Playing The Weak Ace

When playing Texas Hold’em, there are a nearly infinite number of hands that you can be dealt and some of those are better than others. Most of the time, it is fairly easy to decide what you want to do with your hand but for others, it is not quite so easy. One such set of hands that is extremely difficult and dangerous to play are weak aces. A weak ace is a hand that has an ace and a weak kicker which is usually considered a kicker below a nine or ten. The problem with weak aces is that they can really get you into trouble with many different flops. Being able to play weak aces properly and knowing when you should actually be playing a weak ace and when you should be folding one is an extremely important skill for any Texas Hold’em play to know. Without knowing how to play a weak ace properly, it is often the type of hand that does the most damage to a player’s stack and it can be the difference between winning money and losing money. Alternatively, you can research casino game websites or blogs like pokerblog.com, which will give you tips and advice, helping you improve your technique and strategy.

The first and largest problem with weak aces is that even if you manage to hit an ace on the flop, you will often be a massive dog. It is not uncommon for you to run into a stronger ace and flopping top pair can be a tough hand to get away from. Unfortunately, when you have a weak ace and another player flops top pair as well, they are not going to let you off free of charge and it will often cost you a bunch of chips before you can get away from the hand. You can also walk into a trap if you are not careful or if you are out of position.
Being out of position with a weak ace can present a certain dilemma when deciding what to do. The options that are available are extremely limited and it can often get you into trouble. If, for example, you decide to raise with your weak ace and there is a better ace behind you, you will often get a call which can set yourself up for another bet on the turn which, also, might be smooth called which can lead to you losing even more chips. If, however, you decide to check, you are giving the players that follow the opportunity to hit their outs if they do not happen to have the ace or the option for them to bet and force to you make another decision on whether to call or fold.
With all the dangers that are associated with playing a weak ace, you might think that it is not worth it to play the hands and just fold them outright. For the extremely new Texas Hold’em player, I would completely agree and say that folding weak aces is a very good idea. For other players, however, being able to play the weak ace will add a great deal of variety to your range and it can create opportunities to bust out your opponent. When you are playing with a weak ace, the hand that you should not be looking for is top pair but, rather, hands like flushes, two pair, straights if you have something like an ace four, and other hands of that variety. Many of these hands can be real sleepers and you can end up getting all of your opponents chips if you hit a full-house or other hand that is hard to place.

Another great thing about weak aces is the fact that they have at least 25% equity if you are all-in pre flop against any other hand without aces. This makes it a good choice for making a stand when you are extremely short stacked and looking for a double up. Even with a call you are still looking fairly good against most hands that aren’t holding an ace. Even against a weaker pair you are looking at a coin flip and for most other hands you are looking at, at least, 25%. It is important to remember, however, that you approach playing weak aces with caution as it can be an extremely dangerous hand to find yourself holding. There are many times where you can cost you massive amounts of chips if you over play them or if you get too committed to a hand that is not very good. It is always important to remember that it is just an ace and you should never be afraid to fold it.

Posted by Joel on May 2 2011. Filed under Poker Strategy. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can leave a response or trackback to this entry