[colson10]

I think limping AQ in EP is good, or limping behind other limpers when you're in MP or LP. If you get to open in MP or LP, come in for a raise. Limping in EP will let in weaker aces, and keep the pot small. Keeping the pot small with this type of hand is good, because you're mainly hoping to make one pair and have someone else outkicked. One pair hands are very difficult to play if the pot is big. The increased pot size is going to make your opponents more aggressive, and increase the possibility of you getting bluffed or semibluffed off the best hand. This is infinitly more relevant when you're out of position, which is what makes limping AQ in EP so attractive. This is true as well with AK in EP. AJo can be mucked in EP, but AJs is good for a limp.

When you're in LP, you should be thinking about using your position more than just what the actual value of your hand is. The value of position is often going to be greater than the value of your cards or your opponents. This will take some time to learn, but being able to see when your opponents are weak and how much pressure they are willing to withstand is going to be very important. It's good though to start out with general guidelines of how to bet hands, which is what you're trying to get at with this post.

Like I said, come in for a raise if you get to open with AJ-AK in LP. But realize that you can do this with almost any two cards. What's often going to happen is that one of the blinds will defend, they'll check it to you on the flop, you'll bet and take it down.

I like to have a standard raise that I'm going to make with all my hands, from AA to 56s. AQo would be in there too. In tournaments this will often be 3xBB, in cash games I like 4xBB.

colson10