5 Poker Hands You're PLAYING WRONG!

Summary

In this poker strategy video, Nathan discusses the top five hands that players often mismanage, costing them significant money. He explains that Ace King is not a drawing hand but a strong one, advising a continuation bet post-flop. Pocket sevens can win without improving, and players should call, not raise, to keep potential bluffs in the game. Jack 10 suited should be played cautiously, folding to pressure from competent opponents. King Jack is often overplayed, and players should be wary of committing to large pots against tight opponents. Finally, Ace rag hands are generally weak and should be folded unless in a position to steal blinds, emphasizing the importance of understanding hand strength and playing accordingly.

Takeaways

• 🃏 Ace King is not a drawing hand and is one of the strongest starting hands; it's advisable to make a continuation bet post-flop.
• 🎰 Pocket Sevens can win unimproved; it's often better to call rather than raise when facing a bet on a flop without a seven.
• 🤔 Jack 10 suited is not a top pair hand; it's wise to fold against competent players who are betting aggressively post-flop.
• 🃅 King Jack is often misplayed; it's crucial to recognize when to fold this hand against a tight player who raises on a coordinated board.
• 👎 Ace Rag hands (Ace with a low offsuit) are generally weak and should be played cautiously; it's better to fold pre-flop unless in a position to steal blinds.
• 📉 The importance of understanding the strength of your hand in relation to the board and your opponents' potential hands.
• ✋ The significance of folding in poker, especially with hands that may appear strong but are vulnerable to better hands.
• 🚫 Avoiding the common mistake of playing big pots with hands that are not as strong as they initially seem.
• 💡 The value of recognizing when to apply pressure with continuation bets and when to back off and call.
• 🔑 Keeping in mind the potential bluffs in your opponents' range and how to manage your hand accordingly.

Q & A

What is the main topic of the video by Nathan?

The main topic of the video is about the top five poker hands that players often play incorrectly, which can lead to significant financial losses at the poker tables.

Why does Nathan consider Ace King not a drawing hand?

Nathan explains that Ace King is not a drawing hand because it is a nut no pair hand. It means that when holding Ace King and no one else at the table has a pocket pair, Ace King is the best hand due to starting with the two highest cards, giving a significant advantage.

What is the strategy Nathan suggests for playing Ace King post-flop?

Nathan suggests making a continuation bet post-flop with Ace King to apply additional pressure on opponents, as it is ahead of any unpaired hand on the board.

How does Nathan view pocket sevens in poker?

Nathan believes that pocket sevens can win unimproved, contrary to the common belief that a set (three sevens) is necessary to win big with this hand.

What mistake does Nathan often see players make with pocket sevens?

Nathan observes that players often make the mistake of raising with pocket sevens when a fish bets into them, which can lead to losing out on potential wins from bluffs or weaker hands.

Why does Nathan advise against raising with Jack 10 suited when hitting top pair?

Nathan advises against raising with Jack 10 suited when hitting top pair because it will only get action from better hands, and there's no benefit in playing a big pot with a hand that is good but not great.

What is the key takeaway when playing suited connectors like Jack 10 according to Nathan?

The key takeaway is to understand the real strength of the hand and to play a small pot when hitting top pair, as these hands are not suited for large pots against competent players.

Why is King Jack considered the most misplayed hand in poker by Nathan?

King Jack is considered the most misplayed hand because players often mistake a strong pair for a winning hand, especially on coordinated boards, where they can be significantly behind in the hand's strength.

What is the main issue with Ace rag hands according to Nathan?

The main issue with Ace rag hands is that they have a bad kicker, which means if you hit top pair and your opponent also hits top pair, you are likely to be behind because they will have a better kicker.

What is Nathan's overall advice for playing Ace rag hands?

Nathan advises against playing Ace rag hands in most situations, especially in tournaments or cash games, as they are often not strong enough to compete against competent players.

