Tips for Playing Pocket Aces in Texas Holdem
You aren’t going to be dealt pocket aces on a regular basis, but when you are dealt the best hand in Texas Holdem you need to make sure you win some money in the hand. The first thing I want to say is that although pocket aces is the best starting hand you can have it doesn’t always win the hand after the five community cards have been laid out.
The biggest decision you need to make with pocket aces is going to typically happen preflop. If you’re early to act in the hand then you need to decide whether you want to call or raise. If you call then you’re obviously hoping that someone else in the hand raises the pot after you. If you raise the pot preflop in early position then you need to worry about everyone folding their cards and you only making the blinds. When you’re in a late position to act preflop you’re in a better situation because you can see how your opponents play first. If someone raises the pot then you will need to decide if you should re-raise now or slow play the hand. If noone raises the pot, but a few people called the big blind I would suggest throwing in a small raise to eliminate any junk hands.
Once you make it to the flop you need to start worrying about your pocket aces getting busted by an unsuspecting hand. The best shape you could be in after the flop is if the flop comes out and the three cards are all different suits and there are no straight options yet. If there are straight or flush draws out on the board then you need to start worrying about how good your aces are. Whenever the flop comes and there is an open ended straight or four card flush draw you need to come out betting big and making sure you take the pot down then or get your chips in the middle before the draw hits. The only thing you can do in this situation is have the best hand before your chips are in the pot.
If the flop has nothing and you’re still sitting good with your aces then you can continue slow playing your hand in hopes of someone else betting. You will need to bet on the turn though if any draws come onto the board. If nothing comes then you can wait until the river to make your value bet, but sometimes you might have waited to long because your opponents may have hit two pairs or trips by this point.
In order to make the most off of your pocket aces you usually need one of your opponents to have a high pocket pair as well. If your opponent doesn’t have a high pocket pair then they will typically either hit the flop hard or not at all. This means that if they hit hard you’re going to lose the hand and if they don’t hit then you probably won’t get paid off. Finding the medium between losing the hand and making money is very slim with pocket aces and it can be difficult to win much with them.