How to Play Ace-Queen: Strong, but Dominated by Ace-King
Ace-queen is a strong hand with one big weakness: ace-king. Before the flop, A♠Q♣ has only 24.4% against A♥K♥, but 69.3% against A♦J♦ and 58.6% against K♦J♦. Against pocket pairs below queens it sits just under a coin flip, 45.5% against 7♥7♠. After the flop it is usually ace-high: on K♠ 7♦ 2♣ it keeps 79.6% against A♦5♦ and 70.3% against 6♣5♣, but falls to 13% against K♥J♥.
Ace-queen on a king-high flop
On the button with A♠Q♣, you opened to 2.5bb and the big blind called. The flop is K♠ 7♦ 2♣ and the big blind checks. Check back, bet 25%, bet 50% or overbet 125%?
See the answer
Equity of A♠Q♣ on K♠ 7♦ 2♣, with the turn and river to come:
| Big blind's hand | What it holds | A♠Q♣'s equity |
|---|---|---|
| Q♥T♥ | no pair, lower kicker | 86.3% |
| A♦5♦ | ace-high, lower kicker | 79.6% |
| 6♣5♣ | no pair | 70.3% |
| 8♥8♦ | pocket pair | 25.6% |
| K♥J♥ | top pair | 13% |
A♠Q♣ has no pair, but it beats every hand in this table that missed the king and has no pair. A small bet makes those hands fold or pay, while risking little when a king calls.
Before the flop: ace-queen against one hand
| Opponent's hand | A♠Q♣'s equity |
|---|---|
| K♥Q♥ | 69.9% |
| A♦J♦ | 69.3% |
| T♥9♥ | 59% |
| K♦J♦ | 58.6% |
| 7♥7♠ | 45.5% |
| J♥J♦ | 42.7% |
| A♥K♥ | 24.4% |
Keep going
- Why A♥K♥ dominates it: dominated hands.
- The hand right above it: how to play ace-king.
- A pair against two higher cards: pair vs overcards.
- The king-high flop in detail: the king-high flop.
- Preflop decisions to practice: the preflop quiz.
- One spot every day: the daily poker puzzle.
- An ace with a weaker kicker: how to play ace-jack.
- The broadway hand that hates aces: how to play king-queen.
- Smaller suited aces: suited aces.
- AQs facing the button's reraise: facing a 3‑bet out of position.
- The side card that breaks ties: the kicker in poker.
Sources
- Every equity is computed by exact enumeration with the app's equity module, checked on October 11, 2026.
- The answer to the spot follows rules written by the app's author; it does not come from a solver.