Outlines

00:00

🃏 Misplayed Poker Hands: Ace King to Ace Rag

In this video, Nathan educates viewers on the top five poker hands that are commonly played incorrectly, which can lead to significant financial losses. He emphasizes that Ace King is not a drawing hand but rather a strong hand that should be played aggressively post-flop, even without a pair. Nathan advises making a continuation bet with Ace King to maintain pressure on opponents. The video also covers the strategic approach to playing pocket sevens, suited connectors like Jack 10, and the often misplayed hands of King Jack and Ace Rag. Nathan stresses the importance of understanding hand strength in different board scenarios and adjusting play accordingly, whether it's making a continuation bet, calling, or folding to avoid losing large pots to stronger hands.

05:00

🔥 Playing Poker Hands Correctly: Strategy and Caution

Nathan continues his discussion on misplayed poker hands, focusing on suited connectors like Jack 10 and the challenges they present. He explains that while hitting top pair with these hands is good, it's crucial not to overcommit to large pots, as better hands can often be in play. The video illustrates how to handle different betting scenarios post-flop, emphasizing the importance of folding when faced with a competent player's aggressive play. Nathan also addresses the common mistake of overvaluing hands like King Jack, which can lead to significant losses against stronger hands on coordinated boards. He advises caution and strategic play to avoid falling into traps set by skilled opponents.

10:02

📚 Free Poker Strategy: Small and Mid-Stakes Game Mastery

In the concluding part of the video, Nathan offers a free poker cheat sheet to help viewers improve their game, particularly at small and mid-stakes tables. He invites viewers to grab a copy from the top link in the video description, promising comprehensive strategies for all 169 hands in No Limit Texas Hold'em. Nathan wraps up the video with a reminder to like and subscribe for more helpful content and wishes viewers the best of luck at the poker tables.

Keywords

💡Ace King

Ace King refers to a hand in poker where a player holds an Ace and a King as their starting cards. In the video, it is emphasized that Ace King is not a drawing hand but rather a strong starting hand that often leads to the best five-card hand in poker. The video explains that even without improving on the flop, Ace King can still be the best hand, and players should play aggressively with it post-flop, such as making a continuation bet.

💡Continuation Bet (C-Bet)

A continuation bet, or C-bet, is a betting strategy used in poker where a player bets again on the flop after having raised pre-flop. The video mentions that if a player raises pre-flop with Ace King and the flop does not pair any other player's hand, they should make a continuation bet to apply further pressure and maintain aggression, as they are likely ahead of unpaired hands.

💡Pocket Sevens

Pocket Sevens is a hand where a player has two sevens as their starting cards. The video clarifies that this hand can win without improving, contrary to the common misconception that a set (three sevens) is necessary to win big. The script advises calling rather than raising when faced with a bet into a pocket sevens on a flop without a seven, to keep potentially weaker hands in the pot.

💡Suited Connectors

Suited connectors refer to starting hands where consecutive cards are of the same suit, such as Jack 10 suited. The video explains that these hands are not top pair monsters and should not be played aggressively when only top pair is achieved. Instead, they are better suited for hitting a flush, straight, or better combinations, and players should be cautious about playing large pots with just top pair.

💡Double Barrel

A double barrel in poker is when a player makes a bet on both the flop and the turn. The video uses this term to describe a strong play where a competent player bets twice, suggesting a strong hand. It advises folding Jack 10 suited in such a scenario, as the double barrel often represents a hand that beats top pair.

💡King Jack

King Jack is a specific hand in poker where a player holds a King and a Jack as their starting cards. The video identifies this as a commonly misplayed hand. It suggests that when facing a raise on a coordinated board with only a middle pair, players should consider folding King Jack as it is often outplayed by stronger hands like pocket Aces or pocket Kings.

💡Ace Rag

Ace Rag, or Ace with a rag, refers to a hand where an Ace is paired with a low, unconnected card of a different suit, such as Ace 2 offsuit. The video describes these hands as weak and advises against playing them aggressively. It explains that even with top pair, these hands are vulnerable to stronger hands with better kickers, and players should look to hit a set or better to have a chance.

