Do you ever call AK on preflop?

Hello everyone,
When do you call AK on open-raise ?

I will only call AK in case if I have AA

AK is a mandatory 3bet for me in almost all cases... I might consider flatting if the opener is very tight, but even then, a 3 bet can take it down right there which makes it a worthwhile decision

if several players are competing.

mandatory 3bet with AK

there is a myth that with AK, you must see all 5 cards on the board

not too sure if that is true or not

Generally call a raise if I have position. Depends if I know how that person plays.

This is a very broad question. I mean we can talk all kinds of scenarios depending on image/their image + ranges where mixing up play is probable. In general, AK is one of those hands you want to 3bet to balance out hands that you would also 3bet (such as QQ+)

Much depends on position and the other players and the point in the tournament and my image and relative stacks and a few other things. Bottom line - I see guys overplay AK a LOT. It is not a fantastic hand "just because" but it's definitely a good pair of cards to start a hand with.

I think in my head I call with AK an amount that I would have been willing to raise with. Or an amount of a smaller all in bet that I'd call to potentially knock a player out on a flip situation while knowing the max that I'd lose.

This isn't saying I'd go all in with the AK unless I was a shoving range.

This stuff is what makes poker and hold'em so great. Because there are hundreds? (maybe?) yes, no, situational answers that make them wrong or right.

In a tourney I'm going to be ultra shy to the chip leaders to me at the table by more than 3times my beginning chip stack. And more aggressive or loose to players that I have two or more times their chip stack. Mix in where I am in position and who's left to act and how those players have been playing.

For instance say I'm two before the dealer and an original raise I'm open to calling unless a bigger stack that pushes their chips quite often depending on the raise I'm contemplating calling with AK. Will calling this raise hurt my stack when somebody that will likely 3 bet an amount I wouldn't want to pay starting preflop to now 2 raisers?

Or flip the instance, I have twice as many chips as any that's left to act, I may actually put in a raise or call and not worry if one of those to act after me happen to go allin and getting the initial raiser to call that allin as well. I'm at a good pot odds with a strong drawing hand and knowledge how much my stack will lose when I don't hit my draw.
Scenarios, situations, etc. You can be right or wrong.
I'm confident in playing a short stack and with freeze out tourneys I will play looser to players that I can take out without hurting my position that much.

AK is a very strong hand but it is not unbeatable, depending on the situation of the player is yes you have to call, fold, reise, 3bet or even all in, you must evaluate the situation and as the diagnostics perform how you should play the best way the situation suits all in, call, fold and etc ...
:rock:

It all depends on the position at the table, plus what discipline of poker, who sits in front of the regular or fish on BB/SB. In MTT bubble or not, I can throw out AA if the stack is deep, and there are a lot of players in the Bank.

ssangyongpoker said:

mandatory 3bet with AK

there is a myth that with AK, you must see all 5 cards on the board

not too sure if that is true or not

Click to expand...

Personally NO. I don't agree

It depends on several factors but I generally 3 bet AK .

Almost all the time its a clear 3bet for me. Could throw in occassional calls to conceal my hand but only 1/10 times. Maybe play it like that when you re in position or bb.

Hi
With AK pre flop, I would fold to any all in, unless my stack is low.
AK nor AA or any hand is a sure shot winner preflop.

I always call.AK is a monster couple.

3-bet close to 100%, and more afraid to see a 4-bet than a jam

Only in very rare cases, where I really want to pot control for ICM-reasons. Could be on the bubble, if I am the second largest stack, and the chip leader open the pot.

Of course it depends on what is happening at hand, but it is difficult not to call in this case!

I think depending on how big the pot already was, How many players were likely to raise or shove left to act.
Your stack size...? either a hero fold, a weak call, or a semi Risky raise, to a slightly more than semi risky shove, depending on every variable you can imagine.
I would normally 3-bet, sometimes calling a reraise. Sometimes folding to one.
Sometimes calling a c-bet, and most of the time making a Cbet.

If you have many players put all in, you have pair for one or other A, fold, your seat on table is imprtant to, but it s difficult to bluff when many players are all in. Like fold KK when you have A on the flop, but every players play A.

With AK as well as with AA there are no situations where you can reset the flop or just call if there were no raises before. If you had a nice raise, you can call or go to reraise all in. Of course you will not always win with this hand. You will win the most hands. On the long distance you'll win.

Hi. I have read that in some microlimit strategies of sits or mtt suggest that AK equals the big blind. I don't know if it's correct.....