If you don’t get pocket aces in your hand, the next best thing is pocket kinds. After all, having the second best pair in the game before the flop is dealt almost guarantees you of having the best hand. Of course, there’s just one little problem…..pocket aces trump pocket kings over 80% of the time.
And this is where a lot of people start to have trouble when holding kings because they’re afraid that somebody else has them beat. This is especially the case when somebody with pocket kings makes a raise only to be re-raised by someone in the blinds. However, this little problem is easily solved once you take a look at how little of a chance somebody has of getting pocket aces before the flop.
Assuming you’re at a full table, there is only about a 4.5% chance that somebody will have aces. What this means is that you’d better play your pocket kings like they’re the nuts in pre-flop play.
This leads us to the next point in that you need to make large raises to knock drawing hands out of the equation. Now some players will only make small raises with pocket kings to keep several players in the pot, which adds more money. However, this also increases the chances that someone with a hand like J-10 will hit their straight later on down the line. The ideal situation involves you isolated with one other player after the flop.
But in order to make this happen, you have to make sure that your large raise doesn’t scare everyone off. The key is to know the table you’re playing against, and try to keep one loose player in the pot with you. With kings before the flop, you’ll be a favorite against any one player.
