There are many names for Ace-King. There’s A-K, Big Slick and my favourite, Anna Kournikova. This hand got this nickname because the tennis star looked great but often didn’t play that well! I’ve decided to write about A-K because it’s a hand that has been giving me trouble of late and has made me ask some serious questions about it. How much value has A-K got in today’s aggressive short-handed game? Is it overrated and overvalued? How can you play A-K most effectively?
Pros and cons
Let’s start out by looking at A-K for what it really is. A-K along with Aces, Kings and Queens is acknowledged as being one of the top four starting hands. The only difference A-K has to the others is that it is a drawing hand and not a made hand, meaning you will need to improve once the cards are dealt in most cases to play a big pot.
Saying that then, the normal thing to do would be to isolate with it preflop – to raise, three-bet and move all-in if necessary. But this is an idea I’m quickly falling out of love with and I’m becoming more inclined to weigh up my opponents, stack sizes and the situation before deciding how fast I’m willing to play it. After all, it’s only Ace-high and is far from the nuts.
Let’s look at how A-K fares against various other starting hands in a heads-up pot…
- A-K 12.1% vs A-A 87.85%
- A-K 34.1% vs K-K 65.89%
- A-K 46% vs Q-Q 53.9%
- A-K 47.6% vs 7-7 52.3%
- A-K 71.2% vs A-Q 28.7%
- A-K 61% vs 7-6s 38.9%
- A-K 64.8% vs J-To 35.1%
As you can see from the above stats, you will almost always be behind to hands that will be three or four-betting and moving all-in preflop, with the possible exception of A-Q. What’s worse, it’s only a slight favourite over hands that are played a lot nowadays such as suited connectors.
Add up the average equity A-K has in the chart above and you’ll find it’s a surprisingly low 48.1%. How premium does it look now?
So how should you play A-K?
A lot of factors govern how you should proceed with this hand…
- Your image at the table and your opponent’s image.
- Your opponent’s likely range of hands – what they will three-bet and four-bet with. Are you up against a loose, tight or aggressive player?
- Position. This is highly important, as A-K is a drawing hand and one that needs you to hit the flop to improve. Position will win you far more pots when you don’t connect with the flop and make your life easier.
- Stack sizes. This is also important, as the value of A-K diminishes when the stacks are deeper, whereas short stacks can play A-K like the nuts.
Now you have to work out why you are betting with A-K…
- To increase the pot size. You have a premium hand and you want to build a pot with what you think is the best hand.
- To gain information as to what your opponents are holding.
- To force weak hands out of the pot and make them pay to catch up.
- Raising with A-K gives you fold equity.
- Raising with A-K might get a better hand to fold.
Raising with A-K
I like to raise with A-K 80-90% of the time from any position to a standard three to four times the big blind. If there are limpers in the pot I will maybe charge them extra and raise it four to six times the big blind.
Calling a raise with A-K
I will rarely call with this hand unless I’m up against a rock who hasn’t played a hand for hours. Then I might consider seeing a cheap flop for the purpose of mixing up my game. Also it might be worth calling every now and then to trap an aggressive opponent who is playing any Ace, in the hope that you hit an Ace on the flop and have your opponent out-kicked. The problem with this is that you have to be prepared to release your hand if you haven’t hit the flop as they will more than likely make a continuation bet.
Reraising with A-K
It’s a pretty standard move, but before you reraise you have to ask yourself whether or not you’re prepared to play a big pot and commit all your chips with this hand. I think a lot of players nowadays see this hand as being the nuts. It’s far from it.
Calling a reraise
Whether it’s a three-bet or a shove for all your chips, this is where reasoning must come into play. This is where you have to know your opponent, and position is of the utmost importance if you decide to call. Some players see this as a weak move but, as I said, A-K is a drawing hand so why risk everything by moving over the top when only hands that have you beaten or you’re flipping with will call. Also, flat-calling a three-bet disguises your hand in some ways, as most players will move all-in with A-K. If an Ace or King hits the flop, your hand is well concealed.
Raymond 'callmebabe' O'Mahoney is a member of Team PKR Pro. To find out more about him and to read more articles written by Raymond, please click here