Playing Pocket Aces Post Flop:
Pocket aces post flop play is a little trickier that playing pocket aces pre-flop. This is because the board that is no available is an extra variable for a player to consider. Many inexperienced Texas Holdem players go by the mentality that they can get it in whatever flop that comes down. This is untrue as pocket aces post-flop are not the nuts. A poker player needs to realise that although pocket aces still hold a lot of value on most flops they must recognise situations where they may be behind post-flop.
Playing Aces Post Flop:
If a poker player has managed to get a lot of value in the pot pre-flop he is already doing a good job of playing aces. The closer a poker player can get to committing his stack pre-flop with pocket aces the better. He now must turn his attention to the flop and some variables that will determine how good his hand is.
Amount of players still left in:
When playing aces post flop a good player will take into account the amount of poker opponents left in the hand. The more players left in the hand the more likely that one of his opponents has hit a good flop and outdrawn him. Thus a player should be happier with his pocket aces the fewer players that are left in the hand. With this said just because there are a lot of players are in the hand it doesn’t mean pocket aces are bad, it just means a player should be more weary about committing his whole stack.
What the board shows:
Pocket aces are only in danger on certain boards. A very dry board is usually a strong one for pocket aces as its unlikely an opponent would have hit a good hand. A very wet drawy board however could mean that the aces are in danger. If a player receives a considerable about of action on a wet board with many players in the pot it might be time to say goodbye to those aces and fold them.
What an opponent is like:
Against an aggressive opponent there are very few boards a poker player should fold aces to. This is because an aggressive player will usually play back at a poker player in many situations and his range will be quite wide. A tight passive player playing back at a player on a flop with aces is another piece of cake. A tight player playing back at a player on a flop with pocket aces should be taken seriously. Due to the fact a player is tight the hand range that they will commit a lot of money with is much tighter.
How Much is in the Pot:
Pot size is very important when playing pocket aces. A poker players goal is to commit as much as he can pre-flop because he knows that he is always ahead. When the flop comes down and he receives a lot of aggression he must look at the pot size and determine his pot odds. Doing this he can work out whether or not it is profitable to call given his opponents range and the chance of further betting. The larger the pot that has been built pre-flop the more the situation warrants for a poker player to commit himself post-flop.
