Each and every one who bets in holdem knows that ace/king is one of the very best starting hands. But, it’s just that, an opening hand. It’s only 2 cards of a 7-card equation. In just about every situation, you’ll want to come out firing with A-K as your hole cards. When the flop arrives, you have to analyze your cards and think things through before you just presume your overcards are best.
Like most other opportunities in holdem, knowing your opponents will help you gauge your situation when you hold A-K and see a flop like 9-8-2. Since you wager preflop and were called, you assume your opponent is also possessing great cards and the flop might have missed them as badly as it missed you. Your assumption will often times be correct. Also, do not omit that many poor competitors wouldn’t understand excellent cards if they tripped over them and could have called with Ace-Something and paired the community board.
If your opposing player checks, you could check and observe a free card or lay a bet and try to grab the pot up right then. If they bet, you can raise to see if they’re in or fold. What you wish to avert is basically calling your competitor’s bet to observe what the turn results in. If any card other than and Ace or King hits, you will not have any more info than you did following the flop. So let us say the turn brings a four and your competitor wagers again, what do you do? To call a bet on the flop you need to anticipate your hand was the strongest, so you have to surely believe it remains so. So, you call a bet on the turn and 1 more on the river to figure out that your opponent was holding 10-8 and only had second pair after the flop. At that moment, it hits you that a raise following the flop could have captured the money right then.
Ace-King is a beautiful thing to find in your hole cards. Just be sure you gamble on them wisely and they will bring you amazing happiness at the poker table.