UTG opens to .20 with 5.32, a fold, a call with 12.04 and I find myself on the button with Ac/9c. Okay, I have a drawing hand, position, and will likely get another caller from the big blind. I elect to call with 3.70, then both blinds disappoint me by folding.
The flop is 9d, 3h, 2c. With the min-raise, the utg has a wider range than usual…A/10+, K/J+, any suited ace or king, any pair. The call represents more or less the same range.
I figure to have the best hand with top pair, top kicker and when they both check, the bet is mandatory. With about .70 cents in there, I lead out for .40. UTG calls, middle folds.
So I figure he probably has 2 overs, maybe even something like A/4 or A/5. He checks the 7h turn, I lead out for .80 and he again calls.
The river is the 5d and he checks. Let’s see…he min-raised utg, check-called innocuous flops and turns and checked the river. What fits that?
An Ace that missed, 2 over cards, pocket 4s, pocket 6s or slow-playing a set or over-pair. I do pretty well against that range so I go ahead and bet again.
He folds, so I really have no idea if I was right or not. But with a marginal hand, I am happy with that pot.
In middle position I open to .30 with pocket Aces. I am happy when the button calls with 10 and then the big blind also calls with 10.73.
If there have to be two other players, I am happy with the 6c/4c/4h flop. Probably missed everyone except a draw. I want to take down the pot and lead out for .95, getting the button to call and the big blind to fold.
Over pair or flush draw, slightly weighted toward the flush draw, with two big cards also a possibility. The turn is the 10d, I have 2.94 left and the pot means I am playing this to the river, so I shove my last 2.94 which he calls.
Really, the main thing I am afraid of here is pocket 10s, but I think maybe A/10c, A/x clubs are likely, with pockets 7 through 9s equally likely. Less likely but possible are jacks, queens or kings.
He flips up pocket 7s, my aces hold up and I double up. Nice, my Aces held.
With 7.27 I open to .30 from utg+2. The big blind is my only customer, with 10 even.
The flop is 5c/4d/5s, he checks, and something like 99.999% of the time, I am betting here regardless of what I have. I bet .40 which he snap-calls.
The turn is the Qs and we both check. An unusual move for me as I almost always bet here. The river is the 9c, he leads out for .40.
Okay, so he called out of position pre-flop, check-called the flop, checked the turn, and then under-bet the river. I am thinking marginal hand here. Maybe a dry ace, medium pair, maybe even A/K or A/Q type hands.
Also possible but less likely are pocket 4s or pocket 9s. I re-raise to 1.40, takes his time and calls with pocket 7s. My pocket queens boated up and take down the pot.
UTG+1, with 4.29, takes time and then click-raises. Middle position, with 17.90, calls, the big blind also calls with 7.22 and they see the flop three handed.
The flop is the 5s/6c/8d, it is checked around. The turn is the 7d.
Big Blind raises to .20, about 1/3rd the pot. UTG folds, mp bumps it to 1.25.
This is a frequent reaction to weak, defensive bets like that of the big blind and may or may not mean he has a hand. As the moment the 9/10 is the nuts, but there are 2 flush draws, the way the hand has played any set is possible and something like pocket 9s or even pocket 4s is also a distinct possibility.
BB re-pops to 2.30, indicating a hand, and mp re-re-re-raises to 2.20, which the button calls.
At this point I am thinking set over set, set over 2 pair, two pair versus straight are the most likely hands.
The river is the 10d, bb hesitates, then bets 1.0, mp raises to 2.20 and there is a call.
Flush is a possibility, but remote. I think these are two made hands and think my turn conjecture is pretty good.
Big blind shows Ks/4s…the ignorant end of the straight. The mp shows Ac/9c and takes the pot with the higher straight.
I really do not like the play on this hand at all. While the K/4s was almost the same hand as pocket 4s at that point in the hand, all the re-raising without shoving screamed “hand that can be beat trying to scare away better hand”.
Worse, he was betting into a made hand. Not worth getting involved with the bottom end of a straight, the best he could hope for was something like a set where the board did not pair.
But I have seen worse plays…cut-off open limps with 16.17, small blind completes with 7.58 and the big blind checks with 7.86.
The flop is 10d/4d/3s, it is checked around. The turn is the qd, the sb checks, big blind bets .30 (pot size bet) and everyone calls.
River is the 8c, the small blind leads out for 1.20, the big blind calls, the cut-off folds.
The small blind shows pocket aces and loses to the big blind’s king high flush…k/7 was his holding.
So the desire to get action on aces led him to let everyone see a cheap flop, he bet nothing when he was ahead, and then called and bet when he was behind. How did that work out for him?
Yes, if he raises pre-flop he probably gets a fold from the big blind…but he does not lose 16 blinds on the hand and makes 3. That is a 19 blind swing because he tried to trap, then did not bet to charge the draws.
I have to constantly remind myself...while there are players on this level capable of tricky plays (i.e. the pocket rockets dude), there are far more people against whom it should be a simple game; bet when I have the goods, fold the rest of the time.
Sunday
Slowplaying for the win
I seldom slow-play because it seems to bit me every time. Every so often, though, I will have the absolute nuts and decide to.
Playing 2/5 UTG limps with 2.79, I call from the next seat with 9h/9c and the big blind checks with 1.44. The flop is perfect…3c/9s/7d. They check and, leery of chasing them away, I elect to slow-play.
The turn is the 6d, the bb checks, utg raises to .10. I think about re-raising, but since the only draw are the unlikely flush and the unlikely straight, I call hoping the bb comes along. He does not.
The river is the 4d, UTG again bets .10, I raise to .40 with my set, he calls…with 2d/5d and wins with a 7 high flush.
Yeah, slow-playing is a GREAT option for me. Guess I should have raised the turn, but at the time my thought process seemed logical. Instead I let him pick the betting amount and draw to his hand with infinite odds.
Later, I open from the button with Ah/Qu to .15 with 3.58 behind, the big blind calls with 3.30 and we watch the 2c/9s/3c fop. Misses most hands he could reasonably have, he bets a nickel anyway, I raise to .25, he calls.
The turn is the 5s, he bets a nickel again. It feels like he is betting a draw of some sort and trying to keep the pot small by controlling the bet size. A/x c, maybe a suited 4/5 make some sort of sense. Or maybe something goofy like K/3.
I bump it to .50, he actually asks for time bank help, then eventually calls.
The river is good and bad…Qd. No draws hit, I am behind a set or a weird two pair hand like Q/9, 9/5. Overall, I think I am probably ahead.
He leads out for .10. I think for a while, should I raise or call. If I raise, I am folding to an all-in shove, the pot has about 1.69 in it…I have some show-down value with top pair, top kicker.
If I raise, he probably folds everything I beat, calls with everything that beats me, and raises with some of each. I meekly call and watch him flip up Qc/10c.
So I was right about the flush draw, and end up winning a pot I led beginning to end.
Playing 2/5 UTG limps with 2.79, I call from the next seat with 9h/9c and the big blind checks with 1.44. The flop is perfect…3c/9s/7d. They check and, leery of chasing them away, I elect to slow-play.
The turn is the 6d, the bb checks, utg raises to .10. I think about re-raising, but since the only draw are the unlikely flush and the unlikely straight, I call hoping the bb comes along. He does not.
The river is the 4d, UTG again bets .10, I raise to .40 with my set, he calls…with 2d/5d and wins with a 7 high flush.
Yeah, slow-playing is a GREAT option for me. Guess I should have raised the turn, but at the time my thought process seemed logical. Instead I let him pick the betting amount and draw to his hand with infinite odds.
Later, I open from the button with Ah/Qu to .15 with 3.58 behind, the big blind calls with 3.30 and we watch the 2c/9s/3c fop. Misses most hands he could reasonably have, he bets a nickel anyway, I raise to .25, he calls.
The turn is the 5s, he bets a nickel again. It feels like he is betting a draw of some sort and trying to keep the pot small by controlling the bet size. A/x c, maybe a suited 4/5 make some sort of sense. Or maybe something goofy like K/3.
I bump it to .50, he actually asks for time bank help, then eventually calls.
The river is good and bad…Qd. No draws hit, I am behind a set or a weird two pair hand like Q/9, 9/5. Overall, I think I am probably ahead.
He leads out for .10. I think for a while, should I raise or call. If I raise, I am folding to an all-in shove, the pot has about 1.69 in it…I have some show-down value with top pair, top kicker.
If I raise, he probably folds everything I beat, calls with everything that beats me, and raises with some of each. I meekly call and watch him flip up Qc/10c.
So I was right about the flush draw, and end up winning a pot I led beginning to end.
Saturday
Hand Reading school
I notice this next hand went to show-down, so am looking at it as an exercise in hand-reading skills.
The button limps with 18.18, I fold the Qc/7c, the big blind checks with 15.78.
The button could be trapping with Aces or Kings hoping to get raised, or he could have something like a j/10, suited ace, small pocket pair, maybe a weak ace…and I going to say maybe even a suited Jack type hand. The big blind could have…well…anything.
They both check the 9h/Kh/4c flop. The turn is the Qh.
The big blind leads out with a pot size bet of .20. He could have the unlikely flush, though it is more likely he has the 9 or 4 and wanted to see what the button would do.
The button click-raises. Okay, that could be anything…flush trying to get a re-re-raise, a set, a pair, or even someone thinking the big blind is stealing.
The big blind then re-pops with yet another min-raise which the button flat calls.
So I am thinking we have a couple of marginal hands here or a good but easily beatable hand.
The river really changes nothing, the 3c.
The big blind leads out for .90 cents which the button flat calls. I expect to see maybe 2 pair like a Q/9, maybe Q4 type thing versus a small flush, maybe a pair of queens or something like that.
Or not. The big blind had pocket Aces, the button had Qs/10h. So I was right about the button, wrong about the big blind.
I tighten up quite a bit, then notice people are folding a lot. I see an early middle position guy limp with 7.74, I have Kc/Jd on the button and raise to .40 expecting a series of folds.
My plan goes awry when the small blind re-pops to 1.00 and the original limper calls. I actually play smart and toss my marginal hand into the muck.
With about 2.50 in the pot, they both check the 5s/4d/5h flop. Fair enough…big blind looks like A/K maybe…or maybe just making a move. Some sort of drawing hand for middle position.
Turn is the 9d and the small blind leads out for 1.20. Same sorts of hands as before, the button is playing this more like a draw. At this point I revise my estimate to maybe suited connectors, probably hearts.
The river is the Qs, a dangerous card for a medium pair. The small blind takes his time, then bets 2 bucks into a pot of 4.58…and the mp folds.
Time goes on, I fold lots of hands and am on life support with Ac/8c. The cut-off opens to .20 with 16.14. I am in the small blind with a hand I routinely fold even when I have enough to make it worthwhile from an odds standpoint.
This time I call for who knows what reason. Actually, I know exactly the reason. I decided to take a shot when it would not hurt bad if I missed the draw.
The problem with chasing draws is all too many people…like myself…increase the bet size on each street. So it quickly gets expensive.
Lets say I am the aggressor and open to .30 with a suited ace. I flop two to the flush so I bet…I will put in about half the pot, but more than my pre-flop, so lets say .40 cents. I am already into it for .70 and now there is a buck and a half or so. I miss the turn, bet half the pot, .75 cents…he re-raises the same .75 so I call with excellent odds, but miss on the river.
I put in 2.25 and missed my draw. I will walk away satisfied because for the most part I controlled the betting (except the turn) and will play it again the same way the next time.
All too often if I do not bet the flop or turn I face pot-sized bets instead, which is why I prefer betting; I get the fold equity and control the pot size.
But of course, even if I flop the flush draw, I am only going to hit it one in three times. So lets say I miss twice and put in 2.25 the third time…which means I need to WIN 7.75 just to break even…which means the POT needs to be 10 bucks if I JUST put in the 2.25 on the time I win.
So I usually only play for flushes in very specific circumstances; several people have entered the pot cheaply, I am in late position and can enter for a raise with an above average suited Ace or similar circumstances where I either flop with excellent pot odds or move on.
It is one of the few draws I demand better than accurate odds to play.
But here I am low on coin with a chance to double up and decide to play.
So I flat his raise, the big blind folds and with .50 in the pot we see the flop heads up.
The flop is pretty good…7s/9s/6c. I missed the flush but flopped a straight draw. No need to get too crazy, though so I check. He bets .30 and I flat it.
Turn is the 5d…I hit my draw. I check, he bets .90, I pop all in for my last 1.70. He calls.
And turns up 8/J. Great, split pot. Except the river is the 10s and I lose to his Jack high straight.
UTG, with 13.82, opens to .30 after taking their time. Middle position calls with 14.99 as does the button with 10.22.
UTG I generally give credit for a pretty good hand….10/10+, A/x suited, A/J o, in some cases suited connectors or K/q, though I weight it pretty heavily towards type one hands.
Medium position is getting into medium pairs, say fives or better, plus the above hands and maybe something like A/10. Button is a much wider array, though with a raise and call, I might tighten the list a bit.
The flop is 3s/5h/qc. UTG checks. Jacks or worse, a missed draw, or a big hand like queens.
Medium position raises to .40, I tentatively think A/Q, K/Q, pocket 5s or pocket threes, subject to revision.
The button re-pops to 1.20. I tend heavily to think A/Q or pockets that match or beat the board.
UTG calls which mystifies me. I would have thought a re-raise if he hit or a fold if he missed. A call is unexpected as there are no reasonable draws here. Middle also calls.
