How do you play pocket tens?
Pocket tens is a strong hand you open from every seat and re-raise against most opponents, while staying aware that it slips behind the bigger pairs.
Pocket Tens
StrongRaise it freely and re-raise it as a value hand against the field. It flips against ace king and beats every smaller pair, so it is happy to play a big pot in most spots. The exception is deep four-bet action from a tight player, where tens turn into more of a set-mining hand than a stack-off hand, since you are now up against jacks and better plus ace king.
This hand opens for a raise from every position, including under the gun.
Common mistake: Treating it as a premium against the tightest players. Against a range of bigger pairs and ace king, tens are flipping at best, so do not pile in the whole stack preflop without a read.
Quick tip: Ahead of every pair below it, behind every pair above it, and a coin flip against ace king. A strong hand, not a monster.
All-in equity before the flop
How Pocket Tens runs against a few benchmark hands if all the money goes in preflop. Figures from the Poker Shark equity engine.
Pocket Tens on real flops
Precomputed equity vs a random hand once the flop is out. Each link jumps straight to the TT row.
- TT on K Q J rainbow : the broadway board these hands live on
- TT on J T 9 two-tone : connected and two-tone, where equities run close
- TT on K K 2 : a paired king board
Related hands
Know the hand? Now play it for real.
Practice these spots against opponents who punish the wrong move.