Each and every one who gambles in texas hold’em knows that ace/king is one of the greatest opening hands. But, it’s just that, an opening hand. It’s just two cards of a 7-card equation. In nearly every situation, you want to come out guns blaring with Ace-King as your hole cards. When the flop arrives, you have to reassess your cards and think things through before you just deduce that your overcards are best.
Like many other opportunities in texas hold’em, knowing your adversaries will help you gauge your situation when you have A-K and see a flop like 9-8-2. After you wager preflop and were called, you assume your opponent is also holding good cards and the flop might have missed them as poorly as it by-passed you. Your assumption will often times be precise. Also, do not omit that many lousy folks wouldn’t know great cards if they fall over them and might have called with A-x and paired the board.
If your opposition checks, you could check and see a free card or place a wager and attempt to grab the pot up right there. If they bet, you could raise to observe if they’re for real or fold. What you want to avoid is simply calling your competitor’s wager to see what the turn brings. If any card other than and Ace or King hits, you will not know any more info than you did after the flop. Let’s say the turn results in a four and your opponent wagers once again, what should you do? To call a wager on the flop you need to anticipate your hand was the best, so you have to truly believe it remains so. So, you call a wager on the turn and 1 more on the river to discover that your opposing player was holding 10-8 and only had second pair after the flop. At that point, it dawns on you that a raise following the flop could have won the pot right then.
A-K is a beautiful thing to find in your hole cards. Just be sure you wager on them intelligently and they’ll bring you great happiness at the poker table.