While poker is a game of skill, having good hand plays an important role in the game too. It may seem that every poker player has their favorite hand but statistically, there are stronger and weaker hands.
The Scoop sat down with World Series of Poker Event Champion and RunGood Title Holder, Askia Ingram, to talk about the top five starting hands in Texas Hold ‘Em Poker.
- AQ Suited
Having suited connectors in a poker players hand is dangerous, but getting an ace suited is even more deadly. Ingram says, “Although I would rather have pocket jacks in my hand, AQ suited can beat a lot of different ranges.”
- AK Suited
Although AQ suited is a great starting hand, AK suited dominates. As said before, an ace in hand is essential and having a king of the same suit to complement it makes it even better. Ingram says that any time a player raises, AK will be in their range.
Queens are a great starting hand, but can be beat by many different hands, especially after seeing the flop. Ingram says, “If you have pocket queens, it should be important to raise the money to call enough where a lot of players cannot see the flop because the chances of you beating everyone with that hand is slim.”
- KK
Kings dominate most hands in poker. It is a strong enough hand to go all-in with or raise someone else’s bet. The worst part of having kings is seeing an ace on the flop. Ingram says flustered, “When someone calls your raise and an ace hit the flop, it is likely that they out flopped you and your kings are beat. The worst part of the game is trying to beat luck.”
- AA
Ingram’s favorite hand along with the rest of the poker community, is of course, AA. It is hard to beat pocket aces. When playing poker, it is essential to disguise that you have them or you will never make money with the hand.
Even though Ingram has a WSOP ring and RunGood bracelet (see above picture), he has started with these hands and lost with them to worse. Although poker is largely about skill Ingram says, “The worst part of my game is trying to beat luck.”
