Would you rather..

blind steal with A5s or 68o?

68o, so i can get off it easier when im re-raised there or on a later street

a5s, it wins more pots that end up getting checked down

Originally Posted by Bode-ist

68o, so i can get off it easier when im re-raised there or on a later street

If you get raised at any point with A5, even if you actually hit an ace, you're gonna drop it like its hot too.

This is what I'm thinking, I can rep an A high flop without ever having an ace. Why not steal with something which actually hits a pair that they won't believe you have?

Originally Posted by Irisheyes

Originally Posted by Bode-ist

68o, so i can get off it easier when im re-raised there or on a later street

If you get raised at any point with A5, even if you actually hit an ace, you're gonna drop it like its hot too.

This is what I'm thinking, I can rep an A high flop without ever having an ace. Why not steal with something which actually hits a pair that they won't believe you have?

point taken.

I'm not saying I'm right, gabe said something I never thought of.

I'd rather have A5s for the reasons gabe mentioned, it has showdown value. I like to check behind on A high flops as well and induce bluffs, it's hard to do that with 86o since it's such a vulnerable hand. With that said, I still raise them both.

A5s by a long shot for me. I always muck 86o.. 86s however I'd play.

It depends on calling ranges.
If they are only calling with 55+ AT+ then 86 is better. If calling range includes lots of K-high and Q-high hands, than A5 is probably slightly better.

Although I looked at some charts, there are NOT many ranges where 86 is better. AA.
I think if you throw in pairs <AA as a large part of calling range, A5 is better.

This seems to be true with A5o vs 86s as well.

That's assuming you see all 5 cards. Post flop, I guess 86 is much easier to play.

a5 any day of the weak. villain's calling/reraising range includes hands u r leading against. 6-8 blows hu.

edit : btw ppl always say "yeah but a 5 is dominated by SOOO many hands".... well, 6-8 is crushed by 99-AA and at least a 5 has an over vs pps up to kk. this is obv i know but i think the "bad ace = domination" is way overapplied esp hu.

edit #2 : almost forgot. SOOOOOOOOOTED.

i think there is a good point about showdown value. if opps see you showing down 860, they are going to fire at you ... but maybe thats a good thing also

fwiw i usually open raise both of them on the button if blinds aren't short stacks

Originally Posted by Bode-ist

i think there is a good point about showdown value. if opps see you showing down 860, they are going to fire at you ... but maybe thats a good thing also

By showdown value we mean that A high is often going to win a showdown HU, so we don't have to bluff nessicarily to win the pot. With 86o we are never winning a showdown without a pair, so we have to bet to win.