Ace in poker. Combos and ways to play.

What are we talking about? The ace in poker is the most desirable card that every player wants to get during the dealing stage. It is especially exciting when the dealer gives a pair of A-A or A-K, as it gives a good opportunity to win a hand.

What to pay attention to? Even with one ace in your hands, you still have decent chances. The main thing is to know the rules and features of building combinations with an ace.

Briefly about an Ace in Poker

Depending on the situation, this card can be:

• The lowest when making a “wheel” straight A2345;
• The highest in a broadway straight AKQJT.

Ace is also the highest one in terms of card rank for any combination (pair, two pairs, three of a kind, four of a kind, etc.).

It also gives advantage when you make a flush. For example, a flush with at least one ace always wins.

Poker Combinations with an Ace

Knowledge of the key rules of poker is the key to successful play. However, it is also important to know the principles of making hands, especially with an ace. Sometimes this card can be used as the lowest rank card to make a wheel straight.

High card

You get an ace not too often, especially and ace with another high card, but this hand makes for a good potential draw, which would allow you to play aggressively on the flop. However, if don’t improve on the following streets, you are most likely ought to lose.

However, an ace in your hand still increases your chances of winning. It often brings you the victory when a high card decides a showdown.

Pair

A pair of aces preflop is a monster starting hand. The one who gets it wins most of the times. Two aces are good preflop and can also improve further postflop. However, even with one pair, it is quite possible to win large pots with almost no risk.

Set

Three aces is a very promising combination, allowing you to win in many cases.

It guarantees that your set is going to be the best one in cases where few people make a set. If two players have the same trip combos, the one with the higher kicker wins.

Trip Kings is also a very strong hand and here an ace as a kicker will help to win. Let’s assume we have a flop with three deuces. One player has an ace and a jack. The second one has a queen and a jack. The one with AJ wins.

Straight

In a combination of five consecutive cards, an ace can be used as both the highest and the lowest card. The straight that starts with an ace is the weakest in the game, and the one that ends with it is the strongest. This is how the strength of the hand is determined.

For greater clarity, let’s consider each option:

10-J-Q-K-A is the strongest combination. The ace here is the closing, senior card.

A-2-3-4-5 is the weakest straight (“wheel”) in poker. Here the ace is the first card of the progression, so you can consider it as one.

Four of a kind

The strongest four of a kind is four aces. The combination gives extremely high chances of winning, but is also quite rare. A controversial situation may arise when both players make quad aces with pocket and common cards, the one with the highest kicker wins.

Example. The board has four aces and an eight (AAAA8). The first player has JT. The second has KQ. The one with the highest kicker wins as we mentioned before. In this case, it’s a K. Despite the common aces for all the players, a J high card leaves no options to win against a K.

Full house

Could be three or two aces. Three aces in a full house beat two aces in a full house no matter what other cards are.

Flush

Suited aces sometimes lead to ambiguous situations. Suits in poker do not have seniority. Therefore, it is all about the highest cards in a flush. So if one player has an A-high flush and another anything that’s lower, the first guy wins.

Straight flush

This hand is a combination of straight (cards of consecutive ranks) and flush (cards of the same suit).

The highest is the royal flush (10-J-Q-K-A), which beats any other straight flush. The combination can also begin with an ace, wheel straight flush. In this case, it will be the weakest among other straight flushes.

Royal flush

This is the ultimate hand, the strongest one. In those extremely rare occasions where royal flush is formed from common cards only, the split is guaranteed.

So, in poker there are only two options when an ace can have both the highest and the lowest value – a straight and a straight flush. Let’s dwell on the first one in more detail, since it is made much more often than the second.

Ace-high Straight in Poker

A straight that ends with an ace is the strongest among others. Other straights, of course, are also cards of consecutive rank, but they are weaker than A-high straights.

In Texas Hold’em, there are three ways of making a straight and those ways determine how you want to play:

• Ace-high straight made completely from common cards. In this case, the pot is divided equally between the players. There are no kickers in play here, and the highest cards are already on the table. However, if there are three cards of the same suit on the board you can still lose to a flush.

• Ace-high straight with one hole and one common card. It does not mean whether you hold an ace or it’s on the board, the combination remains the same. However, the one holding an ace has chances of winning against a K-high straight.
• Ace-high straight made with two hole cards. For opponents, this hand is harder to read. This allows you to maximize the pot size and take it down, especially if one of the opponents was able to make a pair, two pairs or a set.

In most cases, the one who has an Ace-high straight wins the hand (his hand is the strongest). Most often, you don’t even have to think who’s going to win, it’s obvious. Therefore, the decision-making process is simpler.

Can a Straight Start with an Ace

As has been said many times, an ace can be used as the lowest card, equivalent to one, in combination with 2-3-4-5. This is the lowest possible straight in the game. Since ace is the highest and the lowest ranked card in the game simultaneously, 5-high straight is often called a wheel.