Now there is about 4.50 in the pot and three interested parties. The turn is the 8c and utg and mp check.
The button leads out for better than a pot-size bet, 5 bucks. He has to have a big hand, I lean heavily towards a set. Both other players call…top/top? 2 pair? A worse set? Or maybe we have set over set.
The river is the King of clubs. UTG fires out his last 7.32. I am thinking A/K or, more likely, pocket Kings with the way the hand played out. Both other players call. Got to be a set and either something like A/Q or a set?
UTG shows pocket queens so I was pretty close. The button shows…3h/8h? What? That is horrible. He over-called against utg and middle position with an 8 high flush draw?
Nearly as bad is the over-all winner, the middle position who shows the Ac/2c.
He called based on a flush draw, fair enough. He then called with a gut-shot, picked up a flush draw on the turn and rivered the nuts. He played worse than I have in weeks and got paid off huge, 36.01.
The utg had a pretty safe board to slow-play and it STILL bit him. I feel for the guy. He flopped the absolute nuts, there were no reasonable draws, he got bet into by someone drawing all but dead, got called by someone drawing super thin…and still got coolered.By the same token, I read exactly one hand anywhere near correctly…UTG. The others had much worse hands than I gave them credit for.
So a couple hands where, as a neutral observer, I had some decidedly mixed results on figuring out what they had. People are playing far looser than I credit, and I need to take that into account more often.
And work on figuring out hands better.
The button limps with 18.18, I fold the Qc/7c, the big blind checks with 15.78.
The button could be trapping with Aces or Kings hoping to get raised, or he could have something like a j/10, suited ace, small pocket pair, maybe a weak ace…and I going to say maybe even a suited Jack type hand. The big blind could have…well…anything.
They both check the 9h/Kh/4c flop. The turn is the Qh.
The big blind leads out with a pot size bet of .20. He could have the unlikely flush, though it is more likely he has the 9 or 4 and wanted to see what the button would do.
The button click-raises. Okay, that could be anything…flush trying to get a re-re-raise, a set, a pair, or even someone thinking the big blind is stealing.
The big blind then re-pops with yet another min-raise which the button flat calls.
So I am thinking we have a couple of marginal hands here or a good but easily beatable hand.
The river really changes nothing, the 3c.
The big blind leads out for .90 cents which the button flat calls. I expect to see maybe 2 pair like a Q/9, maybe Q4 type thing versus a small flush, maybe a pair of queens or something like that.
Or not. The big blind had pocket Aces, the button had Qs/10h. So I was right about the button, wrong about the big blind.
I tighten up quite a bit, then notice people are folding a lot. I see an early middle position guy limp with 7.74, I have Kc/Jd on the button and raise to .40 expecting a series of folds.
My plan goes awry when the small blind re-pops to 1.00 and the original limper calls. I actually play smart and toss my marginal hand into the muck.
With about 2.50 in the pot, they both check the 5s/4d/5h flop. Fair enough…big blind looks like A/K maybe…or maybe just making a move. Some sort of drawing hand for middle position.
Turn is the 9d and the small blind leads out for 1.20. Same sorts of hands as before, the button is playing this more like a draw. At this point I revise my estimate to maybe suited connectors, probably hearts.
The river is the Qs, a dangerous card for a medium pair. The small blind takes his time, then bets 2 bucks into a pot of 4.58…and the mp folds.
Time goes on, I fold lots of hands and am on life support with Ac/8c. The cut-off opens to .20 with 16.14. I am in the small blind with a hand I routinely fold even when I have enough to make it worthwhile from an odds standpoint.
This time I call for who knows what reason. Actually, I know exactly the reason. I decided to take a shot when it would not hurt bad if I missed the draw.
The problem with chasing draws is all too many people…like myself…increase the bet size on each street. So it quickly gets expensive.
Lets say I am the aggressor and open to .30 with a suited ace. I flop two to the flush so I bet…I will put in about half the pot, but more than my pre-flop, so lets say .40 cents. I am already into it for .70 and now there is a buck and a half or so. I miss the turn, bet half the pot, .75 cents…he re-raises the same .75 so I call with excellent odds, but miss on the river.
I put in 2.25 and missed my draw. I will walk away satisfied because for the most part I controlled the betting (except the turn) and will play it again the same way the next time.
All too often if I do not bet the flop or turn I face pot-sized bets instead, which is why I prefer betting; I get the fold equity and control the pot size.
But of course, even if I flop the flush draw, I am only going to hit it one in three times. So lets say I miss twice and put in 2.25 the third time…which means I need to WIN 7.75 just to break even…which means the POT needs to be 10 bucks if I JUST put in the 2.25 on the time I win.
So I usually only play for flushes in very specific circumstances; several people have entered the pot cheaply, I am in late position and can enter for a raise with an above average suited Ace or similar circumstances where I either flop with excellent pot odds or move on.
It is one of the few draws I demand better than accurate odds to play.
But here I am low on coin with a chance to double up and decide to play.
So I flat his raise, the big blind folds and with .50 in the pot we see the flop heads up.
The flop is pretty good…7s/9s/6c. I missed the flush but flopped a straight draw. No need to get too crazy, though so I check. He bets .30 and I flat it.
Turn is the 5d…I hit my draw. I check, he bets .90, I pop all in for my last 1.70. He calls.
And turns up 8/J. Great, split pot. Except the river is the 10s and I lose to his Jack high straight.
UTG, with 13.82, opens to .30 after taking their time. Middle position calls with 14.99 as does the button with 10.22.
UTG I generally give credit for a pretty good hand….10/10+, A/x suited, A/J o, in some cases suited connectors or K/q, though I weight it pretty heavily towards type one hands.
Medium position is getting into medium pairs, say fives or better, plus the above hands and maybe something like A/10. Button is a much wider array, though with a raise and call, I might tighten the list a bit.
The flop is 3s/5h/qc. UTG checks. Jacks or worse, a missed draw, or a big hand like queens.
Medium position raises to .40, I tentatively think A/Q, K/Q, pocket 5s or pocket threes, subject to revision.
The button re-pops to 1.20. I tend heavily to think A/Q or pockets that match or beat the board.
UTG calls which mystifies me. I would have thought a re-raise if he hit or a fold if he missed. A call is unexpected as there are no reasonable draws here. Middle also calls.
Now there is about 4.50 in the pot and three interested parties. The turn is the 8c and utg and mp check.
The button leads out for better than a pot-size bet, 5 bucks. He has to have a big hand, I lean heavily towards a set. Both other players call…top/top? 2 pair? A worse set? Or maybe we have set over set.
The river is the King of clubs. UTG fires out his last 7.32. I am thinking A/K or, more likely, pocket Kings with the way the hand played out. Both other players call. Got to be a set and either something like A/Q or a set?
UTG shows pocket queens so I was pretty close. The button shows…3h/8h? What? That is horrible. He over-called against utg and middle position with an 8 high flush draw?
Nearly as bad is the over-all winner, the middle position who shows the Ac/2c.
He called based on a flush draw, fair enough. He then called with a gut-shot, picked up a flush draw on the turn and rivered the nuts. He played worse than I have in weeks and got paid off huge, 36.01.
The utg had a pretty safe board to slow-play and it STILL bit him. I feel for the guy. He flopped the absolute nuts, there were no reasonable draws, he got bet into by someone drawing all but dead, got called by someone drawing super thin…and still got coolered.By the same token, I read exactly one hand anywhere near correctly…UTG. The others had much worse hands than I gave them credit for.
So a couple hands where, as a neutral observer, I had some decidedly mixed results on figuring out what they had. People are playing far looser than I credit, and I need to take that into account more often.
And work on figuring out hands better.
Friday
Tool time
My second hand in the session, I pick up A/K. Middle position, with 63.78, opens to .50. That screams small pair, something that does not want action. I have As/Kh and raise to 1.65. He surprises me and calls.
I have 2.25 behind, the pot is 3.40, it is probably all going in on the flop. Sure enough, the flop is 7c/5c/kc.
Ugh. I hit top pair…but what an ugly board. I would believe pocket 5s or 7s. I am not really worried about A/x suited because of his over-raise. I shove my last 2.25 and he calls….
With Ac/6h. Okay, so I was WAY off on what he had. He made a bad raise/worse call. At least now he had the nut flush draw and proper odds. The turn is the harmless 8h and I have to dodge 11 outs…the 9 clubs and 2 sixes.
The river is the 4, I am happy…until I notice it gave him the straight.
So how did I play this hand? Pre-flop, I like it. My read was generally correct…he had a sub-par hand that did not want any action. He was just trying to pick up the blinds with a scare-raise.
Very poor play on his part. He is risking .50 to win .15 and will only ever get action from a better hand.
I like my re-raise, although it can be argued it pot committed me with a drawing hand…at the same time, if I can get it all in with an unsuited A/6 against my A/K every time, I am happy with that.
I actually figured I was in a race and the flop PROBABLY gives me the lead with the King. I am only ever getting called by a better hand when I shove…unless I am against a bad player which, in this case, I would argue I was based on his pre-flop play.
Once I flop top/top, due to having nearly half my stack in, I am committed to the hand and have some fold equity by shoving. If he has 6s, 4s, 3s or deuces he is folding here, and he might even fold something like 8s or 10s.
Overall, a good read ended up costing me 40 big blinds.
Contrast that with me randomly deciding to make a move. The button, with 8.64, click-raises. All day and all night I fold garbage like the Qh/4h. For no apparent reason, I call this time.
I guess, recognizing the odds given, I decided to try to flop a flush draw or something. But the plan right now does not include advances poker plays like bluffing or playing the player type moves..I am trying to get back to the basics, playing good cards and playing them aggressively.
So this move makes no sense on any level. With just 3.85, I do not have enough chips to drive him off a hand, I have a bad hand, bad position…it is just a bad, bad idea.
The flop is the Jc/8d/3c. At least I do not compound my folly…I just check. He min-bets, I sense weakness and re-pop to .40 which he calls. Right there I should be done with the hand.
On the As turn, I bet .90 and he flat-calls it. The river is a 9s.
Okay, at this point I have not bothered to put him on a hand, I called with a bad hand, re-raised with nothing, and then bet with air. I have gotten 1.40 deep with nothing because he min-raised.
I finally, belatedly give up and check, he checks his Kings behind and I lost a good portion of my stack in a hand I should not have been in. Horrible, horrible play from beginning to end.
I continued playing poorly and getting (rightfully) buried. There are times I take a hit and it does not bother me...I get it in good, get drawn out on.
But there are times I really wonder what I am thinking. The first hand here I am okay with...the last one not so much.
When I have a play like that, I need to take the rest of the night off.
I have 2.25 behind, the pot is 3.40, it is probably all going in on the flop. Sure enough, the flop is 7c/5c/kc.
Ugh. I hit top pair…but what an ugly board. I would believe pocket 5s or 7s. I am not really worried about A/x suited because of his over-raise. I shove my last 2.25 and he calls….
With Ac/6h. Okay, so I was WAY off on what he had. He made a bad raise/worse call. At least now he had the nut flush draw and proper odds. The turn is the harmless 8h and I have to dodge 11 outs…the 9 clubs and 2 sixes.
The river is the 4, I am happy…until I notice it gave him the straight.
So how did I play this hand? Pre-flop, I like it. My read was generally correct…he had a sub-par hand that did not want any action. He was just trying to pick up the blinds with a scare-raise.
Very poor play on his part. He is risking .50 to win .15 and will only ever get action from a better hand.
I like my re-raise, although it can be argued it pot committed me with a drawing hand…at the same time, if I can get it all in with an unsuited A/6 against my A/K every time, I am happy with that.
I actually figured I was in a race and the flop PROBABLY gives me the lead with the King. I am only ever getting called by a better hand when I shove…unless I am against a bad player which, in this case, I would argue I was based on his pre-flop play.
Once I flop top/top, due to having nearly half my stack in, I am committed to the hand and have some fold equity by shoving. If he has 6s, 4s, 3s or deuces he is folding here, and he might even fold something like 8s or 10s.
Overall, a good read ended up costing me 40 big blinds.
Contrast that with me randomly deciding to make a move. The button, with 8.64, click-raises. All day and all night I fold garbage like the Qh/4h. For no apparent reason, I call this time.
I guess, recognizing the odds given, I decided to try to flop a flush draw or something. But the plan right now does not include advances poker plays like bluffing or playing the player type moves..I am trying to get back to the basics, playing good cards and playing them aggressively.
So this move makes no sense on any level. With just 3.85, I do not have enough chips to drive him off a hand, I have a bad hand, bad position…it is just a bad, bad idea.
The flop is the Jc/8d/3c. At least I do not compound my folly…I just check. He min-bets, I sense weakness and re-pop to .40 which he calls. Right there I should be done with the hand.
On the As turn, I bet .90 and he flat-calls it. The river is a 9s.
Okay, at this point I have not bothered to put him on a hand, I called with a bad hand, re-raised with nothing, and then bet with air. I have gotten 1.40 deep with nothing because he min-raised.
I finally, belatedly give up and check, he checks his Kings behind and I lost a good portion of my stack in a hand I should not have been in. Horrible, horrible play from beginning to end.
I continued playing poorly and getting (rightfully) buried. There are times I take a hit and it does not bother me...I get it in good, get drawn out on.
But there are times I really wonder what I am thinking. The first hand here I am okay with...the last one not so much.
When I have a play like that, I need to take the rest of the night off.
