This article was written by blackrain79.com contributor Fran Ferlan.
One of the most common mistakes beginner poker players make is playing too many hands.
This includes a number of hands that may look decent at a glance, but can often be more trouble than they’re worth.
In this article, we’ll take a look at 5 such hands that could be costing you money.
We’ll also take a look at why they’re so troublesome, and if there are situations when you could play them, or if you’re better off ditching them altogether.
Losing Poker Hand #1: Ace-Six Offsuit
A lot of amateur poker player make the mistake of playing just about any Ax hand for the prospect of catching a top pair post flop.
This mistake snowballs even further when they do catch a top pair on the flop and are unable to let go of the hand, which causes them to lose even more money.
The solution: don’t play rag Aces in the first place.
A rag ace is any ace with a kicker lower than a Ten.
The problem with weak aces like Ace-Six is that they will often be dominated by stronger Aces due to the inferior kicker.
A dominated hand is the one that’s unlikely to win against another hand. For example, if you hold Ace-Six offsuit, you are dominated by a lot of other Ax hands.
So even if you hit a top pair on the flop, you’re running the risk of having only the second best hand, which is the worst hand to have in poker.
So even if you hit a top pair on the flop, you’re running the risk of having only the second best hand, which is the worst hand to have in poker.
Rag aces also have poor playability post flop overall. Since it’s an offsuit hand, it doesn’t have any nuts potential like suited Aces do.
Suited Aces can make the nut flush, meaning they have more playability post flop.
But even with suited Aces, you should exercise caution, since you won’t make a flush too often.
This means you need to take the kicker problem into account, since the most common hand combination you’ll make is only a single pair.
Ace-Six also can’t make a straight. Smaller Aces (A2 through A5) can theoretically make a straight, but that doesn’t make them much more playable, either.
That’s because:
a) it’s very hard to make a straight with gapper hands and
b) even if you manage to hit a straight, you still run the risk of your opponent having a stronger straight.
Let’s consider these problems in more detail.
Let’s say you are dealt A5 offsuit. The only way you can make a straight is if there’s a Four, a Three, and a Two on the board. This is statistically highly unlikely.
The bigger the gap between the cards, the harder it is to make a straight.
Now let’s consider the second problem: even if you manage to hit a straight, you don’t have the nuts, meaning your opponent could have an even stronger straight.
Let’s say you are dealt A♦5♣ and you hit this miracle flop:
4♥3♠2♥
You flopped a straight, but your opponent could still have 65 that beats you. Or they could have a flush draw that can potentially beat you on later streets
Now, you may argue that it’s highly unlikely, but so is hitting a straight with a rag Ace.
By the way, I have already written the complete guide on how to play small suited aces as well. The strategy is a bit different to ace rag hands.
Losing Poker Hand Example #1
You are dealt A♠6♥ in the SB (small blind).
Villain open-raises to 3x from the MP (middle position).
You: ???
You should fold.
Getting involved in a hand in this spot is a textbook mistake a lot of amateurs make. Let’s take a closer look at why that’s the case.
First of all, if you call here, you’ll play the rest of the hand out of positon, which will put you at a disadvantage. Playing in position is statistically far more profitable than playing out of position.
This is discussed in much more detail in Crushing the Microstakes.
Playing in position means being the last to act in a betting round.
Secondly, by calling, you’ll play the hand without the initiative and the range advantage.
The player with the initiative is the preflop raiser, which gives them the opportunity to make a continuation bet (a c-bet for short) on the flop.
A c-bet is a bet made by the previous street’s aggressor.
The preflop raiser also has the range advantage, meaning they are the one that’s perceived to have the strongest hand.
So if you miss the flop and face a c-bet (the most likely scenario), you’ll just be forced to fold the hand.
If you do connect with the flop and hit a top pair, this can potentially be even more costly. As mentioned, your hand can be dominated by a lot of stronger Ax hands.
Playing out of position without the initiative and with an easily dominated hand is the exact opposite of a profitable post flop spot, so you should avoid situations like these altogether.
Finally, there’s yet another problem with calling here. You’re not the last player to act in a betting round. If you call, you can get 3-bet squeezed from the big blind.
A squeeze preflop is a 3-bet (a re-raise) against the open-raiser when there has been one or more callers.
