Top Pair, Bad Kicker? Here’s the Right Way to Play It

This article shares strategic advice from Uri Peleg on how to play top pairs with a weak kicker. The insights come from an upcoming video in which Uri breaks down this common but tricky hand class.

Top pairs with weak kickers often lead players into tough spots. If you’ve found yourself unsure in these situations, Uri’s framework will help you navigate them with clarity and confidence. It’s simple, effective, and grounded in real strategic depth.

Let’s dive in.

Why You Should Trust the Advice in this Article 

Uri Peleg is the world’s best poker coach.

Think that’s hyperbole? The facts don’t lie:

• Uri’s top students (like Barak Wisbrod and Owen Messere) have won millions of dollars in high-stakes cash games
• Through his Guerrilla Poker stable, he’s helped turn many breakeven low-stakes players into winning medium and high-stakes players
• He doesn’t just teach — he’s won millions on the felt himself too

This entire article is based on an unreleased video from Uri Peleg. That video (and many more) will be released in the new Upswing Lab 2.o this summer.

You’re in good hands.

Top Pairs Are The Kings of Small and Medium-Sized Pots

The goal when you flop this type of hand is to keep the pot small to medium-sized. Once either you or your opponent starts driving the pot toward a larger size, your hand’s equity and playability begin to deteriorate.

Even if we strip away the exploitative or psychological layers and focus purely on the math, the principle still holds. Let’s break it down into two perspectives—two sides of the same coin:

1. You’re the one pushing the action

By betting and raising, you’re filtering your opponent’s range toward stronger hands. This is a natural consequence of how poker works: your opponent only needs to defend with a specific portion of their range to avoid being exploited. As the pot grows, weaker hands—like top pairs with weak kickers—start to fall behind the increasingly strong hands that continue.

2. You’re the one facing the heat

Now you’re on the defensive. When your opponent applies pressure, you’re no longer obligated to continue with the bottom portion of your range. As the pot gets larger—especially on certain runouts and against specific sizing—top pairs with weak kickers often fall into that bottom tier of your range, meaning they become more frequent folds.

Examples From Top Pros

The following examples are taken from the World Cash Game Championship on CoinPoker, and they demonstrate that even top players apply this same framework.

Hand #1 – Riggeddeck vs KevinPaque

Riggeddeck open-raises from the Button with Ad 9d, and KevinPaque calls from the Big Blind.

The flop comes Ah 8c 7s. KevinPaque checks, and Riggeddeck checks back.

Quick Analysis:

This is a strong hand on the flop, but the connected nature of the board means straight draws are live and likely to complete on later streets. That makes top pair with a weak kicker more of a bluff-catcher as the hand progresses. Checking back to pot control—or betting small to deny equity—is completely reasonable here.

The turn is the 8h. KevinPaque checks again, Riggeddeck bets around 25% pot, and KevinPaque makes the call.

Quick Analysis:

The turn pairing slightly weakens Riggeddeck’s hand, but it’s still strong enough to value-bet—especially at a small size. Many of Kevin’s strongest hands would have led out (probed) on the turn, so his checking range is slightly capped. That said, checking back is also a solid option, as Kevin has plenty of hands that are drawing thin or dead, which may either bluff the river or improve into worse value hands that can bet or check-call.

The river is the Qh. KevinPaque checks, and Riggeddeck fires a 75% pot bet. KevinPaque folds.

Quick Analysis:

The river completes the backdoor flush draw—a hand class well represented in the Big Blind’s range through suited 7x and some Kx of hearts. It also reduces the relative value of Ad 9d, since it now chops with nearly all of Kevin’s Ax. While the hand is likely still ahead, the 75% pot bet is arguably a slight overplay in theory, given the runout and limited ability to get called by worse.

Hand #2 – Enlight vs Riggeddeck

Enlight open-raises from the Button with Kd 9s, and Riggeddeck calls from the Big Blind with Jc 9d.

The flop comes Jh 6h 3d. Riggeddeck checks, and Enlight checks back.

Quick Analysis:

Riggeddeck shouldn’t donk into this flop—Enlight holds the range and nut advantage as the preflop raiser. From Enlight’s perspective, this is a standard c-bet candidate, but checking back is also part of a balanced GTO strategy. While it feels great for Riggeddeck to flop top pair, this isn’t a hand that wants to face big bets; he’s mostly hoping Enlight either checks back or bets small.

The turn is the 4h. Riggeddeck checks, and Enlight checks back.

Quick Analysis:

Riggeddeck’s top pair is still worth a bet or two—depending on sizing plans and the river card. The turn completes both a flush and a straight, which slightly weakens the value of Jc 9d. However, since it’s a low card, it’s less likely Enlight improved. That’s because most of his flush draws and hands like 7h 5h would typically c-bet the flop. A small bet or a check are both reasonable here.

The river is the Ad. Riggeddeck checks, and Enlight checks back.

Quick Analysis:

The river significantly devalues Riggeddeck’s top pair. Its equity drops from around 75% to closer to 50%. This is no longer a hand you can value-bet. The best play is to check and aim to reach showdown as cheaply as possible.

Wrapping Up

As you can see, top pros understand that the value of top pair–weak kicker hands lies in keeping pots small to medium-sized. They often choose pot control lines or opt for small bets to manage risk and protect equity.

While it may seem like elite players are constantly making ultra-thin value bets or wild bluffs, the reality is more grounded. The best players are simply excellent at calibrating their strategy to match their hand’s equity and structural strength. In other words, they make fewer mistakes than their opponents—consistently. There are deeper patterns at play, of course, but that’s a topic for another time.

By applying the framework shared in this article, you’ll already be ahead of 95% of your opponents.

That’s all for now—I hope you enjoyed the breakdown and picked up something valuable along the way. If you have questions or feedback, drop them in the comment section below.

Till next time, good luck, grinders!

To read more about Uri Peleg’s strategic approach to postflop play, read: How Elite Poker Pros Play Pocket Kings Postflop.