Two pair is one of the trickiest hands to play in No Limit Texas Holdem. Amateurs tend to make one of two mistakes when it comes to two pair. They either highly overrate or highly underrate the value of their hand. The reason for this is that two pair in Texas No Limit Holdem is a hand that is both likely to be the best on the flop, and extremely vulnerable. Here are some examples to illustrate what this means.

Keep in mind that when we talk about flopping two pair in Texas No Limit Holdem poker we mean that both of your hole cards pair. If you hold 8 9 on a board of T T 9 you technically have two pair, but it is not a "true" two pair, since you share one of the pairs with all your opponents.

Two Pair on a Coordinated Flop

Let's say you have TJ and the flop comes T J Q. This is both one of the most common two pair scenarios, and one of the most dangerous. Often with two pair you are looking to make a big check raise, to force out all the draws that are likely to be out against you. In a case like this, you have to be very careful about such a move. QT, QJ and AK are all highly likely opponent holdings that have you dominated. In a case like this, you should probably keep the pot small and not be afraid to release the hand to a lot of heat.

Top Two Pair in a Raised Pot

Let's say you have 8c 9c in a $3/$6 blind no limit game and call an early position raise to $20. The flop comes 8s 9s 3h. The pre-flop raiser bets out $60. Although you will be tempted to slow play, this is a great spot to raise. Your opponent is likely to hold either AK or an over-pair. If they have a hand like AA, they will often move in on you after your raise and you will win all of their chips as long as an A, 3 or a running pair does not come. Even if they have AK, they may suspect you of putting a move on them with a big draw and call. Furthermore, if you flat call and a spade or connector hits the flop, you will either lose all your action or be in a difficult situation where you will have to determine if your opponent has made a bigger hand.

Two Pair That is Not Top Two Pair

If you have top and bottom pair or bottom two pair, you must tread very carefully, especially if you are dealing with high cards. If you limped in with 8 3 and the flop comes A 8 3, you are probably in pretty good shape and may get good action from an ace. Here you should not slow play, as a hand like AK will not see you coming, but if an A, K or a running pair comes, you may be in trouble. On the other hand, if you have K T and the flop comes A K T, you may have a problem, since you will want to play, but are in big trouble to hands like AK and AT, which are very possible, especially if the pot was raised pre-flop. In this case, you may want to keep the pot small, and even be prepared to release the hand to great strength.

Aces Up

If you flop top two pair with aces, you have a situation where slow playing is sometimes an okay poker strategy. Top two aces up is almost as strong as a set, since there is no other two pair that beats it. It is a little tougher for opponents to catch you, and a big ace will probably pay you off all the way down. Again though, if there are big draws out against you, you may want to play more aggressively.

Two Pair against a Set

Every once in awhile, you will flop two pair and your opponent will flop a set. Here you will probably go broke. That's okay, because that is poker, it happens. More often, your opponent will have a big pair and pay you off, which is what you'll need to remember when your opponent wakes up with three of a kind.