If there’s only an open-raise without the caller(s) a 3-bet would not be considered a squeeze.
If you get squeezed in this spot, you’d be forced to fold, as your hand can’t stand the pressure of a 3-bet. Calling a 3-bet with a trash hand like A6 would be even more egregious than simply calling an open-raise.
For more info on advanced poker plays like a 3-bet squeeze, check out Modern Small Stakes.
Either way you cut it, getting involved in a hand here is a losing play.
Even if by some miracle you manage to smash the flop (i.e. hit a strong combination like two pair or stronger), there’s no guarantee you’ll get paid off, since you’re playing out of position and you don’t have the initiative.
By looking ahead in spots like these, it’s obvious that you should just avoid getting involved in the first place, and save yourself some money.
Check out Nathan's recent video on overrated poker hands you should stop playing.
Losing Poker Hand #2: Queen-Eight Suited
A hand like Q8s suited may look playable at a glance, but it’s likely to be more trouble than it’s worth.
While it may have more playability than some other hands on this list, it’s still a trash hand that you’re better off avoiding altogether.
Queen-Eight suited can theoretically make strong combinations like straights and flushes, but in practice, it’s not worth the risk.
Let’s consider the prospect of hitting a straight.
The only way to hit a straight with Q8 is if there’s a Jack, a Ten, and a Nine on the board...
JT9
i.e. there’s only a single viable combination to hit a straight.
As mentioned, the bigger the gap between the cards, the harder it is to hit a straight.
Also, even if you hit this miracle board, you’re still losing badly to King-Queen.
Compare this to a hand like Queen-Jack suited, for example. A connector like QJs can make four different kinds of straight, which makes it much more playable.
Compare this to a hand like Queen-Jack suited, for example. A connector like QJs can make four different kinds of straight, which makes it much more playable.
Check out my other article on how to play straight draws for more info on this topic.
Q8 suited can also theoretically make a flush, but again, it’s not the nuts, meaning you’re running the risk of your opponent having an even stronger flush.
Any suited King or a suited Ace theoretically has you beat, meaning you have to take the reverse implied odds into account.
Implied odds refer to the amount of money you can potentially earn on future streets if your draw completes.
Reverse implied odds refer to the amount of money you can potentially lose if your draw completes, but your opponent ends up having an even stronger hand.
In practice, however, the most common hand combination you’ll make will only be a single pair. In this case, Q8 suited suffers the same problem like most hands on the list, and that is a weak kicker.
For example, if you are dealt Q♥8♥
And the flop is:
Q♦6♠2♣
You have a top pair, but a lot of Qx hands have you dominated (AQ through Q9).
This means you’ll encounter a similar problem like with A6o: you’ll either miss the flop, or hit the flop and risk having only the second best hand.
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Losing Poker Hand #3: Eight-Six Suited
Eight-Six suited may look pretty enough, but it’s not as profitable as it might seem at first.
86s is a speculative hand, meaning it needs to improve post flop in order to be profitable.
This means that it relies on hitting strong combinations like straights and flushes, which don’t come around too often.
And even then, it often won’t be the strongest hand, as there are a number of stronger combinations that can potentially have you beat.
Let’s consider this hypothetical board:
You are dealt 86 and the board is:
K2J5J
You have a flush, but there are a number of stronger flushes that potentially have you beat. Also, the board is paired, meaning there are a number of full houses that potentially have you beat as well.
When you’re playing mediocre speculative hands like 86s you often have to consider the reverse implied odds, i.e. the probability that you have only the second best hand.
There’s a similar problem with the straights and straight draws, as you’ll often have the bottom end of a straight.
For example if you hold 8♣6♣ and the board is:
J♠T♣7♥9♦T♥
You have a straight, but your opponent beats you with a hand like KQ or Q8, or any number of possible full houses.
The problem with suited gappers like 86s is that they make straights far less frequently than suited hands.
The problem with suited gappers like 86s is that they make straights far less frequently than suited hands.
Bottom line: 86s is a mediocre speculative hand that won’t make strong combinations too often, and even when it does, it won’t be the nuts, so you need to take the reverse implied odds into account.
Again, this doesn’t mean you shouldn’t play this hand altogether under any circumstances.
It just means you need to take its limitations into account, and play it only if you have other factors going in your favour.