Thursday
Cowboy Roundup
Sitting behind 26.59, I pick up Kings, this time the red ones. UTG+2 I open to .30, the small blind calls with 11.84
The flop is a pseudo-dream flop, A/A/K, the third nuts. I am only behind A/k and pocket Aces, neither of which is overly likely. Normally, I bet out here. This time I elect to do one of my rare slow-plays. If he has one of those hands, it is all going in anyway and if he doesn’t he would just fold. Finally, a smart decision. He checks behind.
The turn is the irrelevant 9d, I bet half the pot, he calls.
The river is the 7s and suddenly he leads out for 1.30. I should re-pop it…but suddenly I get nervous. What if he called with A/9 or A/7 and now he drew out on me? What is he had big slick and slow-played me? As unlikely as these scenarios were, I suddenly wanted to play a small pot…and flat-called.
Not that I would not call a re-raise...after all, I have the fifth nuts and two hands that beat me...pocket Aces and big slick...are highly unlikely with how the hand played out. But it would be with a sick feeling that I had lost a huge pot.
He flipped up pocket 9s and I took a very, very small pot compared to what I should have taken.
When I have such a powerful hand, I cannot be afraid of getting involved. At the very least, a re-raise on the river was in order here. The way the hand played, it was very unlikely he had A/K or pocket Aces and no other hand beats me. Well, okay, so A/9 and A/7 do, both of which were in his range…but unlikely.
With 26.33 I pick up 2 red jacks in the big blind. UTG+2 opens to .30 with 9.80. The small blind, with 3.25, calls, I re-pop to 1.35, the utg+2 calls and the other folds.
The flop is decent for me…10c/6c/7d. I am pretty aggressive, betting 2.70. He re-pops to 6.20. Well now, that looks bad.
Remember a while ago when the opposition had bet weird and did this, I did the call-fist pump routine. This time it is way different.
He raised a standard amount and flat-called. This time I figure 6/6+, suited Ace, maybe A/J+. The re-raise indicates a made hand and he is wanting to maybe prevent the flush draw. Really, about the only hands I believe he is holding I could beat would be the somewhat unlikely A/10 suited, but I think he more likely has 10s, 6s or 7s. I fold and do not regret it.
Here is a fun hand I had nothing to do with except folding my small blind. Early middle position limps with 22.27, I fold my Ad/2c from the small blind, and the big blind checks with 18.65.
The flop is 4s/3h/8c. The limper bets the pot, .25 and gets a call. Lets see…open limper could be Aces or Kings trapping…though I tend to seldom see that play on this level…it could be a weak ace, probably suited, or a low to medium pair or possibly suited connectors. The big blind could be literally any two cards, but with a call here I would not be surprised to see him have something like 8/3, 8/4….maybe a 5/6 even. He could have all sorts of hand.s He might have two overs to the board or might just be planning to raise any checked turn.
The turn is the 7d. If either of them had the 5/6 they are very happy. The original limper bets .75 and gets a call. Pot is about 2.25 or so now.
The river is the 9s. 10/J is the nuts, but the way this hand played out, it is highly unlikely. Pocket 9s, pocket 8s/4s/3s are all within the realm of possibility as well as random two pair hands.
The initial limper checks, the big blind finally bets…20.42 cents into a 2 dollar pot! What on earth? I am betting he has something like pocket 9s, maybe pocket 3s…I would never call this bet without a 10/j or set of 8s or 9s. But the initial limper does call.
Original limper shows 8s/7s. Okay, flopped top pair, turned two pair, and checked on river when lots of hands beat him.
Big blind had…pocket 4s.He let the other guy hang himself, then made a fish bet and got paid off for it.
I really hate the way the first limper played the hand. He had no business limping in with that hand. I like his flop and turn play, hate every step of the river play. Bet again, don’t call a massive bet like that. Wow. So this pot of 35.35 goes to the big blind who got a free shot to hit his set.
He then eschewed the value bet to try and get hugely paid off.
Though I did not play this hand, I could see me being either guy and I see holes in both plays, yet I also see the value in both plays (except the river call). I guess the line between a really good play and a really bad play is really thin…
For example, I played a hand where to a point I took a similar line (though with a better finish for what I played). With 17.79 I watch the utg limp with 9.71, middle position take his time and then click-raise with 5.90 and from the next seat I have A/K.
Limps and click-raises both scream weak hand/weak player to me. I am raising this something like 103% of the time. I bump it to .85. The first limper calls and we take the flop.
The flop is decent for my hand, 4h/Qs/Jc. He could limp with something like J/10 or a suited ace that hit the four, maybe pocket 4s or some other middle pair, say 7s or worse. All those hands fit how he played the pre-flop, as well as a few random things I would hate to see like K/Q.
He checks, I bet 1/2 the pot expecting him to fold, he calls. The turn is the 10c, he checks, I bet expecting a call…and he folds. Probably should have checked there, but I like to charge people for their draws, and he was getting near pot-commitment time.
I need to be less fearful of getting drawn out on. It will help me make more on hands like this where he is highly unlikely to have a hand that has any chance of drawing out on me.
I had a really bad run where I was getting sucked out on with numerous runner-runner draws or one memorable one where I had Aces, got called on the flop and turn and rivered when a 10 hit by a guy holding 10/4 with a queen and king on the flop.
Or another where my Aces got taken down by a guy who called a re-raise with a suited q/9, missed the flop but called all in anyway and hit runner runner to flush out.
So I got gun shy about how I play, nervous about hands that could beat me and sometimes weighting my thoughts towards those hands instead of more reasonable hands.
As a result, several good hands I have mis=played and not pulled in as many chips as I should. Definitely a hole in my game.
The flop is a pseudo-dream flop, A/A/K, the third nuts. I am only behind A/k and pocket Aces, neither of which is overly likely. Normally, I bet out here. This time I elect to do one of my rare slow-plays. If he has one of those hands, it is all going in anyway and if he doesn’t he would just fold. Finally, a smart decision. He checks behind.
The turn is the irrelevant 9d, I bet half the pot, he calls.
The river is the 7s and suddenly he leads out for 1.30. I should re-pop it…but suddenly I get nervous. What if he called with A/9 or A/7 and now he drew out on me? What is he had big slick and slow-played me? As unlikely as these scenarios were, I suddenly wanted to play a small pot…and flat-called.
Not that I would not call a re-raise...after all, I have the fifth nuts and two hands that beat me...pocket Aces and big slick...are highly unlikely with how the hand played out. But it would be with a sick feeling that I had lost a huge pot.
He flipped up pocket 9s and I took a very, very small pot compared to what I should have taken.
When I have such a powerful hand, I cannot be afraid of getting involved. At the very least, a re-raise on the river was in order here. The way the hand played, it was very unlikely he had A/K or pocket Aces and no other hand beats me. Well, okay, so A/9 and A/7 do, both of which were in his range…but unlikely.
With 26.33 I pick up 2 red jacks in the big blind. UTG+2 opens to .30 with 9.80. The small blind, with 3.25, calls, I re-pop to 1.35, the utg+2 calls and the other folds.
The flop is decent for me…10c/6c/7d. I am pretty aggressive, betting 2.70. He re-pops to 6.20. Well now, that looks bad.
Remember a while ago when the opposition had bet weird and did this, I did the call-fist pump routine. This time it is way different.
He raised a standard amount and flat-called. This time I figure 6/6+, suited Ace, maybe A/J+. The re-raise indicates a made hand and he is wanting to maybe prevent the flush draw. Really, about the only hands I believe he is holding I could beat would be the somewhat unlikely A/10 suited, but I think he more likely has 10s, 6s or 7s. I fold and do not regret it.
Here is a fun hand I had nothing to do with except folding my small blind. Early middle position limps with 22.27, I fold my Ad/2c from the small blind, and the big blind checks with 18.65.
The flop is 4s/3h/8c. The limper bets the pot, .25 and gets a call. Lets see…open limper could be Aces or Kings trapping…though I tend to seldom see that play on this level…it could be a weak ace, probably suited, or a low to medium pair or possibly suited connectors. The big blind could be literally any two cards, but with a call here I would not be surprised to see him have something like 8/3, 8/4….maybe a 5/6 even. He could have all sorts of hand.s He might have two overs to the board or might just be planning to raise any checked turn.
The turn is the 7d. If either of them had the 5/6 they are very happy. The original limper bets .75 and gets a call. Pot is about 2.25 or so now.
The river is the 9s. 10/J is the nuts, but the way this hand played out, it is highly unlikely. Pocket 9s, pocket 8s/4s/3s are all within the realm of possibility as well as random two pair hands.
The initial limper checks, the big blind finally bets…20.42 cents into a 2 dollar pot! What on earth? I am betting he has something like pocket 9s, maybe pocket 3s…I would never call this bet without a 10/j or set of 8s or 9s. But the initial limper does call.
Original limper shows 8s/7s. Okay, flopped top pair, turned two pair, and checked on river when lots of hands beat him.
Big blind had…pocket 4s.He let the other guy hang himself, then made a fish bet and got paid off for it.
I really hate the way the first limper played the hand. He had no business limping in with that hand. I like his flop and turn play, hate every step of the river play. Bet again, don’t call a massive bet like that. Wow. So this pot of 35.35 goes to the big blind who got a free shot to hit his set.
He then eschewed the value bet to try and get hugely paid off.
Though I did not play this hand, I could see me being either guy and I see holes in both plays, yet I also see the value in both plays (except the river call). I guess the line between a really good play and a really bad play is really thin…
For example, I played a hand where to a point I took a similar line (though with a better finish for what I played). With 17.79 I watch the utg limp with 9.71, middle position take his time and then click-raise with 5.90 and from the next seat I have A/K.
Limps and click-raises both scream weak hand/weak player to me. I am raising this something like 103% of the time. I bump it to .85. The first limper calls and we take the flop.
The flop is decent for my hand, 4h/Qs/Jc. He could limp with something like J/10 or a suited ace that hit the four, maybe pocket 4s or some other middle pair, say 7s or worse. All those hands fit how he played the pre-flop, as well as a few random things I would hate to see like K/Q.
He checks, I bet 1/2 the pot expecting him to fold, he calls. The turn is the 10c, he checks, I bet expecting a call…and he folds. Probably should have checked there, but I like to charge people for their draws, and he was getting near pot-commitment time.
I need to be less fearful of getting drawn out on. It will help me make more on hands like this where he is highly unlikely to have a hand that has any chance of drawing out on me.
I had a really bad run where I was getting sucked out on with numerous runner-runner draws or one memorable one where I had Aces, got called on the flop and turn and rivered when a 10 hit by a guy holding 10/4 with a queen and king on the flop.
Or another where my Aces got taken down by a guy who called a re-raise with a suited q/9, missed the flop but called all in anyway and hit runner runner to flush out.
So I got gun shy about how I play, nervous about hands that could beat me and sometimes weighting my thoughts towards those hands instead of more reasonable hands.
As a result, several good hands I have mis=played and not pulled in as many chips as I should. Definitely a hole in my game.
Wednesday
Poke em in the eye and see if they blink
Time to talk about a hand I was not involved in…but could have been.
TehKitteh, with 15.51, opens to .30 from utg+2. The cut-off, Gator John, with 15.67, click-raises to .50, it is folded back to TheKitteh who flat-calls.
Now, I absolutely HATE the click-raise. Kitteh put in .30 voluntary, risking .30 cents to win .15. The raise back to him is now 20 cents to win 75, almost 4-1. There is no hand worth raising that is not worth calling that idiotic raise with.
So if he is “raising for information”…he got none. Well, a little…if Kitteh comes over the top you can put him on Queens or better or big slick.
So they take a 5c/10d/4s flop heads up with a pot of just over a buck. Kitteh checks, Gator raises .80 and Kitteh again flats it.
What a weird bet. If you are going to min-raise pre-flop, why come out betting 80% of the pot? I am lost in this hand. Is he betting for value or from fear?
The turn pairs the board, the 4c. Kitteh checks, Gator raises 1.45. Okay, another weird bet, from a percentage look he is betting in reverse, putting in 45% of the pot. Now it reads as he is scared. Which Kitteh pounces on with a re-pop to 5.40.
Check-raises on the turn scream strength. He raised and flatted pre-flop which screams drawing hand; a/x suited, medium pocket pairs, suited connectors all fit the bill. There are now two baby clubs…so I guess he could be playing a backdoor draw REALLY weird. Or two overs to the board…I guess Jacks, Queens, Kings are in his range, as are a/j+ of clubs.
Actually, A/10c would make a lot of sense here…top pair, nut flush draw, fold equity. But so would pocket 4s or pocket 5s trying to build a pot big enough to warrant a river all-in.
Gator calls the re-raise.
The river is the 5h. Kitteh leads out all-in with the last 8.81 and gets a call. I really expect to see maybe A/4, 4/5, A/10c+, or an over pair…yes, that wide of range.
Gator is more the over-pair desperately hoping his Jacks or Aces are still good.
Kitteh has pocket 10s and Gator pocket Kings.
I have mentioned before how I hate getting involved with hands in the big blind. It is virtually always something I would not play otherwise, but then I hit just enough to continue the hand because it seems I should and I get crushed. Exceptions would be the odd speculative hand I want to see cheap…pocket deuces, A/x suited, maybe J/10 or a medium suited connector.
But when utg+2 limps with 4.59 as does the next guy with 5.41and the small blind with 9.65, I look at 8s/kc and check.
I am not exactly ecstatic when the flop comes 7s/ks/7c. This hits all sorts of hands people limp with. But when the big blind checks, I lead out for half the pot, .20 cents. UTG+1 click-raises, the middle position calls.
