Are A 10 and A J good starting hands?

[MikeCarasone]

IMO they are trouble hands. They are fine to open with or 3 bet in hopes of taking the pot down against the right opponent in position. But calling raises with AT and AJ is a recipe for failure. I’ve seen many players call big raises with these holdings only to be dominated by better aces. AQ AK Is often what the villain has when they reraise or bet big so play with caution. Obviously with the right flop these hands (any hand actually) can turn into a great holding.

 

[A2020]

I guess it depends on positions. I remember asking a poker streamer on Twitch why she didn't open with A T (She was UTG) And she told me she wouldn't even open A J been UTG

So not sure, maybe it's different play styles, and many other things to consider.

 

[wsbar]

They are good hands when played correctly, there are several situations to be analyzed when playing with this type of hand. If there was a raise before me, if there was a call, I can limp, I can raise, I can apply a reraise if any opponent has raised before me, plus the biggest decision comes shortly after the flop, where depending on the board we can apply several strategies and traps of poker with this hand, try semi-bluff or a floating, but we have to be ready to fold if necessary. I hope I have helped and good luck at the tables.

 

[Tylor Mendez]

They're a whole lot better if they're suited. Dumping A-10 early position is understandable, but AJsuited Im definitely putting in a raise, and if you are re-raised, its an easy fold, depending on the size of the reraise. You may be getting odds to suck out on your opponent.

Just be careful with them. Late position is the best. Eventually you will flop a monster.

 

[Dan Booker]

Position is always key, as well as knowing your opponent because every situation is different. But for the most part I always tread lightly with dominated aces.

 

[stamark]

In early positions I fold it unless it's suited. In late positions i make a small raise 2.2-2.5x

 

[akmost]

If I am deep stacked enough I open raise them in EP. Those two holdings are not the best Ax of the game but still they have some potential. Apparently it would be way better if they are suited.Auto open raise from HJ , CO , BTN unless you have a shovable stack! It is preferable to open shove them math wise with approximately 10bbs!

Good Luck!

 

[Shep15jon]

If you think about it, AJ is most likely to be one of the best hands dealt at the table. They should be raised 9 times out of 10. You know then any callers are likely to have something similar (or stronger) in their hand. It’s a good way to scare off the bingo players that play with trash... you should be letting anyone have a cheap or free flop if you have cards like that. If they want to see if they can get lucky with a flop they have to pay...!

 

[B1731898]

I've learned you can take down pots with these hands, (not always), but I rarely call a raise with them.

 

[FanatsLV]

They not the greatest hands but if you are in right position and no huge bets that can play otherwise I usually fold them

 

[ScottieDuncan]

Cautiously, usually on blinds. A 10 has been better for me.

 

[dedok0525]

In a turbo tournament or slow in late position should play a 3bet. The Gipper turbo should also play aggressively from any position. With every position you can play in the late stage of a tournament, when to play aggressive your opponents are, and garbage hands to steal the blinds. If you are playing against a very aggressive player who always goes all-in. Another interesting fact is that if the maniac is constantly playing the all-in on a long period of time to call his all-in with AJ would be correct.

 

[PelyaMX]

I'm just wondering what people think about these hands preflop? I try to play these type of hands in late position to no avail. I'm just wondering if I should remove these hands from my arsenal?

Of coz first of all it's up on your position ... but in "mordern" poker I think - YES ...
In old school poker it's appropriate only for Button, Cutoff & Hijack.

 

[Flatran]

With good position you can easily play them or, defend a raise on bb/sb and maybe call on a CO position, and even more if they are suited.

 

[magik9118]

No
For me is To much of a bad beat with this hands.
i try To fold them most of the time

 

[mariale_1990]

in my personal opinion they are not bad hands, I think everything depends on how you play them, the tournament, the blinds and some other things that I personally take into consideration, like my intuition, of course I sometimes fail, but it is part of the game , as long as you have the ability to play them as correctly as possible

 

[Roger1960]

All cards are good playing hands, it depends on position, how many are already in the hand etc.. I love so called bad cards when I am in the BB and all limp in.
That being said, I myself run into AA a lot with AJ. Even AA is not always a good hand, pre flop, yes.

 

[Roger1960]

A big thing also is chip stack size, the smaller the stack the more I would play them. A welcome sight with a very short stack.

 

[Dmitriy_rus7]

Of course this is a good starting hand, but you need to watch what happens next

 

[57noona]

I'm just wondering what people think about these hands preflop? I try to play these type of hands in late position to no avail. I'm just wondering if I should remove these hands from my arsenal?

Like Hugh said you have to know your opponents. In order to play these hands you have to have a good read on the raiser.

 

[molokheia]

Hi there
Definitely yes. One of the big Gurus said - I allways play Ax.
Fully agree

 

[bzvz222]

I am sorry but questions like this are just too general, you would have to be more specific. Of course those are good hands, probably not on a KQ345 board though.. If we are talking about tournaments, especially then.. it depends on your stack, position, blinds, number of players left, ICM..

 

[rmcneice]

They are dangerous hands since they are on the low end of the ranges you would expect others to be playing.

For instance you raise with either in the cutoff and the button calls.

Flop A,Q,7 two suited.

You probably C-bet and then the button takes his time and raises.

What do you do?

 

[James24543]

Yes they are decent starting hands. Your not going to get AA, AK, or PP every couple of hands.

 

[PackinPat]

These hands are marginal. They can be okay in certain situations but are dominated in many. This is a pitfall that many new players fall into, they just get overplayed. I wouldn't want to get into a big pot holding top pair with either of these hands.

Can I add that if you play them, they should be played with caution!