This combination should be played with caution. Chances of losing against a stronger straight are quire high. Although if you have a four and a five in your hand, closing the combination on top, it makes sense to raise and play for stack. However, you need to make sure that there are no pairs or suited cards on the board. Only in this case can you raise safely.

Among beginner poker players, there is a misconception that other straight options are formed by the wheel method (for example, K-A-2-3-4 or Q-K-A-2-3). In reality, an ace in poker is considered a unit in only one case – when it is the opening one. In another possible layout of the straight, it will simply be the highest card.

So-called connectors (for example, four and five) give a high chance of making a straight. 45 provides a lot of straight possibilities (2-3-4-5-6, 3-4-5-6-7, 4-5-6-7-8, etc.), providing an opportunity to get a strong hand. It is safe to enter the hand with connectors. However, not all connectors are equally good for making a straight. For example, a pocket ace and a deuce have very low chances of improving to the desired combination. To make a straight, you need to get a three, a four, and a five on the board. The number of outs is too small. The chances of getting an ace are also small. Even if it happens, one of the opponents will probably be able to beat this hand with a higher kicker.

Straight Draw with an Ace

A situation in poker where only one hand is missing from a complete hand is called a draw. It is easy to guess what a straight draw is. The player has four consecutive cards (with either two hole cards or just one) and he is just waiting for the fifth one.

So, to make a straight from a straight draw 3-4-5-6, you need to get either a deuce or a seven. Such a combination can be completed either from the bottom end of the sequence or from the top. Therefore, it is called an open-ended straight draw.

If a card in the middle is missing, this straight draw is called gutshot (example: 4-5-7-8). Compared to an open-ended draw, the chances of making a straight here are half as much.

For Ax hands, we also might have a gutshot on 2-3-4 or K-Q-J boards. There is no difference in odds between this option and a natural gutshot A-3-4-5. In both cases, there are only 4 outs. The options A-K-Q-J and A-Q-J-10 have the same chances of improving to a straight.

From the above, we can conclude that any draw combinations that include an ace are quite difficult to complete to a made hand. Most often, with this hand, when opponents raise, the optimal response will be to fold. Of course, it comes down to the odds calculation in the end.

Tips for Playing a Hand with an Ace in Poker

A player with the highest card can be active preflop most of the time. Even if you are not in the most advantageous position at the table, it is advisable to act aggressively and force your opponent to fold their hands.

• In poker, a pair of aces in your hand does not mean victory. You need to be careful, while also not scaring off opponents. An all-in bet will only lead to winning just the blinds. You need to use the high potential of a pair of aces differently (for example, a non-all-in 3-bet). First, it is advisable to get one or two calls from your opponents to increase the pot.
• A straight with a lower ace should also be played carefully. This is especially important when the most of the straight is on the board. The situation is different with a higher straight. Here, it is already permissible to act more boldly and increase the pot size. However, you should make sure that there are no suited cards on the table.

• A combination of a quad ace requires you to take into account the behavior of your opponents. Nevertheless, even a cautious playing style of opponents should not provoke aggression. It is important to gradually increase the pot, to make the most in the end.
• A full house with an ace collected on the flop allows for aggressive tactics in position and defensive tactics out of it. If the boat completes on the turn, you can safely raise the bet. On the river, it is advisable to go all-in.
• A flush with an ace is often considered the strongest combination in the current hand. Therefore, the correct tactic would be to build up the pot to the maximum. You should be careful with a non-nutted hand.
• There is no chance of losing when you make a straight flush with an ace (that is, a royal flush). However, to maximize profit here, you also should consider opponents’ playstyles. Against passive players you should mostly bet yourself and against aggressive ones you may consider check-raising.

If a poker player plays any hand with an ace correctly, he will be able to ensure a consistent win rate in the future.

Frequently asked questions about the ace in poker

Where exactly in poker can an ace be the lowest card?

There are only two poker combinations where this is possible: a straight and a straight flush.

How to play Ace-King correctly?

It is reasonable to stick to an aggressive tactic, starting with a raise preflop.

How to play a low ace?

Regardless of the value of the second card (if it is not a king), you should play according to what opponents do. In case of aggression from opponents, it is better to fold.

How often do you get pocket aces?

Ace in poker is a desirable card that is pleasant to play. However, ignoring and folding other hands will not lead to anything good. The chance of getting pocket aces preflop is only 0.45%.

That is, a pair of AA will appear in your hands less than once in 200 hands. Of course, it is possible that you will get a pair of aces 2 or even 3 times in a row. However, it is equally likely that it will not appear even once over dozens of hands. Over the long term, the frequency will approach 0.45%.

Let’s sum it up. In poker, an ace is considered the most desired card. Ideally, players want to see a pair of Aces or AK in their hands. Such hole cards allow you to raise safely and make money. It is important to stick to the chosen strategy so that even one Ace is enough to generate positive EV.