Now, had mp not called, I probably re-raise here. Click-raise is weak. But the over call by the squeeze position worries me. I almost fold but decide to call and see what happens on the turn.
Plus, there are pretty good chances I might be up against something like A/7s or K/J type hands that have me drawing pretty thin.
The turn is the Jc. A/J, K/J now are ahead of me. I am not real interested in playing a big pot here, especially against two other players. I check, the utg+2 bets .50, roughly 1/3 the pot. MP raises to 1.40, I fold, utg goes all in and gets a call.
With that action, one had to have a 7 and best guess for the other would be over pair. As it turns out, one had 7h/10h (the first all-in) and the second had 7d/8c. They are on track for a split pot until the river drops an 8 on them.
I am actually pretty happy about this. I probably should not have called the first re-raise, but I did not keep chasing long after I was obviously beat. Had the over call not happened, I probably would have gotten stacked here.
All too often, hitting a big pair like a King is something I chase too long so maybe I am improving my level of play.
I still struggle to figure out what to do with Big Slick or, as I often call it…Anna Kournikova. Looks sexy, wins nothing. UTG+1 opens to .20 with 5.93, UTG+2 flat-calls with 10 even, the hi-jack also calls with 9.90. In the cut-off, I look down at Ac/Ks and 9.66.
A call is not going to happen here. With this many people, I am highly unlikely to win a pot and many are likely to have speculative hands or soft aces. I can either fold or re-raise. I consider both and elect to raise to 1.15. UTG+2, mp, and the hi-jack all call.
I like the flop quite a bit. Ad/7c/2c. Maybe someone hit the club draw, a bit less likely are pocket 7s, A/7s, a/2s, or pocket deuces. Other than that, I am ahead.
There is about 5 bucks in the pot, I normally bet a couple of bucks here…but this time I have some sort of brain cramp and bet 8.51 all in.
I hate, hate, hate that bet. It is way too much for too little. With the action on the hand, pocket sevens are well with the range of hands they could have.
Nor am I happy when I get a call by a guy who has me covered. He flips up…10/9c, on the flush draw. Okay, as bad as I played it…he played it worse.
Turn is a 10 but the river is a blank and my over-play pulls down a 20.32 pot.
Another difficult one to play for me is over pairs to the board. Sitting behind 20.23, I watch the utg take his time, then raise to .60, 6 times the big blind. On the button, I have two black kings. Time to decide what to do.
Over-raises like that usually represent a small pair that does not want action, though occasionally someone will trap with Aces with the fish-bet. He has 7.58, so I am risking about a third of my stack on this hand.
I decide to put on some pressure and re-raise to 1.95 which he flats. Now we have over 4 bucks in the pot and the flop comes 10s/qs/9d. He insta-bets all in 5.63 and I am completely lost in the hand.
The over bet pre-flop COULD represent pocket 9s, 10s, or Queens…but I think it is more likely to be 6s or below. His call indicates he is a poor player…if he had re-popped me pre-flop I would be more inclined to think Jacks or Queens.
At the same time, I cannot completely discount a set. I am not really counting K/J type non-sense. I actually cannot get my head around any other hand but a small pocket that missed and he was betting the flop regardless of what came.
Based on his poor pre-flop line and the instantaneous nature of his flop shove, I THINK I am way ahead of something like threes or deuces and he is trying to scare me away. At the same time, there is a chance I am drawing thin if he does have queens. I guess a suited A/Q is a remote possibility but I do not even consider it.
Additionally, I have Jacks as a probable out for the straight. I call.
I would never in a million years have put him on the hand he has. As/9h. He hit bottom pair, backdoor flush draw. He never improves and I pick up the 14.29 pot.
Wow, I cannot even describe how badly he played that hand. He opened under the gun with a weak ace, called a strong re-raise, and shoved with bottom pair on a dangerous board it was almost impossible to have not hit the re-raiser. I should write his name down and play more pots with him.
At the same time, I should also really think about my own play. Unquestionably I played the pre-flop correctly. If he comes over the top again I am not sure if I call there…but I suspect I do. I would put his range on J/J+, A/K, A/Qs and I have pretty good equity against that.
On the flop…well, utg usually represents strength but over-bets indicate weakness so on a pretty nasty board, I have to think what he could have hit. Again…if he hit K/J playing like that, he is going to stack me no doubt.
Against a set I am a 4-1 dog, against a flush draw I am a 3-1 favorite, against anything else he could REASONABLY hold…pockets lower than 7s I will argue…I am a big favorite. So yeah…I think I need to call here.
So this was a pretty nice session, and will cover a few errors along the way....
TehKitteh, with 15.51, opens to .30 from utg+2. The cut-off, Gator John, with 15.67, click-raises to .50, it is folded back to TheKitteh who flat-calls.
Now, I absolutely HATE the click-raise. Kitteh put in .30 voluntary, risking .30 cents to win .15. The raise back to him is now 20 cents to win 75, almost 4-1. There is no hand worth raising that is not worth calling that idiotic raise with.
So if he is “raising for information”…he got none. Well, a little…if Kitteh comes over the top you can put him on Queens or better or big slick.
So they take a 5c/10d/4s flop heads up with a pot of just over a buck. Kitteh checks, Gator raises .80 and Kitteh again flats it.
What a weird bet. If you are going to min-raise pre-flop, why come out betting 80% of the pot? I am lost in this hand. Is he betting for value or from fear?
The turn pairs the board, the 4c. Kitteh checks, Gator raises 1.45. Okay, another weird bet, from a percentage look he is betting in reverse, putting in 45% of the pot. Now it reads as he is scared. Which Kitteh pounces on with a re-pop to 5.40.
Check-raises on the turn scream strength. He raised and flatted pre-flop which screams drawing hand; a/x suited, medium pocket pairs, suited connectors all fit the bill. There are now two baby clubs…so I guess he could be playing a backdoor draw REALLY weird. Or two overs to the board…I guess Jacks, Queens, Kings are in his range, as are a/j+ of clubs.
Actually, A/10c would make a lot of sense here…top pair, nut flush draw, fold equity. But so would pocket 4s or pocket 5s trying to build a pot big enough to warrant a river all-in.
Gator calls the re-raise.
The river is the 5h. Kitteh leads out all-in with the last 8.81 and gets a call. I really expect to see maybe A/4, 4/5, A/10c+, or an over pair…yes, that wide of range.
Gator is more the over-pair desperately hoping his Jacks or Aces are still good.
Kitteh has pocket 10s and Gator pocket Kings.
I have mentioned before how I hate getting involved with hands in the big blind. It is virtually always something I would not play otherwise, but then I hit just enough to continue the hand because it seems I should and I get crushed. Exceptions would be the odd speculative hand I want to see cheap…pocket deuces, A/x suited, maybe J/10 or a medium suited connector.
But when utg+2 limps with 4.59 as does the next guy with 5.41and the small blind with 9.65, I look at 8s/kc and check.
I am not exactly ecstatic when the flop comes 7s/ks/7c. This hits all sorts of hands people limp with. But when the big blind checks, I lead out for half the pot, .20 cents. UTG+1 click-raises, the middle position calls.
Now, had mp not called, I probably re-raise here. Click-raise is weak. But the over call by the squeeze position worries me. I almost fold but decide to call and see what happens on the turn.
Plus, there are pretty good chances I might be up against something like A/7s or K/J type hands that have me drawing pretty thin.
The turn is the Jc. A/J, K/J now are ahead of me. I am not real interested in playing a big pot here, especially against two other players. I check, the utg+2 bets .50, roughly 1/3 the pot. MP raises to 1.40, I fold, utg goes all in and gets a call.
With that action, one had to have a 7 and best guess for the other would be over pair. As it turns out, one had 7h/10h (the first all-in) and the second had 7d/8c. They are on track for a split pot until the river drops an 8 on them.
I am actually pretty happy about this. I probably should not have called the first re-raise, but I did not keep chasing long after I was obviously beat. Had the over call not happened, I probably would have gotten stacked here.
All too often, hitting a big pair like a King is something I chase too long so maybe I am improving my level of play.
I still struggle to figure out what to do with Big Slick or, as I often call it…Anna Kournikova. Looks sexy, wins nothing. UTG+1 opens to .20 with 5.93, UTG+2 flat-calls with 10 even, the hi-jack also calls with 9.90. In the cut-off, I look down at Ac/Ks and 9.66.
A call is not going to happen here. With this many people, I am highly unlikely to win a pot and many are likely to have speculative hands or soft aces. I can either fold or re-raise. I consider both and elect to raise to 1.15. UTG+2, mp, and the hi-jack all call.
I like the flop quite a bit. Ad/7c/2c. Maybe someone hit the club draw, a bit less likely are pocket 7s, A/7s, a/2s, or pocket deuces. Other than that, I am ahead.
There is about 5 bucks in the pot, I normally bet a couple of bucks here…but this time I have some sort of brain cramp and bet 8.51 all in.
I hate, hate, hate that bet. It is way too much for too little. With the action on the hand, pocket sevens are well with the range of hands they could have.
Nor am I happy when I get a call by a guy who has me covered. He flips up…10/9c, on the flush draw. Okay, as bad as I played it…he played it worse.
Turn is a 10 but the river is a blank and my over-play pulls down a 20.32 pot.
Another difficult one to play for me is over pairs to the board. Sitting behind 20.23, I watch the utg take his time, then raise to .60, 6 times the big blind. On the button, I have two black kings. Time to decide what to do.
Over-raises like that usually represent a small pair that does not want action, though occasionally someone will trap with Aces with the fish-bet. He has 7.58, so I am risking about a third of my stack on this hand.
I decide to put on some pressure and re-raise to 1.95 which he flats. Now we have over 4 bucks in the pot and the flop comes 10s/qs/9d. He insta-bets all in 5.63 and I am completely lost in the hand.
The over bet pre-flop COULD represent pocket 9s, 10s, or Queens…but I think it is more likely to be 6s or below. His call indicates he is a poor player…if he had re-popped me pre-flop I would be more inclined to think Jacks or Queens.
At the same time, I cannot completely discount a set. I am not really counting K/J type non-sense. I actually cannot get my head around any other hand but a small pocket that missed and he was betting the flop regardless of what came.
Based on his poor pre-flop line and the instantaneous nature of his flop shove, I THINK I am way ahead of something like threes or deuces and he is trying to scare me away. At the same time, there is a chance I am drawing thin if he does have queens. I guess a suited A/Q is a remote possibility but I do not even consider it.
Additionally, I have Jacks as a probable out for the straight. I call.
I would never in a million years have put him on the hand he has. As/9h. He hit bottom pair, backdoor flush draw. He never improves and I pick up the 14.29 pot.
Wow, I cannot even describe how badly he played that hand. He opened under the gun with a weak ace, called a strong re-raise, and shoved with bottom pair on a dangerous board it was almost impossible to have not hit the re-raiser. I should write his name down and play more pots with him.
At the same time, I should also really think about my own play. Unquestionably I played the pre-flop correctly. If he comes over the top again I am not sure if I call there…but I suspect I do. I would put his range on J/J+, A/K, A/Qs and I have pretty good equity against that.
On the flop…well, utg usually represents strength but over-bets indicate weakness so on a pretty nasty board, I have to think what he could have hit. Again…if he hit K/J playing like that, he is going to stack me no doubt.
Against a set I am a 4-1 dog, against a flush draw I am a 3-1 favorite, against anything else he could REASONABLY hold…pockets lower than 7s I will argue…I am a big favorite. So yeah…I think I need to call here.
So this was a pretty nice session, and will cover a few errors along the way....
Tuesday
Random Hands
Having rat-holed a nice pick-up, I start a new session and promptly play exactly one of the first 23 hands…a boring open raise with big slick everyone folds to.
Finally I pick up big slick again, this time in the small blind. That is something I both love and hate. It is impossible to play a hand in position from the blind which adds to the difficulty. On the other hand, people often discount the strength of the hand…so I have to put them on a wider range of holdings.
UTG+2 opens for .30 with 9.10 in front of him. With 3.90, I have to decide how to proceed. Folding is something I actually occasionally do, and it is always a mistake. He could have a lot of hands here…6/6+, suited connectors, suited Ace, even something like K/Qo I have seen quite a bit.
Calling is a poor option as I give worse hands a free shot to draw out on me and I let them control the action. So a re-raise is in order. I pop it up to a buck and he flat calls.
I more or less rule out Aces or Kings, put Queens as possible but unlikely, and figure him for a good pair…10/10+, with other hands possible but unlikely. On the bright side, I have the initiative. On the dark side, he has position and the pot is a bit larger than I like with just Ace high.
The flop is pretty not good…7h/9s/5h. I hit none of that. Time to make my continuation bet as he probably hit none of that either. Now, with 2 bucks in the pot, I usually bet half the pot here…but in this case, that is the same amount I bet pre-flop, which is a bet that just feels weak and even at the amount, that pot commits me so I pot bet, 2.10, leaving me just .80 cents behind. I probably should have just moved in.
He instantly re-raises me. I figure he has something like Queens or Kings…maybe even Aces…but now with over 6 bucks in the pot and just 80 cents behind, there is no way I am folding. I made a bad bet, got clipped, and now time to pay.
He flips up pocket 7s, a hand I had in his initial range and had I only bet a buck, who knows…I MIGHT have been wise enough to fold. I doubt it…but every so often I surprise myself.
