pokerJAH

Just wonder what most players use as starting requirements for suited ace/rag . I limp a lot with suited ace/rag and usually will see a flop in a multi way raised pot. Might raise it in late position if there are a lot of limpers. Try to stay away from suited king/rag as run into ace high flushes a lot. Thoughts?

Milo

uh . . . 2 cards?

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pokerJAH

sorry, I have trouble with English on Monday mornings. How do you play suited ace-x. Will you play it out of any position, facing a raise and/or re-raise, etc. When facing a raise, what type of implied odds on your money do you need to make the call?

I find I call off a lot of chips with Ace-x and especially in a raised pot where I know I am going to face a continuation bet on the flop. This is from a cash game perspective.

Milo

To be serious for once, I hate Ax, suited or otherwise. This is mostly because I feel I do not have the post flop skills to make it a $$$ winner. Generally I just fold it, especially with a raise in front, and look for a better spot to attack from. Give me position and, say, 6-7:1, and I will call just for the flush potential, but that is about it. I am not going to risk much with it, PERIOD.

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DrTyore

AX where X < 10

Fold to any raise, raise to no action in front if in mid - late position (depending on table / your image). Limp with position (raise if habitual limp / folders).

I honestly re-read that right now, and even I don't like the summary .... Ax is a losing hand, period. If you aren't very good at poker, you'll lose a lot of money. If you're good at poker, you'll only lose a little money.

Mark

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actyper

Wouldn't Axs be a gold mine for live cash? Considering xxs is played so often.

pokerJAH

I am speaking mainly about Ax suited only. I think there is money to be made with Ax suited and it should be in your starting hand considerations. A2-A5 also have the straight draw potential, when combined with a flush draw, can be great in certain situations.

DrTyore

No

Mark

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pokerJAH

it wins some big pots when you play it aggressively and are facing other players chasing the same flush. I remember flopping an ace high flush and betting it down to the river when a fourth suited card hit on the river and the other players showed weaker flushes. Some players fall in love with flushes, no matter what their high card is.

Milo

Even I can recognize this post as an example of "confirmation bias" . . .

What about all the hands where the flush did not come through, and you had to bail? Not a good enough reason to change my mind.

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philliivey

No money in flushes, full houses are solid.

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pokerJAH

I guess that is why I am asking the question. Trying to determine what players use to assess whether they play A-x suited. Didn't realize it was so frowned upon. Looking at Pokerstove stats, as an example:

KcKd vs:

Ah3h - 33%
6h7h - 23%
10hJh - 20%

AcAd vs:

Ah3h - 12%
6h7h - 23%
10hJh - 22%

I know a lot of players will play suited connectors in a raised pot (67 and 10J in this example), which are less of a favourite in this situation. Although, A3h is dominated against AA. Against KK, its hard to continue with A3h when an Ace comes on the flop, etc. as your kicker is so weak. Your really hoping to hit a flush draw with Ax suited, not TP.

This is a heads up situation which I wouldn't typically favour playing a suited ace. I'm looking for a multi way pot to play this hand.

Milo

I just think that, with Ax suited, you are stuck looking for such a narrow margin of flops, that you will not make enough when you hit to compensate for the losses when you don't.
I would rather give up that small portion of profit, than risk the pitfalls of bigger losses.


All that said, I suck at poker, so take it for what it's worth.

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syphilaids

game dependant imo, but usually i fold in early pos, raise in late pos/unopened pots. If limped too I'll limp with mid-late pos. HOWEVER I only will play A2 - A5s I fold all A6-AT hands.

Buddha

I like A-x under the right circumstances. If the table is not aggressive, I'll limp in from any position, and sometimes even raise in late position. If the table has been aggressive, I'll won't play it from early position because I don't want to have to call a raise behind me. In other words: I want to see a flop for cheap, preferably in a multi-way pot. I play it similar to the way I play suited connectors. I want to get in cheap, multi-way, and hope to flop a monster or monster draw.

If I simply pair my Ace, it's easy for me to get away from the hand and just dump it for fear of being out-kicked. What I want is to flop a flush draw, two pair, or even trips. Say you limp with A-5 and someone else has A-K or A-Q... you'll get paid quite a bit if flop comes something like A-5-8. Or how about a flop 2-5-5? Again... flush draw, straight draw in some cases. I want to flop a big hand (2 pair or better) or a big draw. Otherwise I'll check fold.

That's just IMO... and I'm curious... for those who don't play A-x, how do you play suited connectors, if at all? Just curious...

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