Playing Pocket Aces

Pocket Aces. They have many names, Aces, Bullets, American Airlines, and more. The best, most coveted starting hand in all of Texas Hold'em poker; and also one of the most difficult and frustrating hands to play.

If you've played poker for any length of time, you've nearly thrown the computer out the window after you saw your pocket Aces lose to a 76 offsuit. While pocket Aces are the best starting hand, the nature of poker means that they don't win all the time, but there are certain ways to play Aces to maximize your winnings when you do have them.

First Things First – Aces Can Be Beaten

Always keep this mind when you get dealt pocket Aces and your heart skips a beat while you suddenly wonder how much money you are going to win off of them. No cards are invincible, and while AA is as amazing hand which wins about 85% of the time, that still means that you'll lose with them 15 times out of 100.

An interesting note is that the best hand against AA is 56 suited, where the suit is not shared with one of the Aces. This hand has around 23% equity when facing AA pre-flop.

After the Flop Aces Are Vulnerable

Aces are the best possible hand, until the flop, that is. So, if you have the chance to get all-in before the flop with AA, then anything can happen and you have a good chance at winning the hand. And if you have AA and every now and then bet big pre-flop and everyone folds, you still win a small amount of money instead of getting stung for a big loss later.

Once the flop comes, Aces could be anything from the insurmountable nuts to absolute nothing. It's important to look at different kinds of flops and decide how to play Aces on the flop depending on the board.

Different Boards for Aces

For the following examples, let's say that we have AA, with the two suits being spades and clubs.

• Ah 6d 6d
  • This is a money flop. Your AA is actually even stronger now than it was before. You currently would only lose to a very rare 66 for quads. Get as much money in the pot as possible without inducing your opponents to fold. Slow playing this hand might be the right call.
• Ks 7h 2d
  • The board is nice a dry, with little opportunities for draws or great hands. AA is still a fantastic hand with this flop. Again, try to get as much as you can in on this hand, as opponents who might call would do so with Kx, QQ, or some other medium combination. Be careful if your opponent check-raises or re-raises bets, as you could be facing three of a kind with this kind of board.
• Qh 8h 6h
  • This board is a little worrisome as it is a good board for players to draw against. However, if you are facing a check-raise, you shouldn't worry as much, as your opponent could put you on a drawing range, and try to force you out with their AQ. If your opponent is an aggressive player, getting your money into the pot here is usually a good idea. Beware tight players who suddenly go aggressive, as they might have flopped the flush.
• Ks Qs Jh
  • This is a scary board, as your AA may not be very good here whatsoever. Since you better have raised pre-flop, many of the hands which would have called you could have made better hands here, such as KK, QQ, JJ, KQ, AT, KQ, etc. Many other hands have draws. AA might still be the best, and has an outside shot at the straight draw or the nut runner-runner flush. If your opponents are playing aggressively, this might just be a good time to do the hard thing and fold Aces.
• 3d 3c 5h
  • This kind of board really depends on what kind of opponent you are facing. Does your opponent play a lot of low hands, such as 55 or 34 suited? If you are aware that your opponent plays these kinds of hands, but also aggressively bets or check-raises over-pairs such as 56 in this case keep going. If you think a tight player might play this hand, be very careful with this board. Try to tone down your bets and bet for value, in case your opponent hasn't made a hand.
• Th 9h 8h
  • This flop is hideous. Since you don't hold the Ah, you have little chance of having the best hand at showdown, especially in a multi-way pot. Players who haven't hit a hand yet still have a huge amount of equity; just one heart in their hand gives the 35% equity. The Jh actually makes your opponent the favorite. If you face a bet from this board, don't feel bad about folding whatsoever.

A Tough Situation

When a player loses a large chunk of their stack when they get beat with AA, the hand looks a lot like the following example. Take a look at it, and think about what you would do in this situation.

Stacks are at 100bb, with Luke as CO and Vader sitting in SB with a (18/14/2/3) (VPIP/PFR/AF/CrFlop) as his stats.

Luke is dealt AsAc and raises 4x the big blind. Vader calls in the SB and everyone else folds.

The flop comes 8h5s2d. Vader checks, Luke bets a little over half the pot, and then Vader check-raises three times Luke's bet.

What should Luke do?

In this case, the stats tell the story (and why you should be using tracking software with a HUD while playing). Vader is tight-aggressive and very rarely check-raises. He won't be making that play with a 99 or 67. If he had something like KK he would have already re-raised before the flop. With his stats, he's likely not bluffing and has hit something like a set.

Many players will ignore the stats and the player history and fail to see that they could already be beaten on this hand with AA. Be aware of the player and the situation, and if you have to lay down pocket Aces, so be it.

On the other hand, if the player had a much higher VPIP or check-raise stat, or if they are the kind of player which will play aggressively with just an over pair like 99, then by all means try to get as much money in as possible.

Be Strong

On average, Aces lose 15% of the time. That's the way it is. And since that is an average over a long period of time, there may be times when you find Aces lose 30 times out of 100, or even more. Other times, you might win with AA 30 times is a row.

Sure, playing the right hands, betting strategy, reading opponents, bluffing, and managing your play are all vital parts of being a good poker player. But one of the most important qualities is also just being able to keep playing when something bad happens, without going on tilt. If you are playing correctly and have the proper bankroll management, the rare time that you lose $50 when your AA is busted by a 64 offsuit is not going to matter in the long run

Sometimes pocket Aces lose. Once you realize that, it makes it much easier to play them, avoid mistakes, and make money with AA over the long term.