💡Top Pair

Top pair in poker is when a player has the highest pair on the flop. The video discusses the misconceptions around top pair, especially with hands like Ace King and King Jack. It emphasizes that having top pair does not always mean a player has the best hand and that other factors, such as the board texture and opponents' betting patterns, should be considered.

💡Misplayed Hands

Misplayed hands are poker hands that are not played optimally, often leading to losses. The video's theme revolves around identifying and correcting common mistakes in playing certain hands, such as Ace King, Pocket Sevens, and Ace Rag. It provides strategies to improve play and avoid costly errors.

💡Poker Strategy

Poker strategy encompasses the tactics and decisions a player makes during a game to gain an advantage. The video focuses on strategy related to specific hands, highlighting the importance of understanding hand strength, board texture, and opponents' betting patterns to make informed decisions and avoid common pitfalls.

Highlights

Ace King is not a drawing hand and is one of the strongest starting hands in poker.

With Ace King, if no one has a pocket pair, you likely have the best hand due to starting with the two highest cards.

A continuation bet with Ace King post-flop is recommended to maintain aggression and pressure on opponents.

Pocket sevens can win without improving, contrary to the belief that a set is necessary to win big pots.

Against a bet into pocket sevens on a flop without a seven, it's advisable to call rather than raise to keep potential bluffs in the pot.

Jack 10 suited is often overplayed; it's not a top pair hand and should be played cautiously post-flop.

When facing a double barrel (bet on flop and turn) with Jack 10 suited, it's often best to fold unless looking for a specific hand.

King Jack is the most commonly misplayed hand in poker, often leading to big losses due to overestimating its strength.

Against a tight player who raises on a coordinated board with King Jack, it's usually best to fold as they likely have a superior hand.

Ace rag hands (Ace with a low off-suit) are generally weak and should be played cautiously, often folding pre-flop unless in a stealing position.

Ace rag hands are at a significant disadvantage when facing a competent player with a better kicker post-flop.

The importance of recognizing the real strength of your hand and adjusting your play accordingly is emphasized throughout the transcript.

Continuation betting is a key strategy with strong hands like Ace King to maintain pressure and potentially win pots without showdown.

The transcript provides practical examples for each hand discussed, illustrating common mistakes and how to correct them.

A detailed strategy for playing specific hands like Ace King, pocket sevens, Jack 10 suited, King Jack, and Ace rag is provided.

The concept of 'double barrel' in poker is explained, highlighting its significance in hand evaluation and decision-making.

The transcript offers a free poker cheat sheet for further strategy insights, available via a link in the description.

