Hey guys-

I have been missing alot lately with good ole AK suited or not. When I don't have position i just check/fold it. But I have run into a couple situations when I have position and the PF caller leads into me.

Ex.

Empire Poker .10/.25 NL

Hero is button with $35

Villian is new to table with $25

Hero is dealt on the button and raises to $1.5

folded to villian in the SB who flat calls

BB folds.

Flop:

Villian bets $3

Hero: ???

What do you do here when you raised and then get led into when the flop misses you.

I would re-raise a short stack all in but I have been pretty passive with anybody who has a full buy-in and just letting all of my missed AK's go.

I feel like this is really passive and I used to have a better line on it, but I am actually losing money with AK lately and curse under my breath when it's dealt to me.

I have tried limping with it from EP and I really don't like that line much either.

Comments appreciated.

-Andrew

in that hand, i would probably raise since he might think you're on a steal, and an A and K on the turn is probably good. but in general, what to do in that spot is certainly very read dependent. i usually let it go unless i've seen anything fishy.

but i don't run into it too often anymore b/c i long ago stopped raising AK like it's the nuts. one of the best things i ever did; i used to hate getting AK, now it's not so bad. i really consider AK, on lower stakes tables, to be somewhere between JJ and TT in strength, though i do play it much more aggressively at times. i mean, objectively, it is a very nice hand, but the problem is it's the hand everyone puts you on when you raise. so not only do you get played back at or called when the flop comes three rags, it's also very hard to get action on when you hit...unless of course you're beat. plus we all know TPTK is hardly a hand you're going to want to play a big pot for in a nl cash game, and that's the predominant scenario w/ AK.

so my line currently at UB $25 is to limp w/ AK in ep, and not try to mix it up unnecessarily in big fields or w/ multiple calling stations...there will be plenty of opportunities to take their money when i have the nuts

I muck most of the time in that above scenario, sometimes I will smooth call in anticipation of taking the pot of an opponent at the turn if they show weakness. If I read them for a station, instead of trying to outplay them on the turn if they check I check behind and take the free card. I don't like playing A high for a bigger pot than I have too, with out great reason to be bumping it up.

This is very dependant on my opponant. I would say that you are behind here a lot more often than you have the best hand. Against a weak tight player I might try to raise and represent AA and see if I can win right there. For the most part here I'm ok folding. You only puy $1.50 in the pot preflop and not you have to call double that with a hand that is most likely behind. I know most people dont like to do it but this is one reason I really like limping with AK. To me this bet looks like someone trying to protect a PP, it looks like a good flop for a PP and he now thinks he has the best hand.

This hand would be different if you held a real hand like KK. Then it would be an instant raise.

You have ace high...go ahead and muck it. It's not easy bluffing a player on .10/.25 anyway. Your A or K might not even be clean (A9 or K9 for example.)

Dont check/fold unimproved AK when your heads up. Betting the pot is +EV.

Even if it wasnt (and it is, trust me...I can give stats if you like)...if you only bet when you have the big pair, they will never call you. Now youre losing EV when you are ahead AND behind.

Ok, I'll throw a stat out there.

So far in my $5/$10 run, I raised and got one caller 48 times. When I bet the pot into the one caller , which almost every time not matter what I have or what the flop is,....the villain folded 32 times. Thats 66% of the time, they folded. Some of the 33% of the times thay called, I did have a hand and won more money, but we're only concerned with how often they fold.

If the pot is $100 and you bet $100, they have to fold 50% of the time when you have nothing for the bet to be +EV. 66% is higher than 50%

Some of those times you really are ahead with AK to JT or something and neither of you has anything and sometimes you are behind AK to 55 with a 982 flop. Just bet the pot unless the flop is really bad.

Another scenario....Your raised with TT. one caller. The flop is AK7. You puke.....then you bet the pot because he cant call with his 66 but if you check, hes going to take it away from you.

I tried limping

Hero ($33.83) is the co with

Villian is MP2 with $20.85

4 limpers

Pot: 1.35

Flop:

checked to the villian who bets .75

folded to me and I make it $3 all day

folded back to villian who calls.

Pot: $7.35

Turn:

Villian bets $1

Hero raises to: $10

Pot: 27.35

River:

Villian bets: $1

Hero Raises to: $ 20.58 (all-in)

Results later

How do you like the play here, the only thing I really lose to is a set.

What do you do here when you raised and then get led into when the flop misses you.

I check aggression stat - if it's more than 3 I will usually re-raise, if it's less than 2 I'm folding - 2-3 depends on my table image

He called showed K9o and i scooped a nice pot.

I'm not saying this play was brilliant by any stretch, but he was in one of those situations where he's going to lose his stack b/c he can't put me on AK bc i limped.

Badbeatman, I learned this move from TUP. I really like limping when I'm utg or in EP with AK, it makes it a cheap hand to play when you miss, which will happen 2/3 of the time. Plus as you saw very few people limp with AK so when you hit the money flop most people dont put you on the hand. The scary part of limping with it what happens when you get in a 8 way pot and you fop just an A, this can be really scary. You have to learn when to throw it awat.