Despite what you might think, AA is rarely the easiest hand to play in Texas Hold’Em. Sure, if someone pushes all-in in front of you, and has you covered, your play is automatic but if you’re first to act, or if you’re acting against a raise in front of you, or you’re in the midst of any number of different situations, it can be much more difficult to play AA correctly.

Let’s take a look at Limit Hold’Em. If you are the first to act, you should definitely bet and re-raise. You’re far better off winning the blinds pre-flop than letting someone catch something that may beat you. It is dangerous to let 4 or more people see the flop against your aces. There are instances in which you may choose to call a couple raises, to disguise your hand, but these can be risky. Deception pre-flop is important, but protecting your hand is more important.

Adversely, playing AA in a No-Limit game is far less formulaic. You’ll often want to call a raise pre-flop in order to conceal your hand, and sometimes, you’ll even want to limp in so that you can throw your opponents off.

One key piece of advice is that, if you are first to act or first to bet, you should play AA like you would any other hand you would bet with. If you raise more, observant opponents may decipher that you have a bigger hand than you usually open with, and this can hurt you. They will fold when they might call, or they may call and play better against you. The key is to bet AA in the same way you would bet other very strong hands.

A perfect example how not to play AA would be to bet the minimum amount, or worse, limp into a pot then check-raise the minimum amount. To do this gives away too much information; it’s obvious you’re trying to slow-play something big.

Post-flop, AA should be played aggressively, but sensibly. Your opponents need two pair or better to beat you, but you still only have one pair. It’s not bulletproof.

There is a misconception that you should fold AA pre-flop in a cash game or a regular tournament because it is not more than 50% likely to win against a field of players. However, it’s still always the best hand pre-flop and playing it will lead to more wins than losses. The only exception would be in a satellite, in which your fold would guarantee you a seat, but playing it might cost you that seat.

When in doubt, definitely bet AA pre-flop!

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