Playing AK on the flop

Aalexandar

Aalexandar

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I've always wondered how people play their AK hands when the flop completely misses and you get a low-mid rainbow flop like 492 or something like that.. Do you keep calling even if villain bets due to the 2 over cards or do you semi(?) bluff or do you just bail instantly? Sometimes it's hard for me to bail if I put in a lot of money into the pot preflop and then I end up losing it to a low pair/2 pair.
 
proud2Bwhack

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In position would be the only way to continue, and you are definitely behind a small pair. The real problem is your implied odds are so low. An ace or king will shut down a small pocket pair bettor quick. then there is all the times where you are against a set and drawing dead...

Folding is the smart thing to do, even to the first bet on the flop.
 
rytciaq

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That's why I don't like AK - if you miss the flop, you really have no other option , just fold. That's not the case when you have a pocket pair, which I love.
 
Aalexandar

Aalexandar

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Folding is indeed the sensible thing to do, but damn do those cards look too pretty to fold hahaha

Also @rytciaq, I'm a fan of the 99+ pairs. When I get dealt like 22-77 and the flop has something T+, and there were 3-4bets preflop 99% of the time i'm sure someone hit something that high and I just fold because I don't feel it's worth it drawing those 2 outs for a set hahaha That's why pocket pairs scare me
 
starting_at_the_bottom

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Generally my decision to continuation bet when we miss would be based on

How many players are we against, I generally bet 90% heads up, maybe 60% three way
In or oop
Other players nits or calling stations
Are there many draws out there

If they call I would tend to check turn unless

We catch an A or K (sometimes I would still check that back)
Heads up and turn is a good card to fire at e.g Q after a 259 rainbow flop
Pick up decent equity e.g after Td4h2c and turn is Qd and we hold AdKd
 
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freestocks

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Be aggressive yet fold to aggression.
 
MediaBLITZ

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Generally speaking:
"If you do not hit, you must quit."

But c-betting or donking a dry flop is not unreasonable.
 
MattRyder

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It all depends on what the other players do, and how many of them are in the hand. I don't c-bet many flops in a situation like this, so I'll wait to see what happens. I may just get a totally free card, or a really cheap one. AK can still win by itself, although I personally wouldn't count on this happening. You can lose a lot over time by over-playing AK-hi hands that never improve.
 
MannerzMan

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There is a lot of info going into the flop before you can decide.

Firstly, I would consider my opponent. Is my opponent loose? Does he play tight? Do I have a read on him (live tells, betting patterns, length of time from bet.) Will he be aggressive? Has he been aggressive on boards like this before?

Secondly, I would consider the action. Given that you have A-K, what was the pre-flop action like? Did you raise and he call? Did he raise and you re-raise and then call? Did you just call a pre-flop raise? Was it limped?

Third, I would consider the position. Some players like to be the first into the pot because they can bet first. Other players like to be later and see the action before they have to react.

All of these are indicators to help find the range of hands he could have along with giving you valuable info. Given the action and player you can decide on the right course of action. If he is tight bluff him. If he is loose-aggressive might want to think about the next hand when you can have the goods and have him bet at you.

In conclusion, I would have to evaluate the situation for the hand. You could have the exact same hand, exact same board, and play differently and BOTH actions could be correct.
 
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Poker is not totally maths, odds and science etc. One has to use your his gut instincts as well... So I always take mine time for thinking before choosing to play a hand.... and if my gut feelings say to just shove all in despite holding a massive cards.... then I just shove it... instead of doing pre-flop aggression play. This strategy has served me well.
 
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worverine16

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good the AK always has its high and low depending on how players are on board, you take the desicion on what position you are to know if you can lleba a good boat, because if you in cuentra with a pair of AA is very difir out of that roll
 
wanted2090

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not All in

I wouldnt go all in with AK because the chance that there will be no AK on the board is quite high.. I would still bet something but be careful if someone goes all in
 
teepack

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Just way too many things to consider for there to be one answer. How many people still in the hand? Did you limp into the pot or raise? What is the image of the player(s) you are up against? What is your stack size compared to theirs?
 
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ph_il

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Copy-pasta from another AK thread I replied to. I bolded parts that are in response to your question.

AK suited or unsuited is a very strong hand preflop and you should be raising/3betting preflop with this hand as often as you can. Like most big hands, you want to limit the number of players that see a flop against you, so raising to isolate is what you're looking for. Against almost all players, playing AK aggressively is much better than playing it passively.

Hitting and missing flops with AK:


AK is going to pair on the flop about 1/3 of the time, always giving you TP/TK which is often times the best hand at show down. Even if an A or K hits on a dry board, you should still c-bet as the aggressor because your opponents will call you with much worse on really standard c-bet looking flops. For example 88 might call a c-bet on an A 2 7 flop.

AK is going to miss the flop 2/3 of the time, but they still have equity to win the hand. If the flop is J 3 7, even though AK missed, being the aggressor and c-betting can easily pick up the pot. And if the opponent calls, you have a ~12% chance to hit the turn. ~24% chance if you can see a turn and river, like if you shove flop and get called, for example.

So, c-betting most flops with AK is going to earn you the pot more often than not even if you do miss it, but you have to keep in mind your opponents raising and 3bet calling range. The tighter the range, the less equity you have against them when c-bet on missed flops. The wider the range, the more equity you have.


AK vs other hands:

I think a common misunderstanding a lot of newer players have are the preflop odds to win with AK vs other hands.

67 is 40% to win against AK's 60%, but it only applies if you are guaranteed to see all 5 cards. Otherwise, AK has much more equity over 67 on most flops when both miss and even when 67 hits a single pair after calling a preflop and is facing c-bet aggression. Even on flop of 6-Q-2, it could be hard to call a c-bet with MP/WK since the turn can bring a lot of over cards that can shut it down, especially if AK fires a 2nd barrel.

