How To Play Pocket Tens
Pocket Tens are one of the
better starting hands in Texas Holdem Poker but
with four other possible better starting hands
playing pocket tens must be played correctly to
be profitable.
Deciding Whether to Raise
Pre-flop with Pocket Tens
You should usually raise
preflop when you have Pocket Tens. Tens are a
top hand, and tight aggressive players want to
build big pots with big hands. We will look at
early position pre-game thoughts, as well as our
later position thoughts - and then look at how
Tens should be played.
Thoughts on Tens in Early
Position
With Pocket Tens in early
position, we should generally raise, especially
if we are first to open the pot. Limping or
limp-calling from early position with Tens can
get us into trouble; as well allow any old weak
ace into the pot without paying the premium.
Additionally, while we want to build a pot with
a hand like pocket tens, we do not wish to build
it too large until we have seen the flop when we
are out of position.
Late Position Thoughts for
Pocket Tens
We have the ability to play
poker in many different ways when in late
position. Sitting in late position with Pocket
Tens is no different. One can get creative and
limp or call with Tens from the button or
cutoff, with intentions of playing post flop, or
we can raise/reraise and even represent an ace
on the flop if necessary. Having a strong hand
such as Pocket Tens in later position allows us
the benefit of playing with additional
information than the rest of the poker table.
Consider the Probable Flops
and Post-flop Actions with Tens
Statistically, the most likely
situation after the flop is that we flop second
pair. In fact, 69% of the flops will contain at
least one Queen, King or Ace over the course of
our career when we are holding Tens. By the
river, we will encounter at least one over card
over eighty-six percent of the time. In planning
for the most likely flop, we will usually make a
continuation bet on the flop, representing top
pair. Additionally, our plan is to continue if
we face a flop with one over card, and reassess
from there. If the board contains two or more
overcards, we will additionally make a
continuation bet, however we will not commit to
the hand if called. If we flop an over pair, we
will bet for value and try to gain commitment to
the pot.
That being said, we will take
the following actions based on the following
scenarios:
Pocket Tens Scenario 1: Early
Position
We are first to open the pot
with our Pocket Tens. We want to play this hand
and wish to raise. The average table raise has
been anywhere from $6 to $10, and our average
raise has been $8-12. In this instance, because
we are out of position, we want to raise a
decent amount, in hopes of being two to three
handed going into the flop. We decide to raise
to $10 and get a call from the button.
The pot contains $23, our
stack is $190 and the flop inflicts upon us a
Jack, Four, Four.
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Action and thoughts on the
flop: We encountered the “average flop” by
seeing one over on the board, however the board
paired - but that will not cause us to deviate
from our plan. We put in a continuation bet here
of $20, which is nearly the size of the pot. The
button calls. We begin thinking of hand ranges
for making a button call. The button could hold
any pocket pair, as well as a strong Ace, which
“could“ include a Jack. In checking our player
notes, this player is among the looser players
on the table. We have observed him moving at
pots from the button in the past; however, we
have not seen him show down a hand he has played
from late position.
The pot contains $73, our
stack size is $170. The turn card comes as a
second jack.
Action and thoughts on the
turn: As mentioned before the board pairing,
this player has seemingly made moves from the
button. The good news is that this board would
be a perfect board to move on from the button.
The bad news is that checking will not tell us
anything. Additionally, we believe this board is
one of those boards where given the proper pot
size; one would be inclined to bluff or call
with the ace high on the river. If he is holding
a strong ace, we do not wish to miss such an
opportunity, however we want to leave money
behind to force the opposing player to respect
our stack. We decide to bet here, and push out a
$35 bet. The button calls.
The pot contains $143 and our
stack size is $135. The river is a Two. His call
on the turn suggests either he is most likely
trapping us or he has an ace high hand. We are
going to value bet the river, and plan to call
if he raises, due to this suspicion. If we
check, we may face an all-in situation and while
the situation will cause thought, we will still
be committed to call, so we are best served
betting something for value here. We bet $35,
leaving an even $100 behind.
As suspected, the button
raises, moving all-in. We are committed, so we
call. The button shows Ace-Queen and we take
down the monster pot.
Pocket Tens Scenario 2: On the
Button
Early position player raises
to $6 preflop. Calling here could be acceptable;
although we are on the button. In the spirit of
tight aggressive play, we reraise to $15, and
end up heads up with the original raiser.
Heads up with a $33 pot and
stacks of $180, the flop comes Jack-Six-Ace.
Action and thoughts on
the flop: This flop
is not the most ideal of flops for us. However,
our preflop plan was to make a continuation bet.
Before doing so, we plan to slow down on the
turn in the event we are called.
The early position
player checks. We continue with a $25 bet,
roughly three-quarters of the pot. The early
position player folds, likely holding a medium
sized pair and afraid of the overcards.
With a hand such as Pocket
Tens, we want to raise to narrow the field a
bit, and take control of the pot from the flop
on. We plan to commit in the event we flop an
over pair, and look to gradually control the pot
in search of information if an over card or over
cards occurs. By playing Pocket Tens
aggressively from any position, we minimize the
risk of getting our Tens outdrawn or cracked by
playing them incorrectly and we maximize the
value of this quality starting hand.
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