Double Deuces

  Double deuces is like a double edged sword. On one side, you have yourself a pair, and that's always decent. On the other side, you have the worst pair possible, and pairs aren't really strong hands to win with. Getting double deuces almost feels like an insult. Couldn't it have been fours at least, or threes?  The question is: can you win with double deuces? The answer is: yes, you can and no, it's not likely. Of course, if you play with the popular "deuces wild" rule, you suddenly have a pair of whatever you want, and it quickly becomes three of a kind or something even better, but that's a discussion for a different place.  If you want to win with your pair of twos, you need to bet like you have something better, while working for that something better. Hope your opponents don't recognize your bluff before you get that something better or you will be in over your head and invested too heavily in the pot.  Also you can limp along, hunting for the outs that will give you another pair or something to strengthen your hand. This is the less risky approach, but it also displays weakness towards your opponents. They will probably notice you're playing with a weaker hand and force you out because of it.  Finally, in low action games, your pair might be the best hand at the table. In this case, you may want to bully a win quickly before anyone develops something good.