AA vs 22: how often do deuces crack aces?

This is the surprise in every pair-versus-pair table: deuces do roughly as well against aces as kings do. The underdog pair wins mainly by flopping a set, and a deuce hits the board exactly as often as a king does. Deuces do make straights on low boards where the aces play only one pair, but kings win a few more pots with straights and full houses, so the deuces finish a hair behind. The lesson is that against a bigger pair, the rank of your pair barely matters. What matters is set mining cheaply: deuces want to see a flop for a small price and win a big pot on the roughly 12% of flops that give them a set.

Quick tip: Small pairs want cheap flops more than preflop all-ins. Two outs twice is a little over 8% after you miss the flop, so the money comes from flopping sets.

All numbers are all-in preflop equity vs one opponent, computed by the Poker Shark equity engine from the full 169 by 169 hand matrix, weighted across suited and offsuit combos.