Suited Broadway Hands: KJs, QJs and a Cutoff Spot
Suited broadway hands like K♥J♥ or Q♥J♥ dominate smaller broadways and suffer against aces. Before the flop, K♥J♥ has 74.9% against Q♦J♣ but 30.4% against A♦K♣; offsuit, K♠J♦ has 73.4% and 25.5%. Without a king, Q♥J♥ keeps 39.6% against A♦K♣. Against T♣T♦, K♥J♥ has 46.4%.
K♥J♥ in the cutoff facing a small blind 3‑bet
You open to 2.5bb in the cutoff with K♥J♥, the small blind 3‑bets to 11bb and the big blind folds. Fold, call, 4‑bet to 26bb or jam?
See the answer
K♥J♥ takes strong hands away from the small blind: it has 3 combinations of KK left instead of 6 and 12 of AK instead of 16, and likewise 3 of JJ and 12 of AJ. Against hands that 3‑bet, before the flop:
| Small blind's hand | K♥J♥'s equity |
|---|---|
| Q♦J♦ | 70.8% |
| T♠T♦ | 46.4% |
| A♠5♠ | 43.5% |
| A♦Q♠ | 41.4% |
| J♠J♦ | 35.6% |
| Q♠Q♦ | 32.3% |
| A♠K♣ | 30.4% |
| A♣J♣ | 28.7% |
| A♦A♣ | 18.1% |
| K♠K♦ | 14.3% |
A 4‑bet gets called mostly by the hands at the bottom of the table, far ahead of K♥J♥. A call keeps the hands it dominates in the pot and plays it in position.
Suited or offsuit: what the suit is worth
| Opponent's hand | K♥J♥ (suited) | K♠J♦ (offsuit) |
|---|---|---|
| Q♦J♣ | 74.9% | 73.4% |
| T♠9♠ | 62.5% | 61.6% |
| 9♦9♣ | 47.5% | 44.7% |
| A♠5♠ | 43.5% | 40.4% |
| Q♠Q♦ | 32.3% | 28.3% |
| A♦K♣ | 30.4% | 25.5% |
| A♠J♣ | 30.3% | 25.4% |
On every row the suited version has more equity. The gap is largest against A♦K♣ and A♠J♣, which dominate it.
Suited broadways against A♦K♣, T♣T♦ and A♠5♠
| Hand | Against A♦K♣ | Against T♣T♦ | Against A♠5♠ |
|---|---|---|---|
| K♥Q♥ | 30.1% | 46.4% | 43.2% |
| K♥J♥ | 30.4% | 46.4% | 43.5% |
| K♥T♥ | 30.7% | 35.9% | 43.8% |
| Q♥J♥ | 39.6% | 47.1% | 44.6% |
| Q♥T♥ | 39.9% | 37.3% | 44.9% |
| J♥T♥ | 41.2% | 38.7% | 46% |
Against A♦K♣, the three king hands share its king with a smaller kicker: they have less equity than Q♥J♥, Q♥T♥ and J♥T♥. Against T♣T♦, K♥T♥, Q♥T♥ and J♥T♥ have only one card above the pair and stay below K♥Q♥, K♥J♥ and Q♥J♥. Against A♠5♠, all six are behind.
Keep going
- The strongest broadway without an ace: how to play king-queen.
- Why A♦K♣ dominates K♥J♥: dominated hands.
- The other family of suited hands: suited aces.
- Lower suited hands: suited connectors.
- A pair against two higher cards: pair vs overcards.
- One spot every day: the daily poker puzzle.
- The same family without the suit: offsuit broadway hands.
- Kings with a smaller kicker: suited kings.
- How many combos of QJs and its family there are: poker combinatorics.
- K♥J♥ facing a small blind 3‑bet: what is a 4‑bet.
- How much being suited really adds: suited vs offsuit.
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.