Preflop Raising

[MargieX]

Dear all!

Would you recommend raising preflop with AK only in late position or in all other positions, too?

MargieX

[rigoletto]

In most situations I'll raise AK from any position except the blinds: If the table is loose i don't like to raise AK out of position, your raise will not fold anybody, if the flop is scary you risk getting raised when betting out or give a free card if you don't. Better to see the flop cheap and go from there.

[eMarkM]

If I'm the first raiser I would raise it from anywhere. Even from the blinds. There was a thread on this recently. From the blinds you're not raising to cut down the field, you're raising for value as having the likely best hand. Get the money in while you're good. If I flop top pair I have a bigger pot to win.

Even if it's against a large field, I still raise, because I'm not afraid of checking if the flop misses me. I may then draw a card or fold to significant action. Being the preflop raiser from the blinds does not obligate you to bet into a field if you miss the flop.

[SoBeDude]

At the table I play regularly, I'd raise with AK from early or mid as long as there is at least one caller already in.

If I'm first-in from early, I just limp hoping to get callers. I always raise from late or the blinds regardless. If I raise from early (first in) I usually get no action from my two great cards.

So my goal with AK is to get a lot of money in the pot preflop. Seems if I raise preflop with AK and an Ace or king high flop comes, I'll get maybe one caller when I bet. In this case most of my pot profit comes from the preflop raise. (If I get 4 preflop callers I'm getting a return of 4-to-1 on my preflop money, where with one caller after the flop I'm getting 1-to-1 on my money)

If there is a raise I'll always reraise with AK suited or no.

Remember though this style works only because of the type of table I play on. I'd not suggest this against more skilled opponents.

-Scott

[Dynasty]

Raise without any doubt.

[JohnShaft]

Raise also because AKo doesn't hold up as well when faced with multiway action.

Limping with AKs is more acceptable for the purposes of limp reraising, even after a lot of callers. This will also provide some cover if you like limp reraising from early with AA (or KK).

[758219]

I think the limp-reraise is the only major reason to limp with AK, suited or unsuited. That fits to games where one expects a raise after one open-limps early; then it earns more against most players, as it gets them to raise preflop with hands they perhaps would have folded if one had raised, and now it costs them 3 bets to see the flop and often fold there. And of course limping also with the big pairs fits to that kind of a game.

Open-raising and raising with AK is otherwise the best move, especially if dominated hands call. While one might open-limp with AQ if dominated hands tend to fold when one open-raises, but call after one limps.

What comes to other raising situations, it's mandatory to take the lead with ace-high hands when they figure to be the best with one or two or 2½ opponents, as stealing the pot from you then becomes more difficult. Additionally the odds are decent that all the 1-2½ opponents will more or less miss.

When there are more players, one doesn't need to bet the flop after the miss; but can do that also, as the pot odds are there, if the flop looks like worth betting, but check and call is also fine, when one has two good overcards and possibly more. If one gets raised on the turn or river, it's often easy to fold, assuming he is not "tricky."

[cybertilt]

I don't think you can blindly say raise. What are we raising for -

a. To get people to fold
b. to build the pot
c. for information

In this cause if I'm the first in (maybe second) I want to take the blinds down or get it heads up with a weaker hand, raise raise raise! But if there are limpers in front of me, you probly aren't going to get the BB out and certainly not the limpers, your hand has been reduced to drawing hand; a very good one I might add, but still one that needs improvement. In this case I want to see the flop cheap and play accordingly. You also get some reverse deception for future rounds when they notice you only called with AK.

[Dynasty]

But if there are limpers in front of me, you probly aren't going to get the BB out and certainly not the limpers, your hand has been reduced to drawing hand; a very good one I might add, but still one that needs improvement.

There was a thread in mid-stakes about 2 months ago which discussed holding AKo on the button with 8 limpers to you. I asked the forum what the best play was and reccomended raising. Most players wanted to just limp but the posters I respect the most also wanted to raise.

When you don't raise with AKo after several limpers, you're making it correct for your opponents to play some really marginal hands up front- hands like 76s.

We are raising because we will have the best hand a high % of the time. That's reason enough.

[Robk]

I'll raise AKo from anywhere. Mason's poker essay about inversely correlated poker games
convinced me of this a long time ago. His argument goes like this: Your preflop bet in HE is like
an ante, except you choose how large you want the ante to be. Hands like T9s have value
if you get very lucky on the flop, which they usually wont. They thrive on implied odds, and
want a small ante. AK on the other hand hits the flop solid much more often
(ie 1/3 of the time). It wants a large ante preflop, as it is giving implied odds to opponents.
So you should raise it up. I hope that helps.

Think about this imaginary HE game. Preflop the game is played 5/10, and postflop is played
1/2. What hands would you play in this game??