how to play AK in a tournament?

PKPurple

PKPurple

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as should play AK as an all-in before almost always lose to a medium pair
 
Tech101205

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How u play a certain hand depends on lot of factors especially position , blinds & antes , type of table & players you are playing against , any action that is been generated before u etc

as you have not given any specifics cant detail much

but as in general With AK you should always be aggressive
 
Andrey Smirnov

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As others strong broadways. Dont shove with deep stack in early stages for example.
 
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kruseraww

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well I always play ak about x5 the pot or 5x the min bet
 
mammadduke

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go allin if I'm short stacked..prob a good majority of my stack if i have a big stack
 
mar_dragan

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Always raise preflop,in situation someone go all in you call if you are stronger in chips,in situation when 2,3 players go all in then fold.
Or if you are drunk then each time go all in,that is best way!
 
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Eduard Pyrgaev

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Yes, according to my long observation there are many ways to play AK.
But the worst way to play AK Push this hand from early and middle position, since no contact with the board, AK lose even weak hands that hit the board, so it is best to play the hand post flop. Although if I have a stack of less than 5 M, and it is not two people before ITM, it is easy for me to push. In general, I very carefully play with AK in the early stages, and more agressiv in the middle and late.
 
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sillymunchie

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As already said in this thread you want to play it agressively, i wouldnt suggest just throwing it away unless there are a few people in the pot and you know it will turn into a multiway pot, your AK is only strong in HU play, as the more ppl in the pot the more likely they will hit something stronger.

So we raise, depending on where on the table you are depends on the raise size, 2 ways to see it is......
1... Early, keep pot small, so that you can get away cheaply if you miss the flop (only ever suggested to players that are afraid to play strong hands oop)

2... EP you raise larger then you would from late position to minimize the chance of a multiway pot... (downside is, if you raise bigger your cbet is larger and by the time you get to the turn you could be in trouble)

I would always strongly recommend 2 over 1, because as said theres nothing worse then playing AK oop, other then playing AK oop in a multiway situation,
if played correctly you should be HU, and if they have a middle pair then so be it, decide whether you think you can get your opponent away from his hand dependant on who he is and if he is passive.

One final note is if you are 15bb or less, no matter what position you are in, just get it in regardless of how close to the money you are....
you may be against 88 and lose, but its like a coin toss, and you need to make chips, if you start folding AK based on how close to the money you are, then your throwing away value of getting back in to the tournament
 
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rupa

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I always play AK all-in.Sometime:)))))))))
 
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bstest

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I slowplay AK from UTG and UTG1. Just call. After that 3x. Bad texture on flop with multiple callers, fold. Don't trust AK, AQ as a rule. Highly overrated in all books and by all players. It's different of course if you hit the flop.
 
claudia0208

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I play as cautiously as most times I lost .is A BOOK AND STRONG BUT DANGEROUS FOR YOU.
 
MoeJurphy

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It's completely circumstantial there is no way to play AK but how to play AK in certain positions.

Are you monster stack over your table?
Are you short stack?
etc etc
 
joker131

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I don't think theres any 1 way to play AK. position stack itm short stack ect all come into play. think for your self if u know anything about tornament poker, u know how u should play this hand
 
AizenFalck

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I better play the ak post flop, then if Im short stack, take risks betting all in :)
 
mcgregor_415

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AK is great hand. You must not worry yourself answering all in, but you must consider your position in the tournament and your position on the table. Check out the opponent stack, a low one means that he is risking, so he could be with A + something else or even worse.
 
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Sourtubbie

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The power of AK is for sure weaker early on in a tourney and tends to bounce a lot of players. In late stages I make it clear that I am calling allin or shoving preflop as the hand tends to get weaker as the cards play out.
The postion of AK makes it interesting as well,early position makes it harder to play as opposed to the hijack and later position.
 
Ricey155

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Its just two cards I wouldn't be getting carried away unless I had a decent stack against a weaker stack !! Too many bad beats out there
 
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max chong

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Maybe it is necessary to fold if you do not have the combination? AK It does not mean that you should be sure to win!
 
StArDemonn

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I don't like AK anymore....
 
jmjareno

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Just an opinion

To play AK, will depend on the position you're normally one must be aggressive, but if there is already someone who has been aggressive, we must know if he plays good cards or if he is a buffoon trying to steal but, removing all this, the minimum bet I do, and depending on my stack is 3 times the Big Blind.
 
87shorts

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don't shove AK unless your short stacked. the only hands you beat are smaller connectors and air. if you jam and get called your only getting called by pocket pairs and then its a flip. Open 3-5x bb and re-evaluate after the flop then there is a chance the board cards can scare off small pockets if you do miss and c-bet.
 
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chng1t

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AK is a very good hand Why?
1. It makes top pair top kicker
2. 3betting with it is super good as it has both top blockers: A and K, so it is much harder for you opponent to have AA or KK as there is only 50% chance they have them as you have 1 A in your hand (block 3 from 6 combinations of AA) and the same for kings. Where comparing to QQ you will see twice more AA and KK
3. perfecr for AI with <40bb

When you are less then 25 bb's or there is a re-shoving stack (<25 bb's) behind you or you believe reg behind you can squeeze, then it make a LOT of sense to just call and hope for action behind you.

I have seen one coment here like: 5x with AK. Never do that. 2.5x is the standard open size. When somebody 3x (maybe not during first two levels), it means that probably they are recreational players. GL
 
jmjareno

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I don´t trust a lot in AK..!

Everything will depend on the position you are on the table and if another player has already raised or raised the bets, AK, for me, it is not a safe bet; If no player has bet, and there are only players who have paid the BB or no player has paid, I bet 5 or 6 times the BB, but, if already a player has increased the bet 5 or 6 times, then, I check my Stack, if it is at least 18 times the BB, I go all-in, otherwise, if I have less than 18 times the BB, I only pay and I see if the Flop helps me. That's just a way of playing the AK, I respect those who play it differently or trust a lot in these cards...
 
fly2tsky

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I have bad experiences with this hand, especially AKs. Yesterday, on the same live tour, I lost AKs twice. The first was again JJ (he got quads) and the second one to TT in multi-pot (triple). When I have it I'll raise as much as possible pre-flop to have a heads-up at last.
 
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