Hand by Hand 4

This hand I just think is funny. UTG+1 opens all in for .25. I am in the small blind with 10d/5d and am always folding this…but the button calls with only 2.43. So I figure small pockets, A/10+, maybe suited connectors with the call weighted towards the higher end.

I am wrong. The all in shows 10s/Ad. Okay, so I was right about that. The call, however…10h/3h. So 2 suited 10/baby hands, two different reactions, and the three known hands all have tens.

A bit later the cut-off takes time, then opens to .17 with 2.25. I think back to a couple of situations…A), the playing too many tables, and B) the position open raise. I have 6.52, 10s/9s and the button…sometimes I fold, this time I call. The plan is more to call the flop and raise the turn than actually hit a hand.

The flop is Qd/Jd/Kc. I hit the ignorant end of the straight…but there is a flush draw. I am way behind A/10, ahead of everything else but there are a lot of hands it is close…pockets that match the board spring to mind.

He raises a weird .41 cents…actually, counting the blinds, that is a pot size raise. I want to charge draws, so I re-pop to 1.70, he shoves and it is .38 to call…easy call, even if he has the A/10. He does not…he has the 10c/9c and even though I “win” the hand via split pot, I lose .12 cents on it…

The cut-off click-raises to .10 with 7.14, the small blind calls with 2.29 and I look down at 8h/Jc in the big blind. I am getting 5-1, I often fold here but this time I call. I am not super fond of that call…earlier I folded the A/J off to a raise, though that was a standard raise…this click-raise on the button smells of either a steal or trapping with a big hand.

The flop is gorgeous, the 2c/8c/Jh. I flopped top two. I expect a raise from the cut-off so plan to check-raise. I check, he obliges with the raise, the small blind calls, and I check-raise to .95. The cut-off surprises nobody by folding, the button mildly surprises me with the call.

The turn is not good, the Ac. If he had the flush draw I am in trouble, if he had something like A/J I just got drawn out on. I raise 1.15 anyway…and he folds.

This might be one of those cases where aggression is the wrong move…but I would rather raise and get re-raised than check and face a tough call.

And now it is time for…attack of the random hand analysis.

The button click-raises to .10 with 2.96. The big blind calls with 8.20. I have mentioned before what button click-raises strike me as…sure, sometimes they have a real hand, but all too often it is a more marginal hand trying to steal the blinds cheaply. I play the big blind tighter than most people, so he could have a really wide range of hands here.

The flop is the Js/2c/7d. The big blind leads out for .05. This indicates he hit part of it, is trying to win a small pot. The button click-raises. This is an “did you mean it? Just go away raise.” And sees a click raise back at him. So he re-raises another click raise.

So we now have 4 raises TOTALING .20 Is this like…J/3 versus 7/4? Neither guy has much…or else both have sets. Finally the bb pops it to 1.38. And finally the button re-pops to 2.56 leaving himself .30 behind. And finally a call.

The turn is the 8c, the last .30 goes in and the button shows…Ah/Qh. And loses to 4s/7s. What a pair of nimrods. They played a 5.55 all-in pot with Ace high versus third pair, no kicker. Their click-raise war just makes it worse.

Later, utg opens with a click raise and 4.98, mp takes their time then click-raises to .15 with 2 even, a call from the next seat with 9.52 and the original raiser flat calls.

I already despise the play in this hand. The first click raise I am kind of okay with…a lot of Negreaneu hands try to play his small-ball style but do not have his reading talent so it is not always their best idea. But the re-raise that is again a click raise…nobody will fold to that and you price in worse hands .Horrible, horrible play.

So the flop comes 9h/2c/6d and utg checks. MP raises to .28, another weird raise…he had to manually type it in to get that amount. People that do that are absolute and complete tools. Just make normal raises. One fold later and utg check-raises.

Right here I think he most likely has a set, probably 9s or 6s. Other possibilities would be the over pair. I discount the big slick….he played small ball pre-flop. This flop either hit him hard to produce the check-raise to build a big pot or he does not fear it.

He gets a call and the turn is the 5h. UTG bets 1.05 so you KNOW he has a hand. I still think it is a set most likely, possibly an overpair. And he dialed up the exact amount mp had left, so it was also a message raise that sees a call.

UTG shows a pair of Jacks. I leaned very hard towards thinking it was a set but the over pair makes sense. The call though…4h/2s. What on earth? Bottom pair, no kicker. The pre-flop raise was asinine and his play only went downhill from there.

The flop raise was okay if he did a normal amount…calling the check-raise was pure donation and the turn call with bottom pair and gut shot straight draw was nearly as bad.

Apparently I got some of that hand on me, because the next hand the utg opens to .15 with 4.02. I am in the big blind with 7.44 and the Ks/5s. Heads up out of position against an under the gun raiser with a 1 in 15 shot at flopping the second nuts…no reason to play this hand, but I lose my mind and elect to call.

The flop is the 7h/2s/3d. I should either raise or check-raise here, but instead check-fold. I flat out gave away .10. On the bright side, I did not compound my error by playing a big pot out of position with no hand and no draw.

Early mp I have 7.29 and Kd/Ks. I open to .15 and get a call from the big blind with 1.91. This is bad for me, as all too often I decide the small risk means I am seeing the river no matter how obviously I am beaten because I had the second best pre-flop hand.

The flop comes out 7c/qh/2d. For whatever reason, I assign him the A/Q, he leads out with a pot size bet of .32 and I re-pop to 1.35. If he calls this, they are all going in on the turn.

I should point out…his .32 is a much different bet than the .28 I railed against in the other hand. He just hit the “bet pot” button instead of deliberately betting a non-standard amount. People who deliberately bet weird amounts are doing it to be irritating, whereas those who simply “bet pot” are usually just lazy. It is convenient, so they do it.

I actually thought he hit the queen, but if so he is a much better player than me because he laid it down. So in retrospect, he probably was just seeing if he could take a pot by the old “call with any two cards, lead out on the flop” maneuver. He actually did it better than most because instead of a min-bet or something ridiculous like that, he made a raise representing hitting a hand.

Middle position, I open to .15 with Qc/Kc and get the desired result…everyone folds. I will not call with this hand, but from middle on I will raise it. Either everyone folds or I take a flop with a hand with long-shot potential and aggression on my side.

The button limps with 1.73 and, in the big blind, I have Ks/Ah. A limp is usually a drawing hand with the occasional trap. I do not want to give drawing hands a free look, so with 7.77, I raise to .25 and he calls.

The flop is 4s/Qh/3c which misses the vast majority of drawing hands, I bet .40 into a .50 pot and he folds. Solid, ABC poker.

And now I have 8.10…not bad for starting with 2.00.