Simple preflop question playing 1/2 NL holdem.

I had AKs in the cutoff seat. Relatively tight table (FullTilt). UTG raises to 7, MP2 limps. Folded to me. What would be the best play here? Do you think I should flat call and see a flop, or should I reraise?

Stack sizes?

With a raise and a call in front of you and $17 in the pot, I'd re-raise it up another $10 at least.

AKs is a premium hand

and you have position, raise this every time. if you miss on the flop more than likely everyone will check to you, so you have the option to bet and try to take the pot down, or get a free card. the only time I'm limping here is early in a tournament to try and hit the flop big with a concealed hand and take a huge pot.

I agree with all the responses, reraising with AKs in this spot is a very good idea. You disguise your own hand and you take lead of the all the upcoming action. Usually in no limit or any poker, the initiator/aggressor wins. I would bump it up about half the size of the pot or more, with your 7 call, there's about 23 in the pot, so reraise atleast 12 more, or make it 20 to go. Now if the original raiser goes all in, you might have to just let your hand go, depending how much it is back to you, if he only is a short stack, then by all means, call. But your preflop raise is gaining information.

Most of the time your opponent will be holding a hand like AQ, QQ, JJ, 1010, etc, and will probably elect to just call your raise and check no matter the flop. You need to make a continuation bet no matter what comes out. In your opponents mind, you most likely have AA or KK, but this is also dependent on your image at the table. Anyway, fire out half the pot on the flop, and I guarentee most of the time you will take it down right there.


Long story short, AKs deserves a preflop reraise in position, unless ofcourse other factors would make that a bad move.

You disguise your own hand and you take lead of the all the upcoming action.

In your opponents mind, you most likely have AA or KK,


that's contradicting yourself

No, reread what you just quoted.

If you need me to explain, I will.

alright, explain the difference

I don't know if you read the original post, that would probably help you out first. In this situation, you have AKs in the cutoff seat, I stated that reraising would disguise your hand and you would take lead of all the action, because it is usually the tendency of players to check to the raiser on the flop. I also said by raising, your opponents may put you on a hand like AA or KK, in this case you have AKs, how those statements contradict themselves is beyond me. Seems to me if you have AKs and your opponent thinks you have AA or KK, then that's pretty disguised.

yah I just skipped down to your post. It's contradicting because unless you have a LAG table image your opponent will put you on a range of hands that you will reraise with preflop, that being specifically AA, KK, and AKos or s. So it really doesn't disguise your hand unless you have the LAG table image, hence your statement is contradicting.

Ok, granted, he could certainly put you on reraising his raise with AKs, therefore your hand would not be disguised. I was just pointing out there is a very good possibility he's going to put you on AA or KK, and like I said, it depends on your image at the table anyway.


Feel free to actually comment on the strategy of the hand by the OP. You could make comments on how people would actually play this hand, or your ideas on anything important about my response, not that I may have contradicted myself due to some little detail.

Ok, granted, he could certainly put you on reraising his raise with AKs, therefore your hand would not be disguised. I was just pointing out there is a very good possibility he's going to put you on AA or KK, and like I said, it depends on your image at the table anyway.

everything in NLHE cash games depends on your table image

Feel free to actually comment on the strategy of the hand by the OP. You could make comments on how people would actually play this hand, or your ideas on anything important about my response, not that I may have contradicted myself due to some little detail.

that little detail can and will turn out to become a big detail in the long run. BTW the OP didn't give enough information about the hand to even give advice on a strategy on how to play this specific hand. Like what kinds of hands is this villain raising with in EP and showing down, is this opponent tight or is he a lag. All the OP said was "a relatively tight table" and said nothing about this specific villain.