Some of these factors include playing in position, being the preflop aggressor, having decent pot odds and implied odds and so on.
There is no single correct answer on how to play each hand, because it all depends on the context. So the best you can do in a given spot is to consider all the factors to make the best decision possible.
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Losing Poker Hand #4: Three-Two Suited
Suited connectors are great speculative hands that can connect with the flop in a variety of ways and have a lot of playability post flop.
But the problem with small suited connectors like 32s is that it often won’t make the nuts, i.e. the strongest possible combination.
This is quite obvious when you have a flush draw, for example. Even if you manage to complete your draw, your opponent can have an even stronger flush.
In fact, there are 11 possible combinations (i.e. stronger suited connectors that potentially have you beat).
This means that you have to worry about the reverse implied odds much more frequently than you would with some other hands on this list.
And that’s provided you manage to hit a flush or a flush draw in the first place.
If you have a suited hand, the chance of flopping a flush is only 0.8%.
The chance of flopping a flush draw with a suited hand is only about 11%.
And even then, you need to hit your outs on the future streets, and hope your opponent doesn’t have an even stronger flush.
A lot of amateur poker players make the mistake of playing just about any suited hand just because it’s suited.
But as you can see, this is not a good long term strategy, since you won’t hit your flush nearly as often as you might hope for.
You can also hit a straight with a hand like 32s, but you’ll enconter a similar problem: you won’t be drawing to the strongest possible combination.
For example, if you hold 3♦2♦ and the flop is:
K♣6♥5♠
You’re drawing to the so-called ass-end of a straight. If you hit a Four on the future streets, your opponent could easily hold a hand like 87 which has you beat.
Also, you have an inside straight draw, which is a fairly weak draw because it simply doesn’t complete as often as an open ended straight draw.
An inside straight draw (or a gutshot straight draw) has four outs, while an open-ended straight draw has 8 outs.
An inside straight draw competes 17% of the time, while an open-ended straight draw competes 32% of the time from flop to river.
By the way, you can quickly calculate the percentage chance of your draw completing by using the so-called rule of fours.
Rule of fours: simply multiply the number of outs you have by 4 to get a rough percentage chance of your draw competing from flop to river.
The rule of fours gets slightly less accurate the more outs you have, but it works well in most in-game situations.
If you want to know the chance of your draw completing on the next street (flop to turn or turn to river), you simply multiply the number of outs by 2 instead of 4.
Check out Nathan’s recent video on bad draws only amateurs chase.
Losing Poker Hand #5: King-Four Suited
King-Four suited (and other weak suited Kings) is another example of a suited trash hand a lot of amateur poker players love to play.
They do it primarily for the prospect of making a flush post flop, but as we’ve seen, playing just about any random hand just because it is suited is not a good long term strategy.
It’s highly unlikely to make a flush post flop, so a hand being suited is not a good enough reason to play it.
Even if you manage to hit a flush or a flush draw with a hand like K4 suited, you still won’t have the nuts, as your opponent could have a suited Ace that has you beat.
This means that with a hand like K4s you’re risking having only the second best hand, which is the worst hand to have in poker.
If you miss the flop with a certain hand, you’ll often just fold it and be done with it. This way, you won’t lose too much money over the long run.
But it’s these “trap hands” that give you a seemingly strong combination that could prove the most troublesome.
If you make a flush with a suited King, you’re going to have a hard time finding the fold button, which can cause you to lose a huge pot if your opponent happens to have the nut flush with a suited Ace.
This doesn’t happen too often, but it still happens often enough to be worth considering.
What will happen far more often, though, is that you will only hit a one pair post flop. In these instances, you’ll often have the top pair hand.
This is where another problem arises, and that is the weak kicker.
In no-limit hold’em, one pair is the most common combination to make post flop, which means that the kicker will often determine the winner of the hand.
If you play trash hands with inferior kicker, you’re automatically putting yourself at a disadvantage.
A lot of amateur poker players tend to get sticky (i.e. refuse to fold) when they flop a top pair hand. This often proves to be a mistake when their opponent shows them a stronger kicker.
The problem with a hand like K4s is that will often be dominated by stronger Kx hands, so it’s often better to just ditch it altogether.