I actually thought I was drawing dead. Running Aces or Kings would give him a boat. The turn is the 10h and I start laughing…so many people have drawn out on me in ridiculous situations like this that I see it coming and when the 2h hits, I rivered the nut flush and take down the 7.38 pot on a ridiculous suck-out.
It is not often your chance to win a hand is better after the turn than the flop…but wow. Just wow.
Funny thing is…if I were him I would not have been in the hand anyway.
Lets reverse it for a second. I open to .30 and get re-raised to 1. I have pocket 7s which are almost guaranteed to need to improve to win the pot. I am really playing for a set here.
Short-hand math says I need to get 8-1 to play for a set…he is calling .70 to win 3.90 max, or less than 6-1. For me, that is an easy fold, particularly as I am behind most hands in the range of an opponent who re-raises from the small blind…I credit them for 10/10+, A/K, MAYBE A/Js+.
Against that range I am significantly behind over half and a coin flip against the rest. If the small blind calls, I am okay with that…if they re-raise, the odds are wrong and I need to fold.
So here is a case where both players played poorly, just at different points in the hand; his pre-flop play was abominable, and my post-flop play arguably even worse. And I got extremely fortunate to hit a horrific long-shot. I’ll take it.
Sometimes after I play a hand poorly and get rewarded, I get overly aggressive. This time I fold 9 consecutive hands and then, irony of ironies, he next hand I play is from middle position with pocket 7s.
Utg click-raises with 5.38, I call with 7.28. I want more people in the hand to increase my pot odds. Unfortunately, the next person raises to…wait for it…1.00 with 4.10 behind.
Folded back to me and I am facing an .80 cent raise to win 4.45 – rake. A simple 8x.80 tells me I need 6.40 and I am getting incorrect odds…so I fold.
This is a very similar situation with identical hands facing similar raises. I actually would argue I had MORE incentive to call…the re-raise was in the face of a lower-than-average raise and flat-call, both of which indicate marginal holdings, and had several people left to act, so this is more in line with an isolation raise.
I would give them any mid pair…say 4s or better, a moderate suited ace or a strong unsuited ace, a range my 7s have better equity against…but not good enough to call based on the odds. I might be wrong but I like the way I played this hand.
I then fold 22 consecutive hands…meaning I have not seen a flop in a while and the blinds have chipped me down to 6.78 when I pick up Ah/Kc and open to .30 from the cut-off. The big blind, with 6.80, calls and we see the flop heads up.
I am pretty happy with the flop…Ad/3h/7c. I am way behind pocket threes or pocket 7s but way ahead of anything else. There are not draws. He check-calls my .40 cent continuation, then check-folds the 2h turn. This game is easy.
A couple hands later I open with Queens in middle position, everyone folds. But I am okay with that. Being tighter with my opening hands has been good to me, no need to get involved bumping around opening trash like A/10o and then hitting flops part-way, getting lost in the hand and giving up big chunks.
Or getting into hands by accident. With 7.59 I am in the big blind with Js/Kc. The button limps with 37.89, the small blind folds, and I check my option.
If I am going to get a cheap look with a marginal hand I might as well flop a big hand. Now, normally here I will lead out. I have a good but hardly untouchable hand. For whatever reason…I check. He checks behind.
The turn brings us the 10d, adding a couple draws and potentially hitting several hands he might hold. I put out almost a pot size bet and he folds. Again…not sure how to play this. There is nothing to indicate he will ever bet into me. So I guess that is about as good as I can do. I need to figure out a better way to play hands like this where I am extremely likely to have the better hand.
After numerous folds and a couple uneventful, by the books hands, I pick up Ah/Jh under the gun. I routinely fold this hand as I am really working on tightening up my pre-flop hands, but this was a “I have folded lots of hands and this sure looks pretty after a barren stretch” moment so I raised to .30 with 7.63 in my stack.
The cut-off, with 2.81, flat-calls, as does the small blind with 2.36.
The three of us look at a pot of about a buck and a flop of 3c/8c/Js. With top pair, top kicker and both of them having less than three bucks I am pretty sure to see the river. The small blind checks, I bet half the pot, the cut-off folds and the small blind calls.
The turn is the 6s, he checks, I bet .90, he flats leaving .66 behind. That .66 is going in or he is folding on the river…because I am betting if he does not.
The river is the 3s, he leads out for .66. I know I am calling, but just as an exercise for myself, I work through the hands he could hold.
He was getting a decent price on his call, calling .25 to win .75 if the big blind folded, or 3-1. So with the loose nature of the game, I can give him credit for A/10+, A/xs, suited connectors, any pair, 10/j, or any two face cards. A pretty wide range.
He played it passively, check-calling to the river. He led out on the river, knowing I am unlikely to fold to a .66 cent bet into a 3.50ish pot. So he either A) has a monster and is afraid he will not get paid or B) has nothing and knows his best bet is making me fold.
Looking at the hand, a 3 is a definite possibility but unlikely. It feels more like a missed flush draw with minor thoughts he held a 9/10 and wanted a straight. I really think he is going to flip up a/x of clubs.
I make the easy call and he shows us the Kc/10c. What do you know, the missed flush. Okay, so I missed what his top card was…I am quite pleased with my read on the hand.
So some up and down play with pretty good results.
Finally I pick up big slick again, this time in the small blind. That is something I both love and hate. It is impossible to play a hand in position from the blind which adds to the difficulty. On the other hand, people often discount the strength of the hand…so I have to put them on a wider range of holdings.
UTG+2 opens for .30 with 9.10 in front of him. With 3.90, I have to decide how to proceed. Folding is something I actually occasionally do, and it is always a mistake. He could have a lot of hands here…6/6+, suited connectors, suited Ace, even something like K/Qo I have seen quite a bit.
Calling is a poor option as I give worse hands a free shot to draw out on me and I let them control the action. So a re-raise is in order. I pop it up to a buck and he flat calls.
I more or less rule out Aces or Kings, put Queens as possible but unlikely, and figure him for a good pair…10/10+, with other hands possible but unlikely. On the bright side, I have the initiative. On the dark side, he has position and the pot is a bit larger than I like with just Ace high.
The flop is pretty not good…7h/9s/5h. I hit none of that. Time to make my continuation bet as he probably hit none of that either. Now, with 2 bucks in the pot, I usually bet half the pot here…but in this case, that is the same amount I bet pre-flop, which is a bet that just feels weak and even at the amount, that pot commits me so I pot bet, 2.10, leaving me just .80 cents behind. I probably should have just moved in.
He instantly re-raises me. I figure he has something like Queens or Kings…maybe even Aces…but now with over 6 bucks in the pot and just 80 cents behind, there is no way I am folding. I made a bad bet, got clipped, and now time to pay.
He flips up pocket 7s, a hand I had in his initial range and had I only bet a buck, who knows…I MIGHT have been wise enough to fold. I doubt it…but every so often I surprise myself.
I actually thought I was drawing dead. Running Aces or Kings would give him a boat. The turn is the 10h and I start laughing…so many people have drawn out on me in ridiculous situations like this that I see it coming and when the 2h hits, I rivered the nut flush and take down the 7.38 pot on a ridiculous suck-out.
It is not often your chance to win a hand is better after the turn than the flop…but wow. Just wow.
Funny thing is…if I were him I would not have been in the hand anyway.
Lets reverse it for a second. I open to .30 and get re-raised to 1. I have pocket 7s which are almost guaranteed to need to improve to win the pot. I am really playing for a set here.
Short-hand math says I need to get 8-1 to play for a set…he is calling .70 to win 3.90 max, or less than 6-1. For me, that is an easy fold, particularly as I am behind most hands in the range of an opponent who re-raises from the small blind…I credit them for 10/10+, A/K, MAYBE A/Js+.
Against that range I am significantly behind over half and a coin flip against the rest. If the small blind calls, I am okay with that…if they re-raise, the odds are wrong and I need to fold.
So here is a case where both players played poorly, just at different points in the hand; his pre-flop play was abominable, and my post-flop play arguably even worse. And I got extremely fortunate to hit a horrific long-shot. I’ll take it.
Sometimes after I play a hand poorly and get rewarded, I get overly aggressive. This time I fold 9 consecutive hands and then, irony of ironies, he next hand I play is from middle position with pocket 7s.
Utg click-raises with 5.38, I call with 7.28. I want more people in the hand to increase my pot odds. Unfortunately, the next person raises to…wait for it…1.00 with 4.10 behind.
Folded back to me and I am facing an .80 cent raise to win 4.45 – rake. A simple 8x.80 tells me I need 6.40 and I am getting incorrect odds…so I fold.
This is a very similar situation with identical hands facing similar raises. I actually would argue I had MORE incentive to call…the re-raise was in the face of a lower-than-average raise and flat-call, both of which indicate marginal holdings, and had several people left to act, so this is more in line with an isolation raise.
I would give them any mid pair…say 4s or better, a moderate suited ace or a strong unsuited ace, a range my 7s have better equity against…but not good enough to call based on the odds. I might be wrong but I like the way I played this hand.
I then fold 22 consecutive hands…meaning I have not seen a flop in a while and the blinds have chipped me down to 6.78 when I pick up Ah/Kc and open to .30 from the cut-off. The big blind, with 6.80, calls and we see the flop heads up.
I am pretty happy with the flop…Ad/3h/7c. I am way behind pocket threes or pocket 7s but way ahead of anything else. There are not draws. He check-calls my .40 cent continuation, then check-folds the 2h turn. This game is easy.
A couple hands later I open with Queens in middle position, everyone folds. But I am okay with that. Being tighter with my opening hands has been good to me, no need to get involved bumping around opening trash like A/10o and then hitting flops part-way, getting lost in the hand and giving up big chunks.
Or getting into hands by accident. With 7.59 I am in the big blind with Js/Kc. The button limps with 37.89, the small blind folds, and I check my option.
If I am going to get a cheap look with a marginal hand I might as well flop a big hand. Now, normally here I will lead out. I have a good but hardly untouchable hand. For whatever reason…I check. He checks behind.
The turn brings us the 10d, adding a couple draws and potentially hitting several hands he might hold. I put out almost a pot size bet and he folds. Again…not sure how to play this. There is nothing to indicate he will ever bet into me. So I guess that is about as good as I can do. I need to figure out a better way to play hands like this where I am extremely likely to have the better hand.
After numerous folds and a couple uneventful, by the books hands, I pick up Ah/Jh under the gun. I routinely fold this hand as I am really working on tightening up my pre-flop hands, but this was a “I have folded lots of hands and this sure looks pretty after a barren stretch” moment so I raised to .30 with 7.63 in my stack.
The cut-off, with 2.81, flat-calls, as does the small blind with 2.36.
The three of us look at a pot of about a buck and a flop of 3c/8c/Js. With top pair, top kicker and both of them having less than three bucks I am pretty sure to see the river. The small blind checks, I bet half the pot, the cut-off folds and the small blind calls.
The turn is the 6s, he checks, I bet .90, he flats leaving .66 behind. That .66 is going in or he is folding on the river…because I am betting if he does not.
The river is the 3s, he leads out for .66. I know I am calling, but just as an exercise for myself, I work through the hands he could hold.
He was getting a decent price on his call, calling .25 to win .75 if the big blind folded, or 3-1. So with the loose nature of the game, I can give him credit for A/10+, A/xs, suited connectors, any pair, 10/j, or any two face cards. A pretty wide range.
He played it passively, check-calling to the river. He led out on the river, knowing I am unlikely to fold to a .66 cent bet into a 3.50ish pot. So he either A) has a monster and is afraid he will not get paid or B) has nothing and knows his best bet is making me fold.
Looking at the hand, a 3 is a definite possibility but unlikely. It feels more like a missed flush draw with minor thoughts he held a 9/10 and wanted a straight. I really think he is going to flip up a/x of clubs.
I make the easy call and he shows us the Kc/10c. What do you know, the missed flush. Okay, so I missed what his top card was…I am quite pleased with my read on the hand.
So some up and down play with pretty good results.
Saturday
Check or bet?
Having folded the first few hands of a session, I am sitting behind 3.80 when I pick up Jc/Qs in the cut-off. If anyone raises, it is another fold, but when it is folded to me I open to .30. The small blind calls, big blind folds and we go to the flop heads up with about .65 in the pot.
If I am going to raise a trash hand like that, it might as well flop a draw…like 10s/9d/5s. I put in a .50 bet, a little high for normal...it was actually a mis-click. I meant to bet .40.
That sounds like a minor detail, but it is not. I am trying to keep my odds where I want them, to control the pot. If I make a half-pot bet on the flop, a half-pot bet on the turn is a third cheaper and the same with the river...yet each way gets me close enough to get lots of chips in if the situation warrants.
But the larger flop bet will require larger turn and river bets...and lead to more chips in the center when I do NOT think the situation warrants based on hand strength, but the pot odds will be more favorable.
More favorable pot odds when I think I am behind do not mean I am happy...if I think I am behind but calling because I will be wrong x amount of the time, I want the call to be for fewer chips, not more.
He thinks about it for quite a while, then raises to 2.25 all-in. I am getting basically 2-1 on the call.
I know I have 6 clean outs…any non-spade K or 8. I might have an over card…but I suspect he is either top pair/top kicker or flush draw. Maybe a set.
I should fold…I usually do…but inexplicably, for reasons I still cannot explain…I call. He has Jh/9h and I am drawing better than expected…11 clean outs. Still an underdog but not as bad as expected.
The turn is the 2h and then my poor play is rewarded when I spike the King on the river.
