Playing AK pre flop.

This hand seems to be my absolute nemesis and I just never seem to get it right.

If I limp and I hit well on the flop I never seem to get any action from it and don't make as much as I know I should, however if I raise and miss I am then stuck in a position where I am never sure whether to c-bet and risk being re-raised off the hand, or just check fold when they inevitably bet into me.

How do you play AK and what tips can you give about reading where you stand in the hand after the flop.

Post removed.

Copying other peoples work and passing it off as your own is not permitted, least of all when you dont give the name or web address of where you copied it from.

I usually raise 3 or 4x the BB with AK.

Raise it everytime...

most def a raise

wow Ian you must be set now with all this sterling advice

As always it depends on the circumstances.
In a freeroll you might as well just push all in because some donkey will call anyway and pay you off, or donk you out.
Or knowing this just limp and see if you connect, and if you don't you can then get away from it.

In a game with experienced players your preflop raise will usually get more respect, so you have a better idea of where you stand post flop if you have hit or missed.
But the point of big betting with AK preflop is to try and take it down there and then, it isn't usually a value bet.
In my opinion too many people overvalue AK but at least we know they are doing it.

In general you should mix your play anyway to avoid being too predictable, so limp some, raise some.





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Anyone Intersted in what Phil Hellmuth has to say on the matter?????

Copy inserted below if you are.
Thing to note is the difference between charity tournaments and regular tournaments.

----snip----
Steve Martin in No Poker Jerk

Last month in Manhattan, I had the privilege of emceeing a charity poker tournament benefiting the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia (www.chop.edu), the No. 1 children's hospital in the USA. I'm pleased to announce that almost $1 million was raised for this fantastic institution.

Knowing that he's frequently in New York City, I invited global entertainment icon Steve Martin to play in the event. Steve is a great guy, and a very good poker player, too. He definitely takes his game seriously. In fact, he used to play in a regular poker game in Hollywood that was so tough to get into, even A-list celebrities couldn't wrangle a seat at the table.

It wasn't that a lot of money changed hands in this legendary Hollywood game, it was that Johnny Carson, the major studio heads, and many famous film directors always showed up to play.

Meanwhile, back at the CHOP event, where Steve Martin was my pick to win it all, action began with fourteen tables.

With only four tables remaining, and the blinds at $1,000/$2,000, a player opened for $7,000. Two players called, and then Steve called with pocket eights from the big blind.

The flop came Q-Q-2 and Steve moved all-in for $17,000. Two players folded but an amateur decided to make a donkey call with J-10. Sadly for Steve, the turn card was a jack, and with no help on the river, he was eliminated.

Now, I love the way Steve played his hand. His pre-flop call and all-in bet for $17,000 were perfect plays. His opponent's loose call with J-10 was pretty ugly but not really unexpected for a charity event. I can only imagine how I would have reacted if someone did that to me in a major tournament!

I gave Steve a couple of pointers to consider before play began. I reminded him that there are two major differences between playing in charity tournaments as opposed to regular tournaments or cash games.

First, in regular tournaments and cash games, it's best to wait patiently for a good spot to put your chips into the middle of the pot. That's not the case in charity tournaments because the blinds increase so quickly that you're often forced to play big pots with only marginal hands. Second, in regular tournaments and cash games, you'll be competing against solid and experienced players. Again, that's not how it goes in charity events where players are, well, they're not very good at all.

As a consequence, in regular tournaments, where I would typically play strong hands like A-K, A-Q, J-J, or 10-10 aggressively by raising or reraising, I would play them cautiously in charity events. That's because too many players in charity tournaments will call big bets with hands that they just aren't supposed to. They'll mistakenly put in a ton of chips with hands that skilled players would never play, like Qd-Jd.

Man, those suited paint cards just look so appealing to beginning players!

In charity tournaments, if I raise or reraise with A-K, I can reasonably expect two, three, or even four players to come along for the ride. But when I reraise with A-K in a regular tournament, I often expect to take down the pot right then and there.

So here's my advice: In charity tournaments, wait until after the flop before putting big chips into the pot. Limp in with A-K. If you get lucky on the flop, that's the time to toss in a big bet. Similarly, limp in pocket jacks. If your jacks are still an overpair after the flop, you've got the green light to throw in a bunch of your big chips.

-Phil Hellmuth
----end-----

Interesting, thanks!

AK is a good all-in hand with a shortstack when first in. Sklansky said something like having 3 to 5 times
the pot in your stack is optimal for shoving all-in with AK.

If you're in a tournament, a lot depends on the tournament situation rather than the cards in your hand.
If you're in a good tournament position shoving with AK can be risky. Similarly if a lot of donkeys will call with
small or medium pairs etc.

The Sklansky-Chubukov ranking for shoving all-in go AA,KK,AKs,QQ,AKo

When I have AK, I raise depending on my position... if I am in any early position (UTG, UTG +1) I prefer to raise 3 times the BB, to be sure that hands such as 10 Q would fold and dont disturb me. If im in a middle position, I raise 2 times the BB, so I dont risk that much in case I have a horrible flop such as 10 10 J... and If im in a late position, I raise three 2,5 the BB, so people dont get scared but call, and then I have some profit If I make any raise after the flop.

always raise pre flop if it is passed to you and and it should usually be 3 or 4 betted to isolate players unless you want to play for deception. The blinds are trickier because you'll be out of position and this is the hardest spot to play AK. Against a tight player, a continuous bet is always a must because they'll fold to you most of the time if they missed the flop. Against a loose player, you need to figure out his range and from there choose the best option you think is correct. For me, I would continuation bet paired flops because an ace high is usually the best hand and you'll be repping an over pair. If they call the flop, you could probably put in another bet if you have history on them because that they might call with a small pair and you could get them to fold. Otherwise, you should check for pot control and see what they do.