How to Play Ace-King When You Miss on the Flop

Here is a typical situation in a no limit poker tournament. You are dealt the best drawing starting hand, Ace-King. You raise and get one or more callers. The flop comes and it misses your hand, as there is no Ace or King on the flop.

What should you do when you have Ace King and you miss on the flop?

First, you need to realize that Ace King is a drawing hand. This means that your Ace-King hand needs to improve to be a made hand; a hand with at least one pair.

Second, you will only pair up on the flop about one-third of the time. That means you will not improve your hand two out of three times.

Third, there are times when you want to move all-in on the flop and there are times you don't. Knowing the right times to push all-in is very important in no limit tournaments. However, for the purpose of this article, you did not move all-in.

Here are some guidelines when you miss your Ace-King starting hand:

1. How many opponents are you against on the flop?

If you have one or two opponents, the best play is to make a continuation bet on the flop.

Against more than two opponents, be prepared to check and fold.

2. What if your opponent bets into you on the flop?

If an opponent bets into you on the flop, fold unless you have the right pot odds to play a drawing hand. For example, if you flopped a straight draw you may have 10 outs or cards that can come on the turn to give you a winning hand.

3. Are you pot committed? If your pre-flop raise was so big as to make you pot committed you should move all-in on the flop, regardless of the cards on the flop. For example, if you raised to $600 and have $600 left in chips, you must move all-in on the flop.

Knowing the right way to play Ace-King on the flop is an important part of improving your poker game.

To improve you poker game and get a Free Poker Evaluation at my Tournament Poker Book web site.

Mitchell Cogert is the author of "Tournament Poker: 101 Winning Moves." After reviewing over 20 years worth of poker materials with heads-up battles against poker pros, he has identified the top 101 expert plays used by the pros. His other poker book "Play Razz Poker to Win" was selected by PokerStars IntelliPoker to be used on their site. For more information go to http://www.apokerexpert.com

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Mitchell_Cogert