An overpair is a pair in the pocket that is higher than any cards on the board. It is better than top pair because anyone with top pair will give you action without knowing they are beaten on the flop. The larger your pair, the more confident you can feel. Obviously the best hands are pocket Aces or Kings but even these are vulnerable in a large field. If your overpair is Queens or Jacks, you will also have to worry if an Ace or King comes on the turn or the river. You should play an overpair as aggressively as you would top pair, if it is bet in front of your raise. If it is raised in front of you, go ahead and re-raise; you want to narrow the field as much as possible.

Underpair
An underpair is a pocket pair lower than the highest board card. It can be very costly if you are the type that will not give them up. When an overcard flops and there is betting you are probably beat. With small pocket pairs, if there is any type of action you should just fold. Your odds of making a set on the turn are 22:1. The pot would be to be huge justify this call. If you are last to act and it is checked havou with only one or two other players in the hand, you may try t0 bet if these are tight players. You may win the hand right there. If *u re are more players or you are in the hand with a calling station, f t take the free card and save your money. The exception to this is when your underpair is one of the paint cards, Jacks, Queens, or Kings- If you are first to act, go ahead and bet.

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When you start with two different cards the odds of flopping a pair are 2.5:1, which means it will happen about 29 percent of the time. If you do flop a pair you hope to match the highest card on the board which will give you top pair. If you saw the flop with a solid starting hand there is a good chance you will have the top kicker as well. When you flop the top pair with the top kicker you have a very strong hand and will probably have the best hand at the moment.

Top Pair Top Kicker
ie best hand to have is A-K when either an Ace or a King flops. This will give you top pair and kicker. If the King flops you can't be beaten by a player holding a single Ace. If an Ace appears on the board he will have a pair of Aces, but you will have top two pairs. This isn't the case if you hold less than A-K. If you held

and the flop was

you would still have top pair and kicker but would have to be concerned if a King shows up on the board. The same can be said if you held A-J and a Jack flops. You would have to be concerned about a King or a Queen appearing on the board. You also need to be aware of any possible straight or flush draws that could come along on the flop. Any time there are two of a suit or connecting cards, there may be players on a draw. That is why you want to act aggressively with top pair by raising so you will make it very expensive for them to draw out on you.

Since you can be beaten, you don't want to slow-play this type of hand. If you try to check-raise and no one bets you will be letting your opponents have a free card that can beat you. In early position I will always bet with top pair. If I am in middle position with top pair and top kicker I will usually raise if there has been a bet in front of me. If the board looks harmless, and there are only one or two players in the hand, I will just call a bet from last position if I think a player will bet on the turn and I can raise then.

One situation where you would probably not want to raise is if you made a weak top pair playing from the big blind. If you held Q-9 and the flop was 9 high you should bet the top pair but be prepared to fold if you are raised. A player may have limped in with a pair of Jacks or Tens and now has top pair in the pocket. If you are called and an overcard falls on the turn be prepared to check and fold if there is a bet.

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While I'm discussing overcards I need to state again that it is not correct to play a single overcard such as any Ace or King unless you have a flush or straight draw to go with it. I have seen players holding a single Queen or Jack with an off suit medium or small card call all the way to the river. With no draw possible, the best they can hope for would be trips or two pairs or a single pair with a weak kicker. With two cards to come, the odds of making trips or two pairs is 71:1. That will only occur about 1.4 percent of the time.

Pairing your overcard, with two cards to come, will only happen about 12 percent of the time and if you do make a pair you will have a weak kicker. A single overcard is a garbage hand that belongs in the muck pile with the rest of the trash. Save your bets and save your money.

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An overcard is any card in your hand that is higher than any of the cards on the board. I start with overcards because you will end up with them a good percentage of the time if you are starting with two big cards. If you have two different cards in your starting hand you will pair at least one of them 32 percent of the time. This means that 68 percent of the time you will not flop a pair and you will be left holding two overcards. Many players will call or even bet with just overcards. Some will call with just one overcard such as the any Ace scenario I already covered. This is not correct and will cost you money in the long run.

Playing overcards is one of the costliest hands in low-limit games. Players will raise before the flop with two big cards and then continue betting and calling it all the way to the river against a couple of players hoping to make a pair. With overcards, you stand to lose a lot of money if you don't make your hand. If you do win, it will probably be a small pot as there will not be much action. If there are several players in the hand betting and calling, you can pretty much surmise that one of the players has caught a piece of the flop.

If you held a hand such as K-Q or K-J off suit, and the flop brought medium or small cards take a close look at the board. If there are two or three connecting or suited cards you could be up against a straight or flush draw. There is also a chance that a player has flopped a set. After the flop, if you do pair on the turn, which will only happen about 24 percent of the time, you may be drawing dead.

