[Sam T.]

I made the same play last night (first hand!), and after stewing about it for a few hours, concluded that it is not the best play. It is usually, at best, a coinflip, and at worst you're dominated. Under normal circumstances AK is a good hand with which to put someone else all-in, but a terrible hand with which to call an all-in.

Here is a translation of the betting:

Villain: "I have a better than average hand. Could be AA, could be JTs. With this silly raise, you just don't know."
You: "I don't care. I have a monster."
Him: "Hooray! I was hoping for a re-raise!"

Unless you have a read on this guy as an absolute freakin' lunatic, this screams AA or KK, and you gotta let it go.