Cuz A9 vs. AK never happens....
And yeah, straights happen less frequently. But this is no limit. We make WAY more with a straight than we do middle pair. Typically when middle pair goes to showdown, it's a money loser in no limit. When you flop 28J with A8, you're just hoping to play the tiniest pot possible.
Making hands that are really strong but infrequent is really profitable as long as you don't have to pay too much to make them and you can get paid when you hit. Think how profitable it is to flop sets.
If you're playing limit poker, this doesn't apply since it's much cheaper to reach showdown and you can't bet huge when you make monster hands. So A9 is better than A2.
1) The kicker rarely comes into play. A kicker 9 or less is essentially just bad, and I'd call them all top pair no kicker. A2 vs A6 results in mostly ties when there's an ace on the flop.The difference lies in the better kicker of A6-A9. As the TC said, hitting two pair with A6-A9 means more and is a stronger scenario than with A2-A5.
Okays guys answer me something. Which of the 2 hands would you rather have,
A5 on a flop of 234 no flush or A9 on a flop of A49 no flush??
Sent from my XT1032 using Tapatalk
Okays guys answer me something. Which of the 2 hands would you rather have,
A5 on a flop of 234 no flush or A9 on a flop of A49 no flush??
Sent from my XT1032 using Tapatalk
1) The kicker rarely comes into play. A kicker 9 or less is essentially just bad, and I'd call them all top pair no kicker. A2 vs A6 results in mostly ties when there's an ace on the flop.
ProPokerTools Hold'em Simulation
600,000 trials (Randomized)
board: A**
A2 41.75% (107,356 wins, 286,345 ties)
A6 58.25% (206,299 wins, 286,345 ties)
2) Two pair vs. two pair is not a common scenario. This isn't Omaha.
3) Straights with 4 cards on the board aren't getting you paid whether you have A9 on a 5678 board or A2 on a 3456 board. You're playing the connectivity to flop things like a gutshot and an over (to semi-bluff with), or to make straights with both your hole cards.
No one ever said anything about 2 pair vs. 2 pair.
The question is would you rather have A2 with 2 pair on a board of A23 or 2 pair with A9 on a board of A89?
That is an unfair comparison since the A23 board has a straight available to the villain. A better comparison would be A2 on a A72 board. I like the ability to flop a straight and get paid off by a set.
That is an unfair comparison since the A23 board has a straight available to the villain. A better comparison would be A2 on a A72 board. I like the ability to flop a straight and get paid off by a set.