Pocket Jacks
When I say pocket jacks, I'm referring to two Jacks, pre-flop,
in Texas Hold'em. This is the fifth best hand in Texas Hold'em
and in general, I would say you should never fold this hand
(especially in limit hold'em). But it is definitely one of those
hands to be careful with.
Pocket Jacks is especially tricky for one main reason. The most
important thing to realize about this hand is that if you
raise too big with this hand, normally the only people who will
call you are people who can beat you. Therefore, I would
suggest a small raise or possibly a reraise preflop with this
hand.
Before the flop, successful Texas Hold'em strategy is pretty
straightforward using your top ten hand strategy. In general,
you should raise every time you have a top ten hand and you
should fold the rest of your hands to any raise. It is because
of this basic strategy of Texas Hold'em, that this raise with
pocket jacks is especially important.
Raise too big and get a caller, then you are starting out way
behind. Don't raise big enough and someone with a lesser hand
will catch up with you on the flop and then you will have no
choice but to fold.
Consider this scenario. You raise a small amount on the button
with pocket jacks and you get two callers. The flop comes and
brings an Ace (and no jacks), the person in the first position
bets half the pot. How can you consider calling a bet of this
size with only an under-pair? The fact is, you can't.
A larger bet would have scared away someone with say, Ace-Six as
their pocket cards.
Probably the best way to avoid misplaying this hand is to have a
good read on your opponents. This read will enable you to place
an appropriate bet, ensuring successful play of pocket jacks.