Transcripts

what's going on guys Nathan here today

we're going to talk about the five poker

hands that you might be playing wrong

these are the top five hands that my

students in particular consistently play

wrong at the poker tables it costs them

a lot of money and it might be costing

you money as well so without any further

Ado let's jump into it counting down

from 5 to one here we go all right so

Hand Number Five Guys is Ace King now

the first thing you need to know guys is

that Ace king is not a drawing hand as a

lot of people like to think it is

instead the nut no pair and what I mean

by that is that when you have Ace King

if anybody else at the table does not

have a pocket pair for example they've

got Ace Jack or King Jack or 109 You by

default have a better hand because we're

always looking for the best five card

hand in poker and when you start with

the two highest cards Ace and King

you're already at a significant

Advantage so let me give you an example

here you raise it up pre flop with ace

of hearts King of Clubs in a regular

calls you so the Flop comes down with

the nine of diamonds six of Spades and

three of Spades what should you do well

guys if you've seen my videos here on

the channel before you already know that

I would strongly suggest making a cat

here which stands for continuation bet

you are continuing on the aggression

that you've already built before the

Flop by raising and now we're going to

apply additional pressure to them on the

Flop here and the reason why guys that

we want to be doing this is basically

just because of what I just said we are

ahead of any unpaired hand on this board

in fact we are way ahead of Ace Queen

Ace Jack king queen king Jack or queen

Jack these are all hands that players

will routinely call us with before the

Flop and when it comes with a harmless

flop like a 963 all of these hands are

way behind our Ace King so guys the key

takeaway here is to recognize that Ace

King is one of the strongest hands in

the game and even if you don't hit the

Flop there is a very good chance that

you still have the best hand so you want

to play this hand accordingly make a

strong bet and play like you have pocket

aces here let's move on to hand number

four that everybody plays wrong these

days and that is pocket sevens now guys

the thing you need to know about pocket

sevens is that this hand can win

unimproved a lot of people think that

they need to hit a set that there needs

to be a seven on the flop in order to

win a big pot with pocket sevens but

that simply is not the case let me give

you an example once again you've got two

red sevens the seven of hearts and seven

of diamonds and the Flop comes down with

the King of Hearts four of clubs and

Deuce of Spades so a fish bets into us

here what should you do well guys this

is a classic spot where you just want to

be calling there's not really any point

in raising here this a huge mistake that

I see especially with my students as

they make a raise here the reason why

you don't want to raise here guys is

that you're only going to get action

when they have the king and when they're

just bluffing here with a hand like Ace

8 for example you're just going to make

them fold so I hope you can see the

logic there's no benefit for us in

raising here but there's also no benefit

for us in folding because we know that

they have plenty of Bluffs in their

range like a 109 like an ace8 as we just

mentioned and therefore what you want to

do is just call in these situations to

keep those hands in the pot while we're

still way ahead let's move on to the

third hand that everybody plays wrong

these days and that is Jack 10 suited

now guys it does not matter if it is

Jack 10 of Hearts Jack 10 of SP aades

Jack 10 of clubs Jack 10 of diamonds

what you need to understand about Puda

connectors like this guys is that they

are not a top pair monster when you hit

Top pair with these hands guys it does

not mean it's time to party celebrate

and go all in this is the biggest

mistake that people make so let me give

you an example once again you call Pre

flop with Jack 10 of Hearts flop comes

down with a three of Hearts 10 of clubs

and seven of diamonds they make a bet

you call so guys in a situation like

this similar to the previous hand

there's not really any point for us to

be raising in this situation because

we're often only going to get action

from better hands like a pocket Jacks a

pocket Queens an ace 10 for example and

of course there's no point in US folding

either because we do still have top pair

but it is important to understand the

real strength of our hand in this

situation and what I mean by that is

understanding that we have a good but

not great hand so the turn comes with

the King of Spades and they bet again

what should you do well guys this is the

point where a a lot of people make a

mistake they go ahead and make a call

again here guys what you want to do

versus any competent player in this

situation is you need to be folding your

hand here decent players when they

double barrel you here and that's what

they've done here they've raised pre

flop they've bet the Flop and now

they're betting the turn this is called

a double barrel and poker and it is an

extremely strong play and basically what

they're representing here guys is a hand

like pocket aces pocket kings pocket

Queens pocket Jacks Ace 10 King 10 Queen

10 king queen or King Jack all of these

hands have you absolutely crushed on

this board guys the key takeaway here is

