Why are AJ, KJ, KT, KQ bad hands?

Question

in no limit hold em? On a couple of websites they state these hands win a small pot or lose a big one? I don't understand why.

Answer 1

If you catch top pair, there is a good chance that someone else has a better kicker.  Say you have AJ on a flop with A-6-4 rainbow.  You bet out and get one caller.  What would he be calling with?  The odds are he either has 2 pair, a set, or an ace with a big kicker, probably AK or AQ.  The only way you're going to win this hand is to pair your jack or if he has KK or QQ and is betting that you don't have the ace.  Most good players will fold KK with an ace on the board is someone is betting into them, so you're going to win a small pot.  If you bet out with AJ and he has AK, he's going to call you all the way down to the river and you're going to lose because he has you out kicked.

They're not really bad hands, but they're not really strong either.  They're good to play in middle to late position in an unraised pot, and AJ or KQ are even worth a late position raise if they're suited if there aren't a lot if limpers.  You just have to be disciplined enough to get away from the hand if it looks like you're beaten.

Answer 2

First off, you shouldn't think strictly in terms of "good hands" vs. "bad hands".  Hands are only "good" or "bad" relative to other hands.  What if I were to tell you I'd deal you pocket kings 10 times in a row?  You'd be happy because you'd consider pocket kings a "good hand" (a great hand actually).  But what if I told you that every time I dealt you pocket kings, I'd deal someone else pocket aces?  Now your "good" hand doesn't look so good.  The point is, individual hands are only better or worse than other hands depending on those hands you are up against.  AJ, KJ, KT, and KQ aren't bad hands by themselves.  I'd take KQ all day if I knew I was up against KJ, KT, or QJ.  But we don't know that.  I think what you might have left out is that AJ, KJ, KT, and KQ are tough hands to play IN A RAISED POT.  Let's say you raise with AJ preflop.  Who is likely to call you?  Decent players will lay down hands you have dominated (A2 - A10).  The only players likely to call you are the ones who have you beat (AQ- AK, maybe AJ- and medium and big pocket pairs).  If you are called by AK and an Ace flops, you are drawing to 3 outs ( pairing your jack).  The point the websites were making is that in a raised pot, those hands are likely to be dominated.  And if you get a piece of the flop, you may be outkicked and forced to pay off the hand.  

There is never any hard and fast rules for playing any particular hand.  What you need to do is see for yourself when these hands are playable and in what situations.  It's not that the websites you've read are wrong, but for the novice player, avoiding these hands will keep you out of trouble.  Until you become more comfortable with the game, you'll see opportunities for when these hands are not only playable, but can be profitable.

Answer 3

They are not bad hands if played properly. Your position, stack size vs opponents, blind level, table dynamics, etc are all factors that should be considered when playing any hand.

If I was short stacked in late position with no callers ahead, I would push all in with any of these hands. Late or middle position facing a large raise, plenty of chips I would fold.

Answer 4

They are the kinds of hands that are easily dominated by a better kicker.  AJ is dominated by AQ and AK.  KJ is dominated by AK and KQ.  Hands like these win small pots because usually you aren't going to get a lot of action unless the hand is better, and a lot of the time when its better it will actually dominate you when you have weak high cards.

Answer 5

They aren't bad hands.

The reason you will often win small is that if you hit the flop with say a Jack (AJ), you likely will push out anyone else who is in; however if you hit the Ace (AJ) and someone is sitting on AK or AQ, you will become committed quite often, therefore losing big.

As others have said, there are a lot more factors that go into this, the most important being position.  Having AJ on the button (as the dealer) is a lot stronger than AJ under the gun (the first player to act).

Answer 6

You need to familiarize yourself with what hands are playable from different positions. For example: In a full table ring game, most pros will tell you that when you are first to play, you should only play very premium hands like AA, KK, QQ, or AK. Also, if you're in a late position, you should not call an early raise without one of these premium hands unless you are a very skilled player.

So, say you're first to play with AJ. You raise in, and someone behind you calls or re-raises. That player most likely has AK, AQ, or a strong pocket pair. They're not going to play a pot with a weak hand like K10 or Ace-rag, so you have to figure you're creamed from the get go. If you hit your Ace, you're way behind if they're got a better kicker, which they likely do. If they had a top pair, they're going to release it and you get a small pot. If you don't hit anything, you either have to check it off, in which case they will often bet and you must fold, or you'll bluff at them and you'll win a small pot of they'll re-raise and you'll have to release your hand.

Now look at when you're in late position. If someone raises in early, again you know they've likely got a premium hand. You have to put them on AK, AQ, or a strong pocket pair. Say an Ace comes on the flop. If they bet into you, you could re-raise to see if they're stabbing at it with a lower pocket pair, but if they come over the top you'll have to release your hand, and if they call you're likely up against a better Ace. If they fold, you still only win a small pot. If they don't bet at you in the first place, they probably didn't hit anything and will release their hand if you bet, again netting you a small pot.

Let's say no Ace came up. If they bet into you, you'll have to fold since you've got nothing. You could bluff here, but a call or re-raise and you're probably dead meat. If he checks it off, he'll probably fold your bet, again netting you a small pot.

Answer 7

that is only 2 cards, you dont know what the flop is going to be.