[Buzz]

Hi Mack - Let’s suppose you hold an AWHH hand such as
A[img]/images/graemlins/heart.gif[/img], 2[img]/images/graemlins/heart.gif[/img], Q[img]/images/graemlins/club.gif[/img], J[img]/images/graemlins/diamond.gif[/img] and the flop is 2[img]/images/graemlins/club.gif[/img], 7[img]/images/graemlins/diamond.gif[/img], Q[img]/images/graemlins/spade.gif[/img].

Your chances for low are remote after this flop, but you have flopped two pairs, queens over deuces. Anybody would need two running cards to make a flush or straight. Flopped top and bottom pairs is not good, but with not many opponents in the hand, you might eke out an unimproved win for high (plus about 20% of the time, you'll improve).

If you’re going to continue playing, I think you want to immediately take charge of the hand and succeed in narrowing the field (if it is not already narrowed). Your object is to immediately get rid of anyone who might draw runner-runner to beat you with a flush or straight for high - and also to possibly knock out anybody who was also counterfeited by the flopped deuce, but who might have some sort of non-nut back-up low draw.

Since you have one queen and there’s one queen on the flop, it’s doubtful an opponent has top set (queens). Thus you play the second betting round as though you have flopped top set. You don’t want to be called here, but if you do get called, you want it to be by someone who is strictly going for low.

But if the field is not already limited, or if you cannot limit the field with a bet or raise, you shouldn’t much want to be playing flopped two pairs, queens over deuces. You definitely should not want to be chasing with flopped queens over deuces - and for two reasons.

(1) Two pair is not likely to stand up if there are many players in the hand.

(2) You're drawing to make a full house, but when you do make a full house with top and bottom flopped pairs, queens over deuces, probably something like a fourth of the time it won't be a winner.

Thus two pairs, queens over deuces, after the flop is truthfully not a very good Omaha-8 holding - (but that doesn't mean I won't play it sometimes when I think conditions are right to very possibly turn it into a winner).

With an ace in the hand, you’re somewhat protected if an ace comes on the turn or river (you’ll have aces over queens), but you're vulnerable to a king on the turn or river. Thus you certainly cannot afford to have anyone with a king getting a free or cheap draw.

You’re almost surely not going to end up with the nuts on the river. Anyone who can’t handle not ending up with the nuts on the river should immediately fold flopped top and bottom two pairs. If you do play flopped top and bottom two pair hands, without much else going for them, I think you want to have a very good feeling for what cards your particular opponents might be holding.

I don’t think playing flopped top and bottom two pairs is for everyone. Lots of pitfalls. But even a flopped top set of kings has pitfalls. How many times have we flopped a set of kings only to lose to a crummy straight or baby flush when the board didn’t pair on the turn or river? Well.... as you know, it happens more often than not.

Should you play queens over deuces for probably half the pot when you started with A2JQs and the flop is 27Q? Well... one can certainly make a very good case for folding. But if you do continue, well... I think you may have to make something happen. Thus I don’t think you can make a very good case for checking and calling (chasing) with flopped top and bottom two pairs.

Just my opinion.

Buzz