According to world-famous poker Vlogger Brad Owen, there is no right way on how to play pocket Jacks, and that tells you a lot about how tricky this particular poker hand can be. Of course, Owen is only kidding when he says this, as he will be the first to jump into hands with pocket Jacks.
While JJ is definitely a very strong poker hand, it is also one that will require some nuance in playing, as you want to make sure you don’t overplay it, but also that you don’t lose value with it.
In this article, we are bringing you our top 7 tips on how to play pocket Jacks for maximum profit and the best possible results in your Texas Hold’em poker games.
Tip #1 – Always Raise First In
This one may seem quite simple, but for those players who are new to poker and may be struggling with the opening ranges, it is still worth saying it.
Pocket Jacks is one of the strongest starting poker hands, and it always warrants a raise if there is no raise in front of you.
Whether you are Under the Gun or on the Button, you will want to spike up the price of poker and make sure players with weak hands don’t get to see a cheap flop.
Your raise size should depend on the type of game you are playing. In deep stacked cash games, going for 3x the big blind is perfectly sound, while in tournament poker, where stacks tend to be shallower, anywhere between 2x and 2.5x the big blind will do just fine.
When players before you limp into the pot, you should add one full big blind for every limper to your raise size.
For instance, playing in a deep stacked poker cash game and facing two early position limpers, you can raise it to 5x the big blind and be happy with your play.
Tip #2 – Put Pocket Jacks In Your 3-Betting Range
Playing pocket Jacks first in is simple, but what do you do when facing a raise? Once again, you should opt for the aggressive route and raise it.
Facing raises from early positions and particularly tight players, it may be reasonable to mix in a call here and there, but as a default play, you will want to 3-bet your JJ.
By 3-betting before the flop, you deny other players a chance to get into the hand and see a reasonably cheap flop, you force the original raiser to give you more information on their hand, and you deny equity against hands that will fold to a 3-bet.
Furthermore, there are plenty of weaker hands than pocket Jacks that will call a 3-bet before the flop and allow you to start getting max value from the get-go.
When it comes to sizing your 3-bet, you should typically go for about 3.5x the original raise if you are in position and as much as 4.5x or 5x the raise size when out of position.
Playing out of position postflop is quite tricky, so you will be happy to end your hands preflop and scoop up the blinds and the raise unopposed as often as possible.
Tip #3 – Be Careful When Facing 4-Bets
Speaking from a strictly GTO poker perspective, pocket Jacks is a hand that’s too strong to fold against a 4-bet in almost all cases, and at the highest levels of play, it’s one that rarely does get folded preflop.
However, at lower stakes and in live games, you will often face situations that may warrant a preflop fold with JJ.
For instance, if you get 4-bet by a player who you know to be a nit in your live game, there is a very high chance you are beaten and a slight chance they have AK specifically.
While a strong, aggressive player may have bluffing hands like A5s or K4s in their range, your nitty opponent almost certainly has one of the few strong holdings.
Your preflop action with JJ when facing this much aggression should really come down to player tendencies, and if you can get good reads on people’s preflop play, you will be able to play JJ in these spots a whole lot better.
Tip #4 – Continuation Bet on Ace High Boards
One common mistake we see amateur poker players make a lot is they get scared of the Ace hitting the flop after raising pocket Jacks, and they simply check every time.
While the Ace is a somewhat scary card and one that may give your opponent a better hand, it is also one that belongs in your poker range more than it does in anyone’s defending range.
For example, imagine opening from UTG with pocket Jacks and getting called by the big blind. The flop comes As9d5c, and the action is on you.
While the big blind might have an occasional Ace in their hand, they can’t really have any of the big aces like AK or AQ, and they certainly can’t have AA. You, on the other hand, can have all these hands.
However, your opponent could have a whole host of other hands that have plenty of equity against you if you check the flop.
For instance, they could have a hand like Qs8s, 4d5d, or Ts9s, all of which have a pair and some backdoor draws on this board.
If you fire a bet, some of these hands will call your bet, allowing you to extract value instead of simply giving away a free card.
On the other hand, some hands with equity in the form of an overcard and backdoor draws will also just fold the flop, and this is a win as well, as you deny some equity and get to win the pot uncontested.
The next time you open or 3-bet Jacks, and an Ace hits the board, don’t get instantly intimidated and fire out that c-bet to start things off.
Tip #5 – Always Bet on Low Flops
While Ace-high boards may look scary to some players with JJ, others get very scared of low-connected boards like 8s7s4c or 5c4c2d.
While these flops certainly allow your opponents to make various hands that beat pocket Jacks, there is no reason they should have those exact hands.
In fact, both of these boards allow players to have way more hands that are still behind pocket Jacks but will call bets and give you value.
If you check on these kinds of flops, you allow your opponents to either turn their hands into bluffs and put you in tough spots on turns and rivers or realize their equity for free by checking behind.
Whenever the flop is made up of three undercards to your pocket Jacks, you should not be afraid of firing out that continuation bet and starting to build the pot.
Tip #6 – Be Careful in Multi-Way Pots
Playing multi-way poker is one of the biggest banes of playing at low stakes, but it is something you have to deal with.
Poker theory is much simpler when you go up against a single opponent, but playing multi-way pots well is also essential, especially at the lower stakes.
When you get into such multi-way pots with pocket Jacks, you should be quite careful and aware that your opponents’ chances of beating you multiply with every new player in the pot.
On favorable boards made up of undercards that are not too connected, you will still have a bit of a range advantage and can go ahead and play somewhat aggressively until you face resistance.
On the other hand, if the board brings overcards on the flop, you should usually be willing to give up your JJ as early as flop.
Sure enough, you will get bluffed off your hand some of the time if you do this, but you will also avoid bleeding money against players who simply have the goods.
Tip #7 – Be Aware of the Effective Stack Depth
Regardless of how the hand is playing out, one thing you should always be aware of in poker is the effective stack size.
Pocket Jacks can be incredibly tricky to play when the stacks are very deep, but it’s a pretty straightforward hand in most tournament poker spots.
The reason, of course, is the fact your tournament stack will usually contain no more than 40 big blinds. In such a spot, you should always be willing to play for all of it with pocket Jacks.
Sure enough, you will run into better hands on occasion with JJ, but you will also stack off opponents who are bluffing you or simply shoving all-in with hands like AK or AQ against your raise or 3-bet.
While there may be some extreme spots to fold JJ under 40 bb, you will rarely see any of the top poker players think too much about this particular spot.
On the other hand, when there are 300 big blinds or more in play at a cash game table, stacking off for all of it with JJ will require a particular read and an opponent who is capable of making some very advanced moves.
