Stack it up

After folding the first 36 hands, I open on the button with Qh/Jc, people fold, then I fold another half dozen hands. The button opens to .30 and I re-pop from small blind to .90 with Ac/Qh. He folds. I then fold 9 more hands.

Finally, on the 55th hand I am dealt into, I see a flop when I am in the big blind holding 9h/jc and people limp. I check, then fold to a bet on an 8s/2c/kc flop. They later get it all in with a full house 2s full of Kings verse trip kings.

Another 11 folds ensue. I am feeling like I will never pick up a hand. UTG+1 opens to .30 with 2.99, I call from the hijack with 3.50 and pocket 10s, the button makes a weird raise to .55 with 8.25, the big blind calls with 4 as do the initial raiser and I.

The flop is the 7f/5s/Jc. With this much action, it would not surprise me to see a set in there, nor would something like A/J or big pockets from the button. The big blind leads out for 2.10, the initial raiser folds and I have a choice.

This is not an overly dangerous board for my tens, I have been very patient, folded lots of hands, and this is the first hand that feels like it has showdown value.

However, it is not worthy of a re-raise, there is someone behind me, and I have a good chance of being behind. I am proud of the fold. I am even prouder when the guy behind me re-pops to 4.20 and the blind calls all in.

The re-raise shows pocket 5s, the initial raiser A/J. That is one of my better assessments in a long time and I got off cheap.

A bunch of folds later I pick up an actual hand, 2 red aces. UTG+1 I open to .30 with 3.37, the next guy does the click-raise nonsense with 1.75, I re-pop to 1.65 and he re-raises his last .10 all in. Perfect, I got what I wanted…heads up all in pre-flop with the best hand.

Better yet…he did that with 10/8 off.

One reason I like it when I play a lot is I get used to seeing the same moves and start understanding what they represent. I open on the button with 4.93 and the small blind calls with 18.74.

The 9d/10d/5s hits a lot of hands he could call with but misses a lot as well. He dips into the time bank and checks, I bet .40, he click raises to .80.

I think he is trying to bet me off a continuation bet. He has maybe 2 overcards, maybe a small pair, maybe a suited ace that missed. He does not have a good hand. He is betting I raised and continuation bet based on position and he thinks I have nothing. I re-raise to 1.60 and he folds.

I would like to say my pocket twos were the best hand…but I think it has more to do with my read of what he thought I had was better. Actually, his read was right…but I read his read and wrote a new chapter.

Of course, it is not always true that a re-raise means nothing.

IN middle position with 3.90 I open to .30 with pocket jacks. The next guy calls with 10 even.

The 9d/9s/qs flop feels pretty safe. Unless someone has something like A/Q I should be well ahead here. I bet .40 and he re-raises to 1.00.

So unlike the click-raise trying to lazily drive me off a standard continuation bet, this is a pot size bet re-raising more than I raised. He put some thought and effort into it. Right here I should fold but I call. The turn is the 8h and I shove my last 2.60 all in.

Brave bet…but stupid. Check was the play here. H does have to think about it…taking not just his regular time but about half his time bank before finally calling with Qh/Ks. I never improve and my bad read stacks me.

It does not keep me from making moves. Having restarted, I am in the cut-off with 4.33 when utg+1 opens to .30 with 12.37/ It is folded to me and I look down at As/10s.

Now, as a general rule this is a quick fold, but for some reason I elect to call here. We take the flop heads up and it misses me completely, the Kh/8d/9s. This hits a fair number of hands he could have..A/K, K/K, pocket 8s or 9s, and even something like suited J/10.

It also misses a lot of hands…small to medium pockets, A/Q, suited cards type hands. He leads out pretty aggressively for .50. I elect to call and see what he does on the turn. If he raises I have a clear fold, if he checks I will bet and try to take down the pot.

If he re-raises, again it is a clear fold. If he calls I will be very cautious on the river as a lot of people will call me down with hands as weak as pocket treys here.

The turn is the 2h, he checks and I have a choice. I think he probably whiffed with something like A/6s or has a low pair he is nervous about and thinks he is beat. I put out a .90 bet into about 1.60 and am done putting in chips but he folds and I add about .80 to my stack.

All in all not a very exciting hand, but one that shows why I am willing sometimes to take bad hands too far with poor reads. When I actually have something I tend to play that instead of the situation.

I had just played a hand with A/Q where, with an open ended straight draw but the possibility someone holding Q/K held the nut straight, he raised all-in 15.69 into a pot of about a buck. Sitting behind 4.29 I open to .30 from middle position with Ac/Qd, the cut-off click-raises with 9.32 and I call.

A click-raise here screams weakness to me and, if he makes a serious raise to say… a dollar, I fold but with the click-raise I think he has at best a mediocre pair and at worst total air and just thinks I will fold to a re-raise.

The flop is Ah/10h/5h. That is about as bad a flop as I can see…sort of. I myself represented weakness, as many people when re-raised pre-flop will call almost any re-raise, then fold to any bet on the flop. This is a co-ordinated flop that has me drawing all but dead if he was playing something like a 6/7 hearts. But it is also a good spot for a check-raise.

I check, he bets .90 and I re-raise all in my last 3.69. This is a very poor play as he will only ever call if he has me beat…with the hearts on the board, he has to have a flush or set to call here.

Or A/6 which is what he shows…the 6 is a heart, but not a good one, he never improves, and my poor play is rewarded with a double up.

In retrospect, while some of the decisions seem to make sense…the check-raise, for example…I was clearly either A) playing at a super high level with incredible reads of weakness that suckered him into a super bad call…after all, how can I make that move without the flush or set myself? (by being a bad player? Oh…right…)
Or B) I was on tilt and pressing bad plays, deserving to get stacked again.
Either way, having regained what I had initially lost with a bad read, it was time to rat-hole.

I need to have awareness of why I am making decisions. Although at the time my thought process seemed to make sense on the last hand...he showed weakness, I did too, then hit a better than average hand and made a move...it was not a good move.

Just because it got rewarded does not make it good, either.