This looked like exactly what it was…two fish battling it out, playing poorly, making bad calls and taking turns getting rewarded. I stunk up the joint on the hand…but got paid off unlike when I actually have good hands.
Oddly, I am finding this lately…when I play what I believe is well…pushing good hands, charging for draws, betting monsters…I end up with losing sessions.
Conversely, when I play maniacally…chasing draws in the face of odds, for example…I have good results. This is counter-intuitive and dangerous.
It also leads to brainless aggression. Like sitting behind 6.15 as a result of sucking out on that guy, when the small blind with 7.31 opens to .30, I call the extra 20 cents with Kh/10c.
I do not mind the call…I have an above-average hand, have position, and he could be betting position. I will most likely call the expected continuation bet on the flop, then raise his checked turn and take own the pot. Hopefully. That is the plan.
And helping the plan along, the flop is 9d/Jd/8c, adding an up and down straight draw to my over. He bets .60, I flat-call it. No need to build a pot with a draw in play.
The 4d falls on the turn…perfect bluffing card. He checks, I bet, he folds. Thing is, if I was not planning to bet the turn, I should not have called the flop. Or, arguably, the pre-flop.
At the same time, if he is a good player and has the flush, he wants to check-raise me here. I am only ever getting called by a better hand...or a horrific player.
Very next hand I pick up big slick in middle position. Guy in front of me raises to .30, I re-pop to 1.05, he folds. Nice.
I then fold 21 consecutive hands before picking up Ah/Qh in the hi-jack. At this point I have 7.23. A middle position guy takes time, then raises to .30 sitting behind 12.24. I ponder re-raising, but decide to flat call.
A/Q suited is, in the way I play, a drawing hand. I might get a couple more calls and perhaps win a nice pot should a flush hit. Sure enough, a guy with 5.79 calls on the button, the blinds fold and we take a three-handed flop.
The flop is Ks/7c/2h. Checked around. Turn brings the Ac, I bet, they fold.
A few folds later, I pick up hockey sticks in the hi-jack. With 8.35, I am feeling frisky and make it .30 to go. The small blind, with 9.95, calls and we take the flop heads up.
I am not real excited about the Jh/Kc/3s flop. That hits a trainload of hands the small blind would call with. It also misses a truckload of them, and when he checks, I continuation bet .40 into a .66 cent pot. I actually expect him to call and then check-fold the turn, but he ups my happiness meter 2 points by meekly folding.
This illustrates to me again the power of position. If he comes out firing, I am going to have to think long and hard about what to do. If it is one of those idiotic 1 or 2 blind bets into a 6 blind pot, I probably re-pop him. If it is a half size bet, I am on the fence over whether to call, fold, or raise. If it is a pot-size bet, I probably fold here.
Conversely, when he checks, I am pretty much locked into raising here. 7s are nice, but unlikely to win a show-down unimproved. Therefore it behooves me to put pressure on the opposition, best done by betting when they show weakness. It is easier to see their weakness if I see their move before I make mine.
The next hand I fold the small blind to a min-raise holding 4s/6d. Too bad, the flop was 6h/6s/4c. Would have been my second flopped boat with a trash hand in this session…but I folded them both. Wisely. Especially wisely as the turn and river were both tens and I would have lost to the A/10 holdings that boated up…
Which, by the way, leads indirectly back to one of my weaknesses. If I flop 6s full, I would be very tempted to slow-play. It feels like a pretty safe hand. If someone wants to beat it, they need pockets that pair or something unlikely like running cards that pair the board.
But when I slow-play, I seldom if ever manage to get the chips in by the river…UNLESS the opponent not only catches up, they pass me…and I get stacked with flopped 6s full verse rivered 10s full. This time I avoided it by the (correct) pre-flop fold…does anyone think when I checked the flop and bet the turn that the A/10 is folding?
Fresh off the smart fold, I pick up 10c/8d in the big blind. The small blind, with 6.84, click-raises. Often I have folded this lately, even though it looks, feels, and plays like something he could do with…well, there are 291 starting hands, my 10/8 block very few of them…any hand NOT containing the 10c/8d are in his range.
This time I call planning to call his flop raise, raise the turn and take it down.
The flop is the generic Qd/7d/3c. Hits a few hands he holds, misses most of them. He raises another .20, I call.
The turn is the Jh, hitting a few more hands I believe. He checks, I bet .50 expecting him to fold, he hesitates…almost times out…and calls.
Hmm. Did that Jack hit him? He on the possible but unlikely diamond flush draw? He have the 3, or a pair smaller than the Jack… 9s most likely as I hold a ten and eight, somewhat reducing his possibilities for those.
Regardless, I am going to tread carefully on the river. Barring the miracle non-diamond 9, there is really no card I am ecstatic about and I am kicking myself for wasting 90 cents…well, okay, 50 cents. Well, okay, not really upset…the hand went according to plan outside of his call. I built a plan for the hand, played the plan, and my opponent refused to co-operate.
The river is the 10h. I am not super excited about that. K/9, 8/9, 10/9 are all believable holdings that love that card. He checks.
Now…I have a marginal hand with marginal show-down value. Check behind and see what happens? I know if I raise and he re-pops I am folding so that is a wise course of action.
But the more I think about it, the more I think he has a missed draw. The hesitant call on the turn followed by the river check indicates either a weak hand that will fold…or a monster that will re-raise.
He has a couple hands he will fold that have me beat…a couple in his range that are weaker he will call with. Ultimately I am not sure if betting here is the right play or wrong play. I need to think about this a bit more.
As it turns out, on the hand, I bet another .90 cents into it. He expends his full 20seconds, asks for time, and finally folds.
Sitting behind 9.14 I open to .30 from utg+2. The button calls with 3.03 and we go to the flop heads up. The flop is 2c/Jh/6s. As the pre-flop aggressor, I am going to continuation bet here something like 99% of the time and I do so, leading out for .40cents.
He flat-calls and it is time to start putting him on a hand. A/K, A/Q, A/J, K/Q, K/J, maybe tens or similar pockets.
There are really no draws. He might be slow-playing a set of 6s or deuces, but I think that is unlikely. I think the most likely hand is a couple overs or something like A/10 suited where he is playing his Ace.
The turn is the 4d. This hits exactly zero hands he was playing…well, okay, if he has the 3/5 it hits him and I am going to get stacked. I bet pre-flop, I bet the flop, now I have a choice. I am pretty sure not only that I am ahead but that he is not going to catch up. So check or bet?
This is me. Clear answer; bet. I lead out for .80 and he again flat-calls. The river is the qd. There are now precisely 2 hands that beat me…pocket queens and 3/5. I need to figure out if it is better to bet or check.
There are no obvious draws here. He has something…but he seems more interested in seeing a cheap river than raising since he never re-popped me. I do not think he will bet, so I again half-pot it…which would still put him all in. He folds, sadly for me.
Now, going back over the hand, I wonder if I should have played it different. I had pocket Jacks so I flopped the nuts and ended with the third nuts. Not sure how to play them differently to get his whole stack. I actually like how I played it.
Perhaps the reasoning can be explained by the next memorable hand I play. With 10.88 I am in the big blind with Ad/2h. If anyone even click-raises I will fold in a heart-beat for reasons I have discussed elsewhere. There are 2 hands that can flop I love; 3 aces or 3 deuces on the flop. Otherwise, not too happy.
2 middle position guys with 7.20 and 23.20 limp, everyone else folds, and I check. A raise could be argued for here…but I really do not want to play a big pot out of position against 2 players with A/2.
The flop is pretty decent…2c/Ac/Jd. I am behind pocket Jacks which I believe would have been raised pre-flop but not much else. A/J...more believable, but I still would expect a pre-flop raise from that. I almost bet, then decide to check-raise instead.
This was a mistake. Both players limped…there is no reason to believe this hit either, so no reason to believe they will raise. Both check and the turn is the 9c. I check-fold to a bet.
I played this hand about as poorly as possible and instead of picking up a small pot, I won nothing. On the bright side…I lost just the big blind…but that is small consolation.
Sitting behind 9.78 I pick up pocket 4s on the button. I open to .30, the big blind calls with 2.80 and we see the 10c/9c/2s flop heads up.
This is a decent flop for me…A/10, A/9, K/10, Q/10, J/10 are really the main hands I think Trish1969 could be playing. I am not overly worried about that…she checks, I bet, she calls. Lots of people do, I expect her to check-fold the turn.
The turn is the Js…changes nothing. Unless she has something like K/J, if I was ahead before, I am ahead now. I guess a couple draws get there. She checks, I bet…she flat-calls.
Now I think the most likely hand is a flush draw. I will be very careful on the river. The river is the irrelevant 3. Unless she has pocket treys, I am in good shape. She checks and it is time to choose between checking and betting.
If she has the Q/K or a set, she will re-pop me. If she has the busted flush draw I suspect she will fold. If she had something that tagged the 9 or 10 and just wanted to see a cheap river, it is 50-50 what I should do. Ultimately I get the feeling she either has nothing or a huge hand…either way a bet wins nothing, but could lose a lot.
I check, fully expecting to see A/x and take down the pot. Instead I see her turn up…7d/Jc? What?
Let’s see. I guess the pre-flop sort of makes sense since a lot of people will defend their blind with about any two cards. Fair enough.
And a lot of people will also “just see what happens” on the turn…a move I use myself to take down a lot of pots by calling the flo and betting the turn…but that relies on calling in position.
In fact, that is exactly what I did myself earlier with the K/10. Of course, I did it in position...I seldom if ever do it out of position.
So on the turn, she suddenly hits a jack and now has top pair, gut shot straight draw. On the river, I have bet every step of the way, so there is no reason for her to bet. She has a marginal hand that wants to see a cheap showdown.
I do not like the pre-flop or flop play, but upon further review I sort of get her turn and river. I do not know I would have played it that way...but I am glad she did.
So here is a hand I think I actually played pretty well…and ended up losing 1.40. But I am okay with that much more than the hand I played poorly and “lost” .10 because I should have won a small but worthwhile pot.
So for the session, I think the lesson is clear. I really need to work on when to bet and when to check on the turn and river.
If I am going to raise a trash hand like that, it might as well flop a draw…like 10s/9d/5s. I put in a .50 bet, a little high for normal...it was actually a mis-click. I meant to bet .40.
That sounds like a minor detail, but it is not. I am trying to keep my odds where I want them, to control the pot. If I make a half-pot bet on the flop, a half-pot bet on the turn is a third cheaper and the same with the river...yet each way gets me close enough to get lots of chips in if the situation warrants.
But the larger flop bet will require larger turn and river bets...and lead to more chips in the center when I do NOT think the situation warrants based on hand strength, but the pot odds will be more favorable.
More favorable pot odds when I think I am behind do not mean I am happy...if I think I am behind but calling because I will be wrong x amount of the time, I want the call to be for fewer chips, not more.
He thinks about it for quite a while, then raises to 2.25 all-in. I am getting basically 2-1 on the call.
I know I have 6 clean outs…any non-spade K or 8. I might have an over card…but I suspect he is either top pair/top kicker or flush draw. Maybe a set.
I should fold…I usually do…but inexplicably, for reasons I still cannot explain…I call. He has Jh/9h and I am drawing better than expected…11 clean outs. Still an underdog but not as bad as expected.
The turn is the 2h and then my poor play is rewarded when I spike the King on the river.
This looked like exactly what it was…two fish battling it out, playing poorly, making bad calls and taking turns getting rewarded. I stunk up the joint on the hand…but got paid off unlike when I actually have good hands.
Oddly, I am finding this lately…when I play what I believe is well…pushing good hands, charging for draws, betting monsters…I end up with losing sessions.
Conversely, when I play maniacally…chasing draws in the face of odds, for example…I have good results. This is counter-intuitive and dangerous.
It also leads to brainless aggression. Like sitting behind 6.15 as a result of sucking out on that guy, when the small blind with 7.31 opens to .30, I call the extra 20 cents with Kh/10c.
I do not mind the call…I have an above-average hand, have position, and he could be betting position. I will most likely call the expected continuation bet on the flop, then raise his checked turn and take own the pot. Hopefully. That is the plan.
And helping the plan along, the flop is 9d/Jd/8c, adding an up and down straight draw to my over. He bets .60, I flat-call it. No need to build a pot with a draw in play.
The 4d falls on the turn…perfect bluffing card. He checks, I bet, he folds. Thing is, if I was not planning to bet the turn, I should not have called the flop. Or, arguably, the pre-flop.
At the same time, if he is a good player and has the flush, he wants to check-raise me here. I am only ever getting called by a better hand...or a horrific player.
Very next hand I pick up big slick in middle position. Guy in front of me raises to .30, I re-pop to 1.05, he folds. Nice.
I then fold 21 consecutive hands before picking up Ah/Qh in the hi-jack. At this point I have 7.23. A middle position guy takes time, then raises to .30 sitting behind 12.24. I ponder re-raising, but decide to flat call.
A/Q suited is, in the way I play, a drawing hand. I might get a couple more calls and perhaps win a nice pot should a flush hit. Sure enough, a guy with 5.79 calls on the button, the blinds fold and we take a three-handed flop.
The flop is Ks/7c/2h. Checked around. Turn brings the Ac, I bet, they fold.
A few folds later, I pick up hockey sticks in the hi-jack. With 8.35, I am feeling frisky and make it .30 to go. The small blind, with 9.95, calls and we take the flop heads up.