The problem with a hand like K4s is that will often be dominated by stronger Kx hands, so it’s often better to just ditch it altogether.
Now, there are very few absolutes in poker, so this doesn’t mean you shouldn’t play this hand altogether.
For example, you can sometimes play this hand in late positions (ideally the button) to steal the blinds.
K4s has some playability postflop, as well as decent nuts potential, so you can play it if there are other factors working in your favour.
These factors include playing in position and being the preflop aggressor.
You can even use a hand like K4s as a light 3-betting candidate from time to time.
A light 3-bet preflop is a re-raise against another player’s open raise made with the intention of getting the open-raiser to fold.
In other words, it is a 3-bet bluff. This is the opposite of 3-betting for value, where you’re hoping to get called by weaker hands.
See my complete guide to 3bet pot strategy for more.
Losing Poker Hand Example #2
You are dealt K♥4♥ in the SB (small blind).
A tight and aggressive (TAG) player open-raises to 2.5x from the BU (button).
You: ???
You should either 3-bet to 10x or fold.
Calling is a losing play here because:
a) you’re out of position
b) you’re not playing as the preflop aggressor
c) you can potentially get squeezed from the big blind.
It’s best to avoid marginal spots like these altogether and just fold immediately.
Alternatively, you can throw an occasional light 3-bet to take down the pot outright preflop, as well as to keep your opponents in check.
By throwing an occasional light 3-bet, you’re dissuading your opponents from stealing your blinds with impunity.
You don’t want to do it with just any random hand, though. You want to pick hands that have at least some sort of playability post flop in case your light 3-bet gets called.
K4s may work in this regard, and it has the added benefit of the blocker power.
A blocker is a card that reduces the number of potential strong combinations in your opponent’s range.
Since you hold a King, it’s less likely your opponent holds strong combinations like pocket Kings, Ace-King, King-Queen and so on.
Another reason to consider a light 3-bet in this spot is your opponent type and their table position.
Tight and aggressive players will tend to play a much wider range in late positions (namely the button), because they’re aware of the advantages playing in position offers them.
This means they’ll often play a lot of hands that can’t stand the pressure of a 3-bet. In these spots, it can be outright profitable to play back at them and keep them in check.
For more info on advanced poker strategies like light 3-betting, check out the Microstakes Playbook.
5 Poker Hands Only Losing Players Play - Summary
You don't need to learn a bunch of advanced poker strategy to win consistently in poker. All you need to do is to avoid some common basic mistakes that could be hurting your results.
One of these mistakes is playing too many mediocre hands.
To sum up, here are 5 hands that could be costing you money over the long run.
1. Ace-Six offsuit
A lot of amateur poker players make the mistake of playing just about any Ace they’re dealt, which often gets them in trouble postflop.
Weak Aces (also known as rag Aces) will often get you in trouble due to the weak kicker. They also have far less nuts potential than suited Aces, for example.
2. Queen-Eight suited
Another common mistake beginner players make is playing just about any suited hand just because it’s suited. As the saying goes, suited junk is still junk, and hands like Q8s would fit into that category.
The odds of making a flush post flop is relatively low, so playing suited junk just for the prospect of hitting a flush post flop is a losing long term strategy.
3. Eight-Six suited
Like other hands on the list, this hand can be played in certain spots. But the problem with gapper hands like 86s is that they’re significantly weaker than the suited connectors.
The bigger the gap between the cards, the weaker they are, because it’s less likely for them to make a straight.
You’re also running the risk of having only the second best hand, because you often won’t have the nuts even if you do hit a strong combination postflop.
4. Three-Two suited
Suited connectors are decent speculative hands that can make strong combinations like straights and flushes, and can be profitable if played the right way.
The problem with small suited connectors like 32s is the fact that they often won’t make the nuts (i.e. the strongest possible combination) on a certain board.
This means that you’re running the risk of your opponents having an even stronger hand than you, which can cause you to lose a huge pot.
5. King-Four suited
Hands like K4s do have some playability postflop, and can be played in certain spots. But they will also often be trouble due to the inferior kicker.
Also, like other hands on the list, you’re often running the risk of having only the second best hand, which is the worst hand to have in poker.
Lastly, if you want to know the complete strategy I use to make $1000+ per month in small/mid stakes games, get a copy of my free poker cheat sheet.