to always remember that with suited

connectors like this you are not calling

pre flop or raising preflop in order to

try to hit Top pair it's good if you hit

Top pair but you don't want to play a

massive pot with hands like this you're

really looking to hit a flush a straight

two pair trips something of that sort

guys always remember with hands like

this when you hit Top pair you want to

play a small pot if somebody is trying

to force you to play a big pot like in

this situation this is often a spot

where your hand is no good and you want

to be just folding all right guys let's

move on to the number two hand that

everybody plays wrong these days and

that is King Jack guys this hand is

literally the most misplayed hand in all

of Poker if I had a dime for every time

one of my students lost a big pot with

this hand I would be very very wealthy

no doubt so let me give you an example

once again you raise it up pray flop

with the King of Spades and the jack of

diamonds and the Flop comes down with

the Queen of Hearts Jack of clubs and

nine of diamonds so not a bad spot here

you decide to make a bet but they come

in for the rise what on Earth is going

on here guys well I'm going to tell you

straight up in this spot guys that

versus a tight player you should

absolutely be folding your hand here and

the reason why guys is because when a

tight player raises us on this highly

coordinated board and we only have

middle pair our hand shrinks

tremendously here they are representing

a range of hands that has us absolutely

crushed on this board let me run down

that range of hands for you this is

going to be hands like pocket aces

pocket kings ace queen or king queen

which both have top pair on this flop

Ace Jack which also has middle pair but

it has a higher kicker Than You Queen

Jack for two pair Jack n for bottom two

pair King 10 for the Flop straight or

108 for the Flop straight they could

also have pocket Queens pocket jacks or

pocket nines on this board for three of

a kind guys I hope that this rundown

basically gives you an idea that we have

like the 13th best hand on this board

and this is really the mistake that a

lot of people make is that when they hit

a strong pair with a hand like King Jack

is they immediately think that they've

got a monster guys you don't when a

tight player somebody who doesn't screw

around is trying to play a big p like we

just saw with the Jack 10 suited this is

often a clear indication that your hand

is is beat especially on one of these

highly coordinated boards like this

where there's a lot of straight

possibilities two pair possibilities so

guys be careful with a hand like King

Jack while it's great if you hit Top

pair it doesn't mean that you want to

play a big pot get all your money in the

middle because often if you're up

against a competent player they're going

to have one of these dozen or so hands

that are much better than yours all

right guys let's move on to the number

one hand now that everybody miss plays

and that is Ace Rag and Ace Rag and poke

is any hand like a ace2 offit ace3 offit

ace4 offit any hand like this and when I

say offit I mean that the cards are two

different suits so for example an ace of

hearts and a three of Spades guys what

you need to understand about these hands

is that they are largely pure trash

these are hot garbage let me give you an

example you call Pre flop with the Ace

of Hearts three of Spades and the Flop

comes down with the Ace of clubs five of

Spades and 10 of diamonds not a bad spot

a lot of amateurs look at this board and

they want to start throwing the party

they want to start celebrating we got

top pair this is amazing so they make a

bet you make the call let's go see the

turn turn comes with a nine of Hearts so

they make another betat here but uh you

know our amateur poker player friend is

still like well I still have top pair

here I got to make the call again guys

the river comes down with the six of

diamonds you already know they're going

to make another bed you're going to call

and you're going to end up losing a

massive pot versus a hand like Ace King

Ace Queen Ace Jack Ace 10 or 10 n guys

this in a nutshell here is the problem

with Ace rag hands they have a bad

kicker and therefore if you're up

against any kind of competent player if

you hit Top pair and they also hit Top

pair you're just setting yourself up for

disaster because they're going to show

up with one of these hands that is

significantly ahead of you that

basically has a better Kicker and you're

basically looking to hit your three and

there's only three more threes left in

the deck we don't need to be a math

genius to understand that those are not

going to come around very often so guys

I'm not saying to never play ace rag

hands like this yes if it's folded to

you on the button or in the small blind

for example you definitely should try to

steal the blinds or to raise the big

blind if you're in the small blind but

in most cases whether it's in a

tournament or a cash game you should not

be playing these hands you just want to

be folding preop guys do not make the

mistake of misplaying these five hands

like so many other players all right

guys like And subscribe if you found

this video helpful and by the way if you

want to know my entire strategy to CR

the small and mid-stakes games with all

169 hands in No Limit Texas hold him

make sure you grab a copy of my free

poker cheat sheet that'll be the top

Link in the description below thanks a

lot for watching guys all the best at

the poker taes