I am not real excited about the Jh/Kc/3s flop. That hits a trainload of hands the small blind would call with. It also misses a truckload of them, and when he checks, I continuation bet .40 into a .66 cent pot. I actually expect him to call and then check-fold the turn, but he ups my happiness meter 2 points by meekly folding.
This illustrates to me again the power of position. If he comes out firing, I am going to have to think long and hard about what to do. If it is one of those idiotic 1 or 2 blind bets into a 6 blind pot, I probably re-pop him. If it is a half size bet, I am on the fence over whether to call, fold, or raise. If it is a pot-size bet, I probably fold here.
Conversely, when he checks, I am pretty much locked into raising here. 7s are nice, but unlikely to win a show-down unimproved. Therefore it behooves me to put pressure on the opposition, best done by betting when they show weakness. It is easier to see their weakness if I see their move before I make mine.
The next hand I fold the small blind to a min-raise holding 4s/6d. Too bad, the flop was 6h/6s/4c. Would have been my second flopped boat with a trash hand in this session…but I folded them both. Wisely. Especially wisely as the turn and river were both tens and I would have lost to the A/10 holdings that boated up…
Which, by the way, leads indirectly back to one of my weaknesses. If I flop 6s full, I would be very tempted to slow-play. It feels like a pretty safe hand. If someone wants to beat it, they need pockets that pair or something unlikely like running cards that pair the board.
But when I slow-play, I seldom if ever manage to get the chips in by the river…UNLESS the opponent not only catches up, they pass me…and I get stacked with flopped 6s full verse rivered 10s full. This time I avoided it by the (correct) pre-flop fold…does anyone think when I checked the flop and bet the turn that the A/10 is folding?
Fresh off the smart fold, I pick up 10c/8d in the big blind. The small blind, with 6.84, click-raises. Often I have folded this lately, even though it looks, feels, and plays like something he could do with…well, there are 291 starting hands, my 10/8 block very few of them…any hand NOT containing the 10c/8d are in his range.
This time I call planning to call his flop raise, raise the turn and take it down.
The flop is the generic Qd/7d/3c. Hits a few hands he holds, misses most of them. He raises another .20, I call.
The turn is the Jh, hitting a few more hands I believe. He checks, I bet .50 expecting him to fold, he hesitates…almost times out…and calls.
Hmm. Did that Jack hit him? He on the possible but unlikely diamond flush draw? He have the 3, or a pair smaller than the Jack… 9s most likely as I hold a ten and eight, somewhat reducing his possibilities for those.
Regardless, I am going to tread carefully on the river. Barring the miracle non-diamond 9, there is really no card I am ecstatic about and I am kicking myself for wasting 90 cents…well, okay, 50 cents. Well, okay, not really upset…the hand went according to plan outside of his call. I built a plan for the hand, played the plan, and my opponent refused to co-operate.
The river is the 10h. I am not super excited about that. K/9, 8/9, 10/9 are all believable holdings that love that card. He checks.
Now…I have a marginal hand with marginal show-down value. Check behind and see what happens? I know if I raise and he re-pops I am folding so that is a wise course of action.
But the more I think about it, the more I think he has a missed draw. The hesitant call on the turn followed by the river check indicates either a weak hand that will fold…or a monster that will re-raise.
He has a couple hands he will fold that have me beat…a couple in his range that are weaker he will call with. Ultimately I am not sure if betting here is the right play or wrong play. I need to think about this a bit more.
As it turns out, on the hand, I bet another .90 cents into it. He expends his full 20seconds, asks for time, and finally folds.
Sitting behind 9.14 I open to .30 from utg+2. The button calls with 3.03 and we go to the flop heads up. The flop is 2c/Jh/6s. As the pre-flop aggressor, I am going to continuation bet here something like 99% of the time and I do so, leading out for .40cents.
He flat-calls and it is time to start putting him on a hand. A/K, A/Q, A/J, K/Q, K/J, maybe tens or similar pockets.
There are really no draws. He might be slow-playing a set of 6s or deuces, but I think that is unlikely. I think the most likely hand is a couple overs or something like A/10 suited where he is playing his Ace.
The turn is the 4d. This hits exactly zero hands he was playing…well, okay, if he has the 3/5 it hits him and I am going to get stacked. I bet pre-flop, I bet the flop, now I have a choice. I am pretty sure not only that I am ahead but that he is not going to catch up. So check or bet?
This is me. Clear answer; bet. I lead out for .80 and he again flat-calls. The river is the qd. There are now precisely 2 hands that beat me…pocket queens and 3/5. I need to figure out if it is better to bet or check.
There are no obvious draws here. He has something…but he seems more interested in seeing a cheap river than raising since he never re-popped me. I do not think he will bet, so I again half-pot it…which would still put him all in. He folds, sadly for me.
Now, going back over the hand, I wonder if I should have played it different. I had pocket Jacks so I flopped the nuts and ended with the third nuts. Not sure how to play them differently to get his whole stack. I actually like how I played it.
Perhaps the reasoning can be explained by the next memorable hand I play. With 10.88 I am in the big blind with Ad/2h. If anyone even click-raises I will fold in a heart-beat for reasons I have discussed elsewhere. There are 2 hands that can flop I love; 3 aces or 3 deuces on the flop. Otherwise, not too happy.
2 middle position guys with 7.20 and 23.20 limp, everyone else folds, and I check. A raise could be argued for here…but I really do not want to play a big pot out of position against 2 players with A/2.
The flop is pretty decent…2c/Ac/Jd. I am behind pocket Jacks which I believe would have been raised pre-flop but not much else. A/J...more believable, but I still would expect a pre-flop raise from that. I almost bet, then decide to check-raise instead.
This was a mistake. Both players limped…there is no reason to believe this hit either, so no reason to believe they will raise. Both check and the turn is the 9c. I check-fold to a bet.
I played this hand about as poorly as possible and instead of picking up a small pot, I won nothing. On the bright side…I lost just the big blind…but that is small consolation.
Sitting behind 9.78 I pick up pocket 4s on the button. I open to .30, the big blind calls with 2.80 and we see the 10c/9c/2s flop heads up.
This is a decent flop for me…A/10, A/9, K/10, Q/10, J/10 are really the main hands I think Trish1969 could be playing. I am not overly worried about that…she checks, I bet, she calls. Lots of people do, I expect her to check-fold the turn.
The turn is the Js…changes nothing. Unless she has something like K/J, if I was ahead before, I am ahead now. I guess a couple draws get there. She checks, I bet…she flat-calls.
Now I think the most likely hand is a flush draw. I will be very careful on the river. The river is the irrelevant 3. Unless she has pocket treys, I am in good shape. She checks and it is time to choose between checking and betting.
If she has the Q/K or a set, she will re-pop me. If she has the busted flush draw I suspect she will fold. If she had something that tagged the 9 or 10 and just wanted to see a cheap river, it is 50-50 what I should do. Ultimately I get the feeling she either has nothing or a huge hand…either way a bet wins nothing, but could lose a lot.
I check, fully expecting to see A/x and take down the pot. Instead I see her turn up…7d/Jc? What?
Let’s see. I guess the pre-flop sort of makes sense since a lot of people will defend their blind with about any two cards. Fair enough.
And a lot of people will also “just see what happens” on the turn…a move I use myself to take down a lot of pots by calling the flo and betting the turn…but that relies on calling in position.
In fact, that is exactly what I did myself earlier with the K/10. Of course, I did it in position...I seldom if ever do it out of position.
So on the turn, she suddenly hits a jack and now has top pair, gut shot straight draw. On the river, I have bet every step of the way, so there is no reason for her to bet. She has a marginal hand that wants to see a cheap showdown.
I do not like the pre-flop or flop play, but upon further review I sort of get her turn and river. I do not know I would have played it that way...but I am glad she did.
So here is a hand I think I actually played pretty well…and ended up losing 1.40. But I am okay with that much more than the hand I played poorly and “lost” .10 because I should have won a small but worthwhile pot.
So for the session, I think the lesson is clear. I really need to work on when to bet and when to check on the turn and river.
Thursday
When Big Pockets go south
Started out with 4 bucks playing 5/10. The plan was to play tight, mostly set-mine. Raise 7+ from early, any pair from middle, call up to 30 cents in middle or later with about any pair. Raise Big Slick, A/Qs from middle or later, A/Jo from late. Everything else is a fold.
And the very first hand, pick up the cowboys in the big blind. UTG has 7.15 and bumps to .30, folded to me. Some players, better than me, would flat-call here. I do not because I tend to hold the hand too long…I would rather win .35 pre-flop (his raise + the blind) than play a hand out of position, particularly if an Ace flops.
I re-pop to .95, he calls. There is about 2 bucks in there, I have 3.05. The flop comes down Jc/9d/3c. The correct play here is to bet half the pot and shove the turn.
I have gotten drawn out on a lot lately and was feeling puckish. I decided it was going to cost him to draw out. Realizing Jacks were in his hand range but not much else I was not ahead of, I went ahead and went all-in. He folded.
I do not know if I like how I played the hand or not. I am really only getting called by MAYBE A/J, queens, aces, or a set. I guess some weak players would call on the flush draw, but they would be getting bad odds.
At the same time, it adversely affects my play when someone with some trash like a suited 10/7 sticks around and hits runner-runner. It should not bother me…I want to face those hands in this situation and have them call. But it has felt like I was running into that a lot lately…so take the .87 pick-up and move to the next hand.
2 folds later, I break my plan, opening to .20 from under the gun. A middle position player with 6.98 calls, as does the big blind with 24.66.
The flop is ugly, Ks/10d/8d. Many times I continuation bet here, having raised pre-flop. But on this board…K/Q, K/J, K/10, Q/J, Q/10, J/10, 7/8 suited, 9/10 suited as well as a variety of A/x suited that include an 8 or 10 all are well in the range of hands here. At the moment the only hands I am ahead of are things like A/Q, A/J, pocket treys.
It is checked around. If a baby falls on the turn I will take a stab at it…but it is the Jh. The big blind bets the pot and I fold.
I am quite happy with that outcome. I saw a speculative hand cheaply, did not send good chips after bad, and folded on a dangerous board. I am showing improvement.
3 folds later I pick up pocket 9s in early middle. I raise 3 times the blinds and everyone folds. Just the type of result I like on speculative hands.
6 folds later I have 4.72 and bump it to .30 from under the gun. A middle position guy with $8 calls as does the button with 4.78.
The flop is pretty decent, Qs/Jd/7h. I am ahead of lots of reasonable holdings such as A/Q, A/J, Q/J, medium pockets, and behind sets. I bet the pot…and they both call.
The first call does not bother me…the over-call does. Time to tread cautiously. The 3s falls on the turn.
Now, I have to believe one of the opponents has a set…but for whatever reason, I convince myself one has the queen, the other the jack, and shove. I see a re-raise call in and call, and they flip up pocket queens and jack ten.
Neither hand surprises me, and the J/10 was exactly the type hand I was hoping to see. But I played like a complete tool and, when a ten fell on the river, ended with the third best hand.
If there was just one caller on the flop a shove might be good here…but against 2 callers, the Aces are drawing thin. It requires discipline to lay them down…discipline I did not show.
I played poorly and I paid for it.
That is definitely a hole in my game. I need to stop over-valuing big pairs and recognize the prevalence of sets in Rush poker.
And the very first hand, pick up the cowboys in the big blind. UTG has 7.15 and bumps to .30, folded to me. Some players, better than me, would flat-call here. I do not because I tend to hold the hand too long…I would rather win .35 pre-flop (his raise + the blind) than play a hand out of position, particularly if an Ace flops.
I re-pop to .95, he calls. There is about 2 bucks in there, I have 3.05. The flop comes down Jc/9d/3c. The correct play here is to bet half the pot and shove the turn.
I have gotten drawn out on a lot lately and was feeling puckish. I decided it was going to cost him to draw out. Realizing Jacks were in his hand range but not much else I was not ahead of, I went ahead and went all-in. He folded.
I do not know if I like how I played the hand or not. I am really only getting called by MAYBE A/J, queens, aces, or a set. I guess some weak players would call on the flush draw, but they would be getting bad odds.
At the same time, it adversely affects my play when someone with some trash like a suited 10/7 sticks around and hits runner-runner. It should not bother me…I want to face those hands in this situation and have them call. But it has felt like I was running into that a lot lately…so take the .87 pick-up and move to the next hand.
2 folds later, I break my plan, opening to .20 from under the gun. A middle position player with 6.98 calls, as does the big blind with 24.66.
The flop is ugly, Ks/10d/8d. Many times I continuation bet here, having raised pre-flop. But on this board…K/Q, K/J, K/10, Q/J, Q/10, J/10, 7/8 suited, 9/10 suited as well as a variety of A/x suited that include an 8 or 10 all are well in the range of hands here. At the moment the only hands I am ahead of are things like A/Q, A/J, pocket treys.
It is checked around. If a baby falls on the turn I will take a stab at it…but it is the Jh. The big blind bets the pot and I fold.
I am quite happy with that outcome. I saw a speculative hand cheaply, did not send good chips after bad, and folded on a dangerous board. I am showing improvement.
3 folds later I pick up pocket 9s in early middle. I raise 3 times the blinds and everyone folds. Just the type of result I like on speculative hands.
6 folds later I have 4.72 and bump it to .30 from under the gun. A middle position guy with $8 calls as does the button with 4.78.
The flop is pretty decent, Qs/Jd/7h. I am ahead of lots of reasonable holdings such as A/Q, A/J, Q/J, medium pockets, and behind sets. I bet the pot…and they both call.
