PokerWorks

Usually when poker players are dealt Q-Q, they think "who hoo!" Not me.

I think, "oh, shit."

Because I gotta play Queens, right? I mean, I have to. They're the third best hand in poker. Premium hands only come along so often, and as you might have guessed, I love my premium hands. Only, the thing is, I always seem to lose with Queens. When I get them, they always seem to run into A-A or K-K. And when someone else has them, they beat my Aces almost all the time.

In short, I hate Q-Q. I even have a name for it, but it's probably the worst thing you could ever call a lady, so I won't repeat it here. If you're really curious, check out my blog, and you'll find the answer a few posts down. It's my nemesis hand.

Poker, a game filled with lucky cap protectors, lucky pictures and lucky shirts, sunglasses and shoelaces, also has its dark side, and many players have a hand they hate to love. Or they just hate it.

The trouble is, of course, is that nemesis hands usually are good hands, and many times they're great hands. If you hate 3-8 os, well, you're probably not going to lose anything by folding it. In fact, you should fold it. In fact, when you're dealt it, you should tear up the cards in anger and toss them back in the dealer's face.

When I blogged about this recently, two Colorado bloggers said they had trouble with a hand, too, only the hands were great ones.

"My nemesis hand has always been Ace King (suited or not)," said Chipper. "I always put way too much faith in it and get called by some low pocket pair and I can't hit the board. In a tournament where I'm near the bubble, I'm half tempted to fold this hand."

MondoGarage hates A-Q. "By a country mile," he said. "I know it's not that strong of a hand, but it's so hard for me to fold to a single raise, or even a re-raise with enough pot odds. Funny thing is, it's not someone else's AK that usually gets me.

But how do you play a hand that always makes you lose your chips? You can't just toss it all the time. I refuse to toss Q-Q every time I get it.
Here's how:

• When you're dealt THE hand, play it tight. I've long since given up pushing all-in with Q-Q after the flop, even if it's a raggy flop, in cash games (sometimes, in tournaments, when the blinds are high you have to go with it). I play it carefully. I do not play it weakly, but if I'm re-raised, I strongly consider folding, just as you should any hand when it looks like you're beat.
• Fold it for a while - If you're truly having trouble playing it, just get rid of it, especially if you're playing a cash game. There's nothing that says you have to play any hand in a cash game. Just realize you're leaving money on the table, so you can't fold it forever.
• Play it with confidence - Losing streaks are stretched when we play hands strangely. We don't raise with A-K, for instance, because we "never" hit a flop with it. You should raise as often as possible with A-K, and you shouldn't play your hand much differently just because it hasn't won in the past.

I raise with Q-Q every time I play it, and then I go from there.

If you tell yourself there's no point in raising because you're just going to lose with the hand, it becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy.
• Don't get cute with it - Examine why you're losing with a specific hand. Many times, people say they hate A-A, but many times, that's also because they're getting cute with it. They limp with it or put in a small raise with it, and when they get five callers, their chances of winning the hand suddenly shrink like it hits cold water.
You should always play A-A hard, and the reason you're losing may have nothing to do with bad luck and everything to do with bad play.
• Don't fall for the "It can't happen again" syndrome - I lost a lot of money with Q-Q because I figured it was impossible that once again someone had K-K or A-A, even when their re-raises were telling me differently. Sure it can. It can happen again and again and again. In fact, I've seen many, many other players lose lately with Q-Q. Maybe it's the hardest hand in poker to play?

And that reminds me...

• Remember, every hand is different - One of the most beautiful things about the game of poker is every hand is different. You're literally faced with thousands of different ways to play your hand after the flop, and you can argue with someone for hours of how to play those hands, even in the same situation.

That should help you through any rough patch, the idea that eventually, variance will turn around, and you'll start winning with that hand, or at least not losing big with it.

It might even happen with Q-Q. One of these days…