Do you ever fold AK pre-flop ?

[ChipEaterMan]

Look I was taught you never fold AK pre-flop but lately I have lossed every hand all in pre-flop with this. It doesnt matter what the other guy has my AK is taking a beaten. Last encounter was AKsuited versus QJoff of course he hit the J and eliminated me. Do you fold it ? or just try to see the flop ?

lost not lossed

I try to see the flop in early stages of a tournament but if you have less than 20 bb i usually go allin

 

[bernotas22]

you can fold it heads up sometimes if a guy shoves depends on who it is of course but if it is a generally tight player you will be chasing his qq,jj,tt, and maybe even aa doesn't really matter any pair is basically ahead of ak preflop

 

[UnNa7uRal]

In 100k pokerstars tournoment, I got AK 5 times won 0 of them. That sounds really scary isn't it? I had to fold 3 of them and get to the show down twice. I wouldnt go all in with AK suited or no preflop!

 

[Aleksei]

In 100k PokerStars tournoment, I got AK 5 times won 0 of them. That sounds really scary isn't it?

That sounds like variance.

 

[Vestas_Back]

Depends on the betting and positioning also the time elapsed in the tournament. As the tourny continues, I begin to play more and more hands. Pre-flop I usually will go for all my chips with AK

 

[Vestas_Back]

Yes! If theres no other way.
Theres lot of idiots who go all-in in pre-flop hoping to get easy money!
Soo sometimes its wise just fold!Thous idiots are mostly lucky and they get "right" cards in the tabel.

This is really not a standard poker play. AK is easy to fold all the time depending on where you stand in a situation

 

[Thinker_145]

This just happened to me today. First player raises to around 6BB then another player goes all in and has me covered. I am pretty sure the first player is also going all in because he/she has committed alot of chips. I have not put in any chips so why take a risk I dont have to take?

So I fold my AK off suit and it turns out to be a great decision. One player had 10s and the other had suited AK. Pocket 10s take the hand I would have only split the extra pot with the suited AK and would have lost half my chips.

 

[Debi]

My stakers probably wish I always did lolol.

 

[JaguarJT]

Very rare occasions, but to shove/reshove when I have a stack I'd probably lay it down. If i'm short or medium stacked i'd still go ahead and put it in there.

 

[buelithekid]

folded AA, but i had enough chips and 10 places payed in same prices.there were 15 or 20 guys left. but it was really really hard...

 

[Thinker_145]

folded AA, but i had enough chips and 10 places payed in same prices.there were 15 or 20 guys left. but it was really really hard...

Wait you folded AA or AK??

 

[buelithekid]

AA. had just to wait und fold to win he price.understood? i was clear in price. u would risk it?

 

[Enzo1089]

I've folded AK several times when it's AK off suit. AK suited is kind of one of those NEVER FOLD hands for me though. Although, the situation that I'm in can impact what I do with them. Was there a raise? If so, how much? Is this a tournament? If so, how am I doing in it? All things that need to be considered before calling or throwing away a good hand. You don't want a coin flip if you are deep in a tournament and in good standing.

 

[10058765]

I throw it away in a tourney, when there´s a raise and a reraise before me (when both players are not donks) or when a very bigstack shoves and i am very deep too, then i don´t like a coin flip...

I rarely fold AK preflop, but just did it because of the reasoning you mention here.

http://www.boomplayer.com/poker-hands/Boom/3946991_2D213B5991

 

[ElPorito]

Look I was taught you never fold AK pre-flop but lately I have lossed every hand all in pre-flop with this. It doesnt matter what the other guy has my AK is taking a beaten. Last encounter was AKsuited versus QJoff of course he hit the J and eliminated me. Do you fold it ? or just try to see the flop ?

The problem is that a lot of players play AKo, AQo (specially out of position like if they had A's or K's. Specially AK off can be a big leak in your game if you don't know how to play it OOP or when to release it.

A lot of players said everything there is to say already. How your slick plays depends on a lot of factors and starts with ring game, cash game, MTT or SnG.

I would definatly want to take AK to a flop or close it down pre in an MTT but in a cash game it really depends on the situation, the opponents in the hand, my position and obviously the history with those players. In general I will play the hand.... in not to few cases I might release it. However, I would never fold in a cash games to a short stacker or LAG player and if the lagger wants to come over the top it's a snap call for me.

I just did an analysis of my wifes AK (off and suited) for MTTs yesterday cause for the last week she kept shouting over "There! I've just busted again with AK. I'm gonna start folding this rag"

Turns out she's been bleeding most her chips UTG, early position with AKo and hit a lot of unfriendly flops or just a blank board.

There was also a couple of AK's where players that were to act behind her just had her covered X times over and her jamming wouldn't allow her to get away from the hands.

I guess you can say she plays her AK wrong in many occasions when out of position. A clear leak with an easy fix.

Bottom line is (like with every other hand in poker) you need to know when to "hold'em" and when to fold'em". I don't lilke the advice you been given of "never fold your AK preflop" same as i don't like players "never wanting to see a flop" when holding AQ, AK, AJ, J's etc. Each of them hands are easily dominated and not always "auto-call" hands.

I just checked my tracker.

