Sklansky's Flops

I was away camping last week and took a couple of poker books with me. I didnt get chance to read much but in a spare hour I glanced through my old copy of Sklansky's Hold em Poker.

In an early chapter he writes about hole cards and - flops you want-
He makes a table which has columns for excellent flops, good flops and fair flops for particular hands.

This is the first line of four in what he includes for KdQd:

Hole Cards-Excellent Flops-Good Flops-Fair Flops
--- KdQd------Kh8d4d----------KK7-------K77

Kh8d4d is the first entry in the excellent flops column. I just wondered if you were flopped those cards, you'd consider it an excellent flop for your KdQd?

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top pair (with a good kicker) and a high flush draw is a fantastic hand. In the flop he mentions theres not apparent straight (someone could have a gutshot) and unless someones sitting with an ace x diamonds, you have the nut flush draw too. You have a helluva lot of outs to help you if you are up against something like 84

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yes i agree, but the second flop is quite good too. only hand that will hurt u is 77 or ak. or k7 but i doubt someone wold play that in most cases. IMO the only hand to really worry about is 77. most ppl play ak quite agressivly nd it might be easy to know your beat. whereas 77 can easily be played just like kq, so its tougher to put someone one.

Tt is an excellent flop. There are not many better you could get. Plus it's a flop that can lead to you getting paid off for a couple of bets. You are going to have the best hand most of the time, and when you don't, you have a fair number of outs (As many as 14). Even though it's not the strongest flop for your hand, it's probably the best for VALUE on your hand.

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The second flop would be much harder to gain chips from as there are very few hands your opponent would hold that he would risk chips on.

Though it is a safe flop...it isn't one you will be jumping for joy at the end of the hand most of the time.



In the first flop the odds are much better that your opponent may hold a king also, but lower kicker...maybe KJ or KT

Thanks for the replies. I wasnt posting to say it wasnt a good flop - just asking for your views. I think it is a good flop, you have outs, and it's a flop which could win you a big pot also.

I agree that there's lot's of opponents hands your could catch out here and if your flush comes- then good. However, I think it's a flop which could lose you a big pot also. It's not going to be easy to lose someone playing an Ad-suited. and whilst you arent going to be so worried about anyone playing 8-4 in a tight game, and a gutshot draw doesnt really jump out at you, pocket 8's or 4's are a danger. Youre behind to any AK and youre likely to get some action also from an Ad paired with another high card. I supoose much depends on preflop bets here too.

It is looking good with your 2 to 1 flush draw.

The reason I posted is because although I see it as a 'good' flop, I wonder why that particular flop was chosen as the excellence There does seem to be dangers. If I was in a tourney and I'm getting called down on my bets in this hand, I'd be a cautious of risking my stack even if I did get the diamond to complete my flush. Maybe I've just suffered some bad beats lately

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I don't know all of Sklansky's books by name. Is this a limit, or no limit book?

No limit, that flop would be weaker, but in limit, your loss on the Ax suited hands would be easily overcome when they play weaker flush draws.

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