Playing Big Slick Post Flop

Last month we discussed how to play Ace-King before the flop. This month, we will discuss something much more complex - playing Big Slick after the flop.

Let's say you took my advice and raised before the flop. If someone else raised, you re-raised, so in either case you are the aggressor. After the flop, here are the most common situations:

When you have flopped top pair, top kicker. In position or not, against one or several opponents, you need to bet here. You were the aggressor before the flop, so you need to keep control of the hand after the flop. Some players would slow-play here, but if you give a free card, then you might get yourself trapped, especially if you are up against more than one opponent. You probably have the best hand here, but you're not that far ahead. So value bet it and see how many calls you get. If you get called on the flop, keep betting on the turn. You might be up against two pair or trips, but more likely, you are up against a lesser Ace or a lesser King, or a draw. If you are raised, then you need to reconsider, and may even fold. Remember, you only have one pair.

When the flop has missed you against one opponent. Since you were the aggressor before the flop, you should continue to control the hand after the flop, whether or not you have hit your hand. Even if you only have Ace high, your opponent will likely have missed as well, and if he doesn't already have a pair, he will have a worse hand than yours. A bet here of at least half the pot will get a marginal hand to fold, especially if you are respected at the table. If you are called, then you are probably beaten. Either your opponent started with a pair that he is comfortable calling with, or he has paired up on the flop. Either way, you're going to need to check and fold, unless you get help.

When the flop has missed you against several opponents. Now, the right move is less certain. Should you continue to push? Maybe. You could make a case for slowing down here if you are not in position. If you are in last position, and your opponents have checked around, a decent-sized bet is a good one here, but if you are out of position, it is not unheard of to check here, even as the pre-flop aggressor. If someone bets, you are probably behind. This is where a lot of players overplay Ace-King. Those who consider Ace-King a monster consider it a monster after the flop too, and that is where you can get into a great deal of trouble. That's especially true if the board is a scary one - one containing a pair or three of a suit. If you continue to push your hand, your opponent will just let you do the betting for them, and you won't find out until the river that you are beaten.

When you flop a monster. I normally check here, hoping to trap someone into bluffing at it. But I'm not sure that this is the best move, and a bet here might be more profitable. Put it this way. If you bet, you make money when your opponent calls with a lesser hand. When you check, you make money when your opponent bluffs with a lesser hand. Among amateurs, the first is more likely than the second, so a bet is more effective than a check. What's more, if you are betting in nearly all other situations when you are the pre-flop aggressor, a check here would look suspicious, and a good player may simply check back and take the free card.

When you flop a drawing hand. If you are drawing, then you are nearly always drawing to the nut flush. (The exception is when you have the King of Hearts but not the Ace, and there are three hearts on the board.) Note that with Ace-King, any straight draws will be inside straight draws, which are not normally worth taking. But your flush draws are worth taking, and you can use normal drawing-hand strategy to play this hand.

Note that as the pre-flop aggressor, your drawing hand is disguised well, and you will be paid off handsomely if your flush comes. This is also a good time for a semi-bluff, since you have a great many outs if you are called be a pair that is less than a king. You may even have more outs than the normal nine, since you also have two overcards to the board. But be careful about hitting an ace on the turn or the river. If your opponent has Ace-Ten and the flop comes out ten high, the three aces are not outs for you, since they give your opponent two pair.

Turn and River Play. As the hand plays out, your Ace-King, which was one of the best hands to have before the flop, becomes less and less valuable unless you at least pair up with it. If your opponent calls you on the flop, then he must have something, right? Maybe it's a draw, but it could be a pair too. Once all five cards are out, the chances of your opponent having at least a pair are better than 50%, and depending on how strong he likes to play small pockets, might even be as much as 75%. If he's making or calling bets, chances are he's got you beat.

Finally, there is the question of betting on the river. If you have not paired up, you only have the best hand if your opponent was on a draw and doesn't have a pair either. You now have a mediocre hand, and one of the rules of holdem is that you never bet a mediocre hand on the river, unless it is a bluff. The only hand that will call a bet on the river is a hand that has you beat. You can't win more chips with a value bet here. You can only lose them.

Big Slick is a great hand before the flop, but like the name implies, it is a slippery one to play after the flop. If you are the aggressor before the flop, and you don't hit, go ahead and take a stab. But be ready to release when you know you're beaten.

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