The same goes for 22 vs AK. Yes, this is a classic race situation, but again, that only applies if all 5 cards are seen. AK as a lot of equity against 22 because 88% of the time over cards are going to flop. So, even if AK misses, it's very hard for 22 to continue on a 5-8-10 flop facing a c-bet.

A member said that 22 and QQ against AK is practically the same thing and this is not true at all. Yes, AK vs QQ is 50/50 preflop if all cards to be seen. However, AK doesn't have as much equity on a missed flop against QQ as it does 22. A 3-J-7 flop is going to be very hard for 22 to continue against a c-bet, but it's very easy for QQ to continue. Again, the tighter the raise/3bet calling range your opponent has, the less equity you have on missed flops.

Shoving vs calling shoves with AK

Aggression is the key when playing AK because you can either win it by having the best hand or by getting your opponent to fold. So, you would rather be one to be betting/shoving than being the one calling shoves on missed flops.

AK, on a missed flop, has ~24% chance of hitting on the turn or river when facing a shove. So, you'll need to be getting over 3.15:1 pot odds to make this call a profitable one. However, if we flip and we're the one's shoving with AK on a missed flop, say 7-J-3, we still have equity to hit when called, but make it hard for some hands to call with, like 55, so we gain when they fold. Being the aggressor gives us 2 ways to win vs only 1.

Whether you should standard c-bet missed flop or shove it with AK depends on effect stack sizes. If stacks are deep, then you're better off making a standard c-bet. You'll either win the pot uncontested and if your opponent calls, you can re-evaluate on the turn. However, with deep stacks, you don't want to shove on a missed flops because your opponent is still folding if they miss, but they're only calling your shove with hands that have you beat. Even with your ~24% to hit on turn or river, you're not getting the right pot odds to make this type of play profitable.


One thing I've started doing in the mid-late stages of MTTs where blinds and antes are high is open shoving and 3bet shoving with 30BBs and less preflop. It might seem like overkill to open shove AK with 30BBs, but you're getting called by a ton of weaker hands that you dominate (weaker AX/KX hands), in 50-50s vs 22-QQ, 60-40s vs all other non paired hands (that don't include an A or K), still have 30% equity vs KK, and only way behind AA. So, if you get your money in and getting called, you're very rarely in a terrible situation. I prefer doing this in the later stages when antes are big because the times you do pick up the pot uncontested, it's a more significant pad to your stack. Without antes, I drop down to shoving 20BBs and less with AK for the same reasons above.

On top of that, you're also gaining max value with AK when you do shove and get your opponent to commit their chips preflop. Again, you're very rarely in a terrible situation when you get your money in preflop with AK. Lets say you open shove 25BBs UTG with AK and you get a call. With blinds and antes, the pot is ~52BB.

-VS weaker AX/KX hands, you're picking up this pot 70% of the time.
-VS 22-QQ, you're picking up this pot 50% of the time
-VS non paired hands without an A or K, you're picking up the pot 60% of the time.
-VS KK, you're picking up the pot 30% of the time.
-VS AA, only 10% of the time.

So, if you can get your opponent to commit 25BBs with AQ preflop, this is great for you because you're winning that pot most of the time and picking up an extra 25+BBs. Compare this to standard raising say 3x BBs and your opponent calling. 2/3 of the time, your opponent misses the flop and is folding to a c-bet, so you only pick up a ~8BB pot and lose out on picking up on the other 22BBs your opponent would've committed preflop.

The same goes if your opponent has a hand like 55. They're only making a set 1-in-8 times and over cards are flopping most of the time vs small pairs, so they're likely folding to any c-bet and you're picking up a small pot. However, getting your opponent to commit their chips preflop and you being in a 50-50 with AK situation is great for you.

So, do what it takes to get all of your and all of your opponents chips in preflop, because, again, you're very rarely in a terrible situation when you do.
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TargetLion

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I mostly never fold with AK, cause even contra KK you have chanse to win, and contra QQ it is coinflip.
 
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doctor zver

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AK is a bad hand. I think many of her perekochevyvayut and do not know how to throw.
 
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diserg1

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The most difficult decision with AK will need to take after the flop, because the flop often does not clarify the situation. Money in the Bank and sometimes you want to take the pot at any cost.
 
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AK put Some pressure on THE ladds depend on position en players still in THE game
 
TeUnit

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think the lower the stakes the more often you should cbet

the higher the stakes the more you should play the board texture and the villans
 
Che

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You guys have no idea how AK should be played and that's why you think AK is a drawing hand. Paying AK like a drawing hand is the biggest mistake you can ever make in NL.
 
TravelerLloyd

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I agree!

See I agrtee with you, I even play AQ like AK or AA, KK, I am not folding unless I get to the river and I am out of position and have missed everything.

I am up against a 99 the flop comes 2,6, & 8 my AK misses the villan checks, I bet $300 after a pot size bet of $1,500, villan knows I missed with my big slick, bets all in,l I call because the way I see it, if I hit which I put him on a medium to small pair or a pure bluff, if I hit the turn or river he is out, its a coin flip? Or should I have folded, Loosing half my stack after the raise preflop, I felt pot committed with outs!

isnt that like 3-1 pot odds indicating a call should be made here?


You guys have no idea how AK should be played and that's why you think AK is a drawing hand. Paying AK like a drawing hand is the biggest mistake you can ever make in NL.
 
NUGGEETTEE

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IMO Position and Stack size dictates how to play AK. Late position and a sizable stack can make AK more profitable.
 
NUGGEETTEE

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Position and stack size dedicates how to play AK.
 
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