A-K is frequently misplayed because a player will raise and reraise with this hand before the flop. When they do not pair on the flop many players will not want to let this hand go. They will play it as if it were a pair of Aces or Kings—betting and calling against several players. Most of the time it is best to check with this hand. If you raised before the flop and are in early position against only one or two players who you know are tight then you may want to try a semi-bluff to see if they will fold. If you are raised you must get out immediately. If you are in late position and it was checked to you, the best move may be to check as well. This will eliminate the possibility of getting caught by a player who is trying for a check raise. If you do not pair on the turn, it will be time to fold if there is a bet.

This isn't to say that you should never play overcards. Obviously you'll continue playing any two overcards if it is checked to you. However, betting with them is not your best option. If you have two suited overcards and there is one of your suits in the flop it may be correct to call a single bet to see the turn. You might pair one of your cards or, if another of your suit appears on the turn, you may you may be able to make a backdoor flush. This will be rare and there is still the possibility that you will be drawing dead to another player.

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I have advocated seeing the flop as cheaply as possible. If you decide to continue playing once you see it, then it is time for you to become the aggressor and take the lead. If you are first to act, before you check, ask yourself if you would call a bet if someone else bets after you. If you would, then you should bet. You can't determine the strength of anyone else's hand by checking.

If they bet, you still have no idea what cards they may be holding. Instead, you should bet, and if you are raised you have information that your opponent probably has a strong hand. You can fold, call, or raise accordingly. Since the betting limits are still low, the flop is the time to use a bet to determine the strength of your opponent's hands. If you are in later position, you may want to raise to narrow the field or to get a free card on the turn.

You don't want to play your hand the same way every time. If you are too mechanical, a sharp opponent will be able to read you. These are some general guidelines you can use in determining how to play your hand after the flop. Before we go any further, keep one thing in mind.

A winning player is the one who knows when to let go of an unprofitable hand.

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If you are on a draw, you want enough players in the hand to make it worth your while to continue. If you have top pair, you want to limit the field if possible, because the more players in the hand the bigger the chance that someone will complete a drawing hand.

Your position.
You should always be aware of your position. The number of players acting after you may have a bearing on whether you check, bet or raise. Any time you are in late position you have an advantage. The later your position, the stronger your advantage.

Was there a raise?
If there was a raise during the previous round you need to know who made it and what position the raiser is in. Is this player a solid player or habitual bluffer?
How much money is in the pot?

You need to know approximately how much money is in the pot at all times to determine if you are getting the correct odds to continue playing. Usually three or more players will give you the odds you need after the flop.

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The flop may make you a complete hand that is capable of winning the pot without any further improvement. You could make top pair two pair, trips or any other complete hand.
It gives you a good draw.
The flop may give you a good hand to draw to. This could include a four-card flush or straight draw. With three or more players in the hand you will generally be getting correct odds to draw to this hand.
It beats the board.
The cards in your hand will beat the cards on the board. If you hold an overpair to the board, you have the top pair in the pocket. Sometimes with just overcards higher than the board cards, you can continue playing.
This may sound very simplistic since there are other considerations you need to make even if the flop fits your hand. The make-up of the flop will be a determining factor as to whether you continue playing. Many players in low-limit games will play any two suited cards. If the flop shows two cards of the same suit, there is a good chance one of the other players could be on a flush draw. If the flop gave you an open-ended straight, you could be drawing dead if the other player makes a flush.
Players in low-limit games also like to play any Ace, regardless of the kicker with it. For this reason you have to be very careful when you see an Ace flop. If you are holding a small or medium pair, and there is a bet and raise with an Ace on board, you should fold. If you entered the pot with a small pair in late position, you should fold if you do not make a set on the flop.

Many times the flop will not fit any player. All the players will check the flop looking for the turn or river cards to improve their hands. It's for this reason that you want to play solid starting hands. If you have a card in your hand that is higher than any card on the flop, it is called an overcard. When everyone misses the flop and checks, you may pair an overcard on the turn or river to give you the winning hand. You should be aware that the more people in the hand, the more of a chance there is that someone will make a pair. If someone bets, and you hold only overcards then your safest move will be to fold.

Learning to read the board is an important skill you need to develop even if you follow the fit or fold method for playing your hand. You need to determine where your hand stands in relation to the best hand on the board. This is not to imply that someone will have the nuts for every hand, but you need to determine the strength 0f your hand compared to all of possible hands. The best hand after the flop is a huge favorite to be the winner at the end.

I wanted to find out how often the best hand after the flop went on to win the pot, so I ran a series of computer simulations using the Wilson Turbo Texas Hold'em software. The first simulation I ran was of five million hands with ten players using the low-limit profile. The best hand after the flop won 70 percent of the time. I repeated the simulation against a field of ten average players and found that the best hand after the flop won the pot 74 percent of the time. I ran a third simulation and found that heads up against one opponent it won 75 percent. These figures are a strong incentive to fold if the flop doesn't fit your hand. Playing wish hands, hoping for a miracle draw, will cost you a lot of money during your playing career. // you have nothing after the flop, fold your hand and save your money!

There is no single correct way to play your hand after the flop. There are just too many variables to take into account. You should also be aware of some other considerations.

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