No, I've never once folded AK preflop. There's no reason -- I will flop TPTK a good 40% of the time, and at other times I'll flop gutter + overs or even just two overs for decent quick semibluffing potential.

I would say that's because you seem to be a very experienced player. My loss rate with AK is a lot lower than my wifes but I can still remember how I used to feel a few years ago and I actually used to post similar questions like OP in my early days of the poker journey.

NO. YOU DO NOT FOLD AK PRE-FLOP. EVER.

NO. YOU DO NOT FOLD AK PRE-FLOP. EVER.

I disagree. What about AKo UTG?

Let's say you have avg stack on a somewhat tight table. You're dealt AKo UTG and raise up to 3BB. CO 3bets, BTN has you way covered and is all-in, SB folds, BB who also has you covered calls and you're 3 from the money with the CO still to act behind you.

You still calling?

I think it's hard to fold AK pre-flop vs Amateurs because they go all-in with any A-low kicker.If you play vs pro and have like 2-3 all-ins before you it will be a lot easy i think.

+1

Dont know are there something whit online poker system or what but mostly when i call i lose.Soo i better fold or at least waiting the flop first.

You have to re-think this Margo. But you're right when you say "mostly when I call I lose". That's very true and that's why calling is always worst. I got told this when I first started playing poker and it has somewhat become part of my game.

"You raise em or you fold em, you don't call behind".

Calling doesn't give you any information (preflop) about the strength of your hand or the hands of your opponents. You don't raise preflop just to get money in the pot or because you have a strong starting hand. You raise to also evaluate your hand and the hands of the others. I might raise up 7deuce on the button and double barrel the hammer no matter what the board reads if I get the right info preflop. Limping or calling? Bah...

Usually if you're getting called from behind players are on medicore cards KT, J9s, small pocket pairs, AT, stuff like that. You get raised then depending on your opponent you an put them on a range. You raise, get re-raised followed by a 3bet then you know you're no good and it's an easy fold. Calling or limping will just bring out a stupid flop with a lot of players in the hand and no info at all. And if you're OOP you might as well just fold right there and then.

Whatever you do don't limp around with your AK or min-raise. You don't want 5 players in the hand and see 998 on the flop and then not have a postflop plan.

 

[Came2play223]

utg or +1 pops 5-10 bb i snap fold ak in mtts

 

[Propane Goat]

"You raise em or you fold em, you don't call behind".

This^^^....probably my biggest issue right now. I know it's wrong, I know it marks me as a fish, but I still do it hoping to score big post-flop. Not as much now, but it's still a problem for me.

Last night I was in an MTT with 88 in middle position. Extremely aggressive player earlier puts in 5x BB bet. I call. Everyone else folds.

Flop comes K7Q. He bets. I call again. Turn is a 3. Now what? We know he's going to fire again, there are two overcards on the board that he may well have paired, in which case there's no way he's folding even if I shove. He may have nothing but air, since that's the way he's been playing, but since I just limped in like a little puppy dog I have no way of knowing in this hand. I fold after he bets, with the letters CHUMP stamped on my forehead along with a picture of a fish.

Since I wasn't in late position pre-flop, and facing a bet from someone in early position, the best thing to do would have been just to muck it. In the same scenario, if I called and the button shoved, now what? Just wasted a bunch of chips making the initial call.

 

[xCipx]

basically as long as there is not a double raise before me i like to try and see the flop. But u alwasys gotta be aware especially in ring games everyone likes to see pocket pairs prefop and if they get a set ur in for it

 

[Jakapivo]

Of course... In tournaments when i'm with a lot of chips and re-raisers with pairs betting i fold.

 

[atownshend]

When playing Zoom on PS or rush on FT I often fold this to a pre-flop shove. Experience has shown me that 80% of the time these shoves are KK or AA, the other 20% they are a mixture of AK, QQ and JJ. There is no odds in calling shoves when you are deep stacked.

 

[saxar12]

AK bad hand for me, at desk come only blank kard

 

[fasteddee74]

I just folded AK pre, 80/160 I have just over 10K. I raise to 400, Player 3 bets to 1200 with a 5K stack. SB 4 bet shoves 4900 and I fold. 3 bet player snaps with AK and 4 better has AQ and spikes a queen on the flop. Way to early to risk half my stack with ace hi.

 

[mshawzy]

until there is a flop, then AK albeit great, but is just as good as anything until after the flop. no AK after flop then who knows then you need help

 

[bezobrazny]

If you raise and are reraised, or you 3 bet someone and they come over the top than I would fold if its too much of my stack. Usually if they overbet raise all in I think they will have ak because you dont really want to see a flop....if they had aa kk then they would probably make a smaller reraise. Thats my 2 cents anyway. I think they say its the most overrated hand in poker. and its because a lot of people think it isnt foldable preflop. I dont think kk is foldable pre in almost every scenerio but one where first and last paying spot makes no difference...

I kid you not, i folded kk pre twice in 1 tourny and both times the guy shows aa...I only did it because top 150 got the same thing.

From my experience every hand except AA is foldable pre flop, even AA in some very rare occasions which I never had but I can imagine that situation, where you fold AA very easy. :handkiss:

 

[hakalas]

I think it's the second most powerful cards after a pair of aces ...
well no