often good enough to take down a pot, but big aces are only ace high pre flop so don't over value them. Post flop you will have a much better idea where your big aces are in the hand. You will primarily be hoping to hit an ace or a pair at worst.
The power of the big Ace lies with the kicker. If you have AK and you flop K-K-8, you have three of a kind with an ace kicker. There is every chance that another opponent may have the other K. You are in a dominant position as you have the bigger kicker. Lets say you have AQ and the flop reads A-A-3, again you have a set of 3's (3 or a kind). Now an ace is a very playable hand in holdem so depending on the number in the hand another player could very well have an ace also giving him a set of 3's. As you both have 3 of a kind the kicker is used to determine who has the best hand. In this case your next biggest card is a Q so your opponent would need to have AQ to split (so far) or AK to have your beat. Now if you had A-3 your player would need A-4 and up (A-5, A-6, A-7 etc) to have you beat so you see how important the kicker can be. For this reason you should play big aces aggressively as you are likely in good shape.
If you get a pair on the flop, especially a pair of aces, you are in a very good position and should raise. You can take comfort from the fact that you have a big kicker. This is more relevant in Low limit Hold'em as players love to play aces with any other card suited. To show you the advantage you will have with a dominant kicker lets look at another example.
In a flop J-8-9 rainbow (all different suits) you hold A-J compared to your opponents K-J, you are a 6-1 favorite to win the pot. Considering a Low Limit Hold'em player will seldom fold this hand in this position, you are in a profitable position and statistically will win this hand 85% of the time.
Take care when betting on the flop when flush and straight possibilities exist, like Jh-Js-9h. Whilst your A-J may look good, if a player has flopped 2 pair you are way behind. Similarly if your opponent has 2 hearts in his hand he will likely call to see the next card (hoping for a Heart and a flush). You should put in a big raise and make him pay to see the next card. If your have 2 over cards in your hand after the flop and all players have missed you will be sitting on the best hand. If you have 2 or more opponents and you miss the flop you should not call a raise as it is very likely you are behind. If one has a pair you are likely sitting on 6 outs, maybe less. If an opponent has a pair with an ace kicker you could be down to 3 outs.
Low limit players lose lots of money protecting their big aces. If you miss your flop and have more than 2 players you should get out the hand on a raise. Remember that as good as it looked before the flop, if you miss on the flop, all you have is Ace high. With 2 or more players you are a favorite to lose with an ace high so fold.
Another typical scenario is you hitting top pair and the board is paired. For example, the flop is K-7-7 and you hold AK. You should be careful here as your opponent may have flopped a set which leaves you on 2 outs. The betting after the flop will reveal whether your hand is good. You should be careful and bet just enough to see whether your opponent has a 7. If you are called on your first raise this will be an indication that you may be in trouble. Remember that there is no way to know for sure if you are ahead. betting actions will help you decide where you stand in the hand. For this reason you need to bet into pots to see where you are.
If the betting increases and you have not hit, you should learn to lay down your hand. Placing too much value on your ace will only cost you money.
The best advice would be not to get involved in multi pots when you have an ace with a low kicker for the reason that even if an ace hits you will not know where you are. You should only play suited aces or an ace with a low kicker when you can get in fairly cheap.
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