The first call does not bother me…the over-call does. Time to tread cautiously. The 3s falls on the turn.
Now, I have to believe one of the opponents has a set…but for whatever reason, I convince myself one has the queen, the other the jack, and shove. I see a re-raise call in and call, and they flip up pocket queens and jack ten.
Neither hand surprises me, and the J/10 was exactly the type hand I was hoping to see. But I played like a complete tool and, when a ten fell on the river, ended with the third best hand.
If there was just one caller on the flop a shove might be good here…but against 2 callers, the Aces are drawing thin. It requires discipline to lay them down…discipline I did not show.
I played poorly and I paid for it.
That is definitely a hole in my game. I need to stop over-valuing big pairs and recognize the prevalence of sets in Rush poker.
Tuesday
Random Hands
I find Aces difficult to play sometimes. Like many weak players, I tend to hold on to them too long even when it is obvious I am behind or even drawing dead. So my goal often becomes to get it all in pre-flop if possible…prevents me having to make tough decisions.
Sitting behind 56 big blinds on the button, I am happy to look down at two black aces. Ideally, one person will raise, another re-raise, and I can raise all-in.
UTG+1, with 77bb, opens 3 times the big blind and gets calls from two middle position guys with 90 and 38 big blinds. Perfect. There are 10.5 big blinds in the pot when it gets to me.
I re-raise all-in. Ideally, the first guy has queens or kings and another guy has A/K and a loose idea of good calls. Second best would be everyone folding which is what happens.
It is perhaps a sign of me being a poor player that I am ecstatic to take down 10.5 blinds with no risk rather than see 2 or 3 players call since I know their combined chance of winning is better than mine even though my individual percentage chance is better than either of their individual chances.
Shortly thereafter, I have 64 bb and pick up 8c/6c in the big blind. As a general rule, I routinely fold suited one-gappers. I play them poorly and they have long been a losing proposition for me. On this occasion, it is folded to the big blind who, sitting behind 120 bb, opens to 3 bb.
An easy fold, even though more often than not the sb is raising position. For some inexplicable reason, I call.
Actually, I had a very specific reason. More often than not the small blind who raises here will continuation bet the flop, then check-fold the turn after I flat-call the flop and bet the turn when they check it. That play has a very high rate of success but I still usually only make it when I have something like suited connectors, a dry ace, maybe K/Q off.
So really, my cards do not matter, I am playing a scenario.
The flop is a mixed bag…6s/Kc/Qc. I pick up bottom pair with no kicker and a garbage flush draw. He bets about 2/3rd the pot. I flat-call it, expecting the normal check-fold on the turn…and having plenty of outs if not.
The turn is a blank, the 3s. He bets 2/3 pot again, I flat-call it. The river is again a blank, the 7s. He checks. The pot is mine, I just need to send in the chips and he will fold…but I meekly check behind.
That is a huge mistake. The only hands he could have that I am beating here are things like A/x clubs, 10/J, maybe a pair of 5s. But many of the hands that have me beat will fold to a bet here the way the hand played out.
And, in fact, he would have folded…showing the 10d/2d. He was playing the “battle of the blinds, he will fold” card and my draw won me a nice pot. But it does not excuse my poor river play. I think I needed to bet there and got cautious when my draws missed. I was never playing the draw, it was not relevant to my river action.
Conversely, the same holds true for him. I do not think my busted draw/near-bottom pair could call even the most modest of bets there.
Later on, sitting behind 33 bb, I am in late position with Kh/qh. This is the type of hand I do not mind opening with but hate to call. It is right in the happy zone of all too many hands that either dominate it…A/K, A/Q, pocket Kings and Queens…or that want it to hit, like A/x suited.
I am not a good enough player to know when I am beat or to lay down the second nuts so it is a hand I typically stay away from. On this occasion I am in the cutoff. The hijack opens to 3xbb with 113 big blinds behind and I call. Everyone else folds.
The flop comes down Kd, 4s, 3s. This is exactly the type of flop I love/hate. I have top pair, good kicker…and am right in the happy zone of a lot of hands in his range, but way ahead of many other hands in his range….4+, suited aces. Lets see what the action is.
He bets a third of the pot…a feeler-type bet or a trap. It screams weakness…I am going to weight his range more towards something like Jacks or tens, nervous about the king. I put in a good size raise, about 1-1/3 times the pot. At this point, I am committed…I am seeing the river. He re-pops all in.
Well now, that changes things. Aces, A/K, pocket Kings…pocket 4s…pocket 3s…all hands in his range and all hands he wants to get it all in here. Of course, so are things like suited Ace of spades, the aforementioned medium pockets, and several other things I can beat.
If I have 50 or 100 big blinds, I probably have to fold here, but being a bit short-stacked, I bite my lip in frustration and call. I think I wanted him to fold when I re-raised his weak feeler. He shows up with Ks/10c…top pair, worse kicker, and a back door flush draw.
For what it is worth…my hand held up and I doubled up with a pair of Kings, Queen kicker…not necessarily a situation I want to be in very often! I do not know if I played this hand horribly or very well. I would believe either. Since he re-raised all-in and I called based on my holdings and a pseudo-read...
A while later I am in the big blind with Ah/2h with 60 big blinds. The cut-off opens to 3 big blinds with 114 behind everyone else folds.
I normally fold here. I am out of position, trying for a 1 in 15ish shot at the nut flush with no other hand making me happy. For some reason I called.
The flop was about as good as it could be, a 6s/Kh/8h giving me the nut flush draw. This is good and bad…it is good because I hit the hand I was playing for. It is bad because…well, it will be hard to get paid off if I hit and cost me a pretty penny if I do not since I tend to stick with my draws too long based on the classic “implied odds”.
He bets almost a pot-size bet. I am not getting the correct exact odds by far, but my implied odds, I convince myself, are good enough…I call.
The turn is the jackpot…the 5h. I check and he checks behind. The river is the 2s. Now I face a decision. I have the absolute nuts..how to get him to pay off?
I have check-called all the way. I can check and hope he bets, lead out with anywhere from a half-pot to a full pot…or try to look like a bluff. I choose that. With 16 bb in the pot, I raise all in with my last 52 big blinds. It is a horrible bet that makes no sense. I was trying to look like I was bluffing.
He called with Kd/9d…a pair of Kings. Yeah, he paid off with top pair, modest kicker on a flush board. Woo-hoo! There is a reason TJ Cloutier advises not playing K/9 and why I routinely fold it.
So sitting behind 112 big blinds, I am getting into that hazy zone. I had hit a really rough patch over the course of several weeks where when I got it in good…say, pocket Aces against pocket jacks…I would get out-drawn. Then I would get frustrated and push a draw or just two big cards or a clearly out-drawn pair too hard and give back every chip I had won and more.
I was losing buy-ins hand over fist.
So typically, I have been starting with 40 big blinds and rat-holing once I get to about 80 bb. I just did not want to lose what I had won all in one go. This has the interesting side-effects of A) forcing me to play tighter and B) keeping me from playing speculative hands which I tend to play poorly.
So to be sitting on that many buy-ins, there was a real danger of either A) playing scared which leads to folding when I should not or B) playing afraid of playing scared, which means over-valuing my hand and sticking with it when obviously beat.
And under the gun I pick up one of those troubling hands…pocket Jacks. I raise to 3 big blinds, get called by a guy with 210 big blinds, and the big blind also calls with 36 big blinds.
Great…I am sandwiched between someone who will probably be willing to move in with a pretty wide range and a guy playing deep-stack, I have a hand that will most likely see over cards on the flop and, as the pre-flop better, I already know I plan to continuation bet.
The flop is about as bad as it can be…Ks/9c/Ad. Big Slick, A/Q, A/J, A/10, K/Q, pocket nines…all those hands have me crushed and are quite believable. I am not too nervous about pocket Kings or Aces…but I am way behind their ranges.
Big blind leads out with a pot-size bet, I triple his bet. The deep-stack guy takes his time but finally calls. I do not like that. It feels like he hit a big hand and is trying to figure out if it is better to get the chips in now or try and bring the big blind along.
The turn is a blank, the 4h. No flush draws. The big blind checks, I check behind, deep stack piledrives his last 200 blinds in.
That screams strength to me. He did not bother to size his bet, just shipped them. The big blind calls and I am done with the hand. Time to figure out what they had.
I am thinking the big blind has a soft ace or a stupid draw, maybe the 10/J, A/J, or A/10 type thing hoping to hit a straight or that his Ace is good. The other guy feels like A/K, maybe suited A/9, pocket Aces or, unlikely but possible with his turn move on the 4, pocket 4s or even A/4..
Well…sort of. The move-in was with Aces up, he did indeed have A/K and I got away from the hand relatively cheaply, just 12 bb lost. But the Big Blind?
He over-called with K/6. He over-called a re-raise with K/6. He called an all-in with K/6. Wow. That is just…that is awful. I feel pretty good about my play on the hand comparatively! Not sure about my re-raise…but other than that I am satisfied.
The good thing about hands like this is they really help me establish how people play various hand ranges. I mean, I do not really expect people to play K/6 in that situation, but people defend their big blind with all sorts of trash and I need to take that into account in blind battles.
I also need to be more willing to release my hand on flops like that. I know I said I was planning to raise regardless of flop…but upon further review, maybe that was not so good.
To be sure, often enough my opponent folds on a continuation bet or re-raise on a flop like this…but that is against ONE opponent. It stretches the bounds of credibility I would be facing TWO or more opponents without an Ace or big pocket pair in their hand. I should have saved that bet.
But at least I am thinking about it and learning. Getting better. And that makes me happy.
Sitting behind 56 big blinds on the button, I am happy to look down at two black aces. Ideally, one person will raise, another re-raise, and I can raise all-in.
UTG+1, with 77bb, opens 3 times the big blind and gets calls from two middle position guys with 90 and 38 big blinds. Perfect. There are 10.5 big blinds in the pot when it gets to me.
I re-raise all-in. Ideally, the first guy has queens or kings and another guy has A/K and a loose idea of good calls. Second best would be everyone folding which is what happens.
It is perhaps a sign of me being a poor player that I am ecstatic to take down 10.5 blinds with no risk rather than see 2 or 3 players call since I know their combined chance of winning is better than mine even though my individual percentage chance is better than either of their individual chances.
Shortly thereafter, I have 64 bb and pick up 8c/6c in the big blind. As a general rule, I routinely fold suited one-gappers. I play them poorly and they have long been a losing proposition for me. On this occasion, it is folded to the big blind who, sitting behind 120 bb, opens to 3 bb.
An easy fold, even though more often than not the sb is raising position. For some inexplicable reason, I call.
Actually, I had a very specific reason. More often than not the small blind who raises here will continuation bet the flop, then check-fold the turn after I flat-call the flop and bet the turn when they check it. That play has a very high rate of success but I still usually only make it when I have something like suited connectors, a dry ace, maybe K/Q off.
So really, my cards do not matter, I am playing a scenario.
The flop is a mixed bag…6s/Kc/Qc. I pick up bottom pair with no kicker and a garbage flush draw. He bets about 2/3rd the pot. I flat-call it, expecting the normal check-fold on the turn…and having plenty of outs if not.
The turn is a blank, the 3s. He bets 2/3 pot again, I flat-call it. The river is again a blank, the 7s. He checks. The pot is mine, I just need to send in the chips and he will fold…but I meekly check behind.
That is a huge mistake. The only hands he could have that I am beating here are things like A/x clubs, 10/J, maybe a pair of 5s. But many of the hands that have me beat will fold to a bet here the way the hand played out.
And, in fact, he would have folded…showing the 10d/2d. He was playing the “battle of the blinds, he will fold” card and my draw won me a nice pot. But it does not excuse my poor river play. I think I needed to bet there and got cautious when my draws missed. I was never playing the draw, it was not relevant to my river action.
Conversely, the same holds true for him. I do not think my busted draw/near-bottom pair could call even the most modest of bets there.
Later on, sitting behind 33 bb, I am in late position with Kh/qh. This is the type of hand I do not mind opening with but hate to call. It is right in the happy zone of all too many hands that either dominate it…A/K, A/Q, pocket Kings and Queens…or that want it to hit, like A/x suited.
I am not a good enough player to know when I am beat or to lay down the second nuts so it is a hand I typically stay away from. On this occasion I am in the cutoff. The hijack opens to 3xbb with 113 big blinds behind and I call. Everyone else folds.
The flop comes down Kd, 4s, 3s. This is exactly the type of flop I love/hate. I have top pair, good kicker…and am right in the happy zone of a lot of hands in his range, but way ahead of many other hands in his range….4+, suited aces. Lets see what the action is.
He bets a third of the pot…a feeler-type bet or a trap. It screams weakness…I am going to weight his range more towards something like Jacks or tens, nervous about the king. I put in a good size raise, about 1-1/3 times the pot. At this point, I am committed…I am seeing the river. He re-pops all in.
Well now, that changes things. Aces, A/K, pocket Kings…pocket 4s…pocket 3s…all hands in his range and all hands he wants to get it all in here. Of course, so are things like suited Ace of spades, the aforementioned medium pockets, and several other things I can beat.
If I have 50 or 100 big blinds, I probably have to fold here, but being a bit short-stacked, I bite my lip in frustration and call. I think I wanted him to fold when I re-raised his weak feeler. He shows up with Ks/10c…top pair, worse kicker, and a back door flush draw.
For what it is worth…my hand held up and I doubled up with a pair of Kings, Queen kicker…not necessarily a situation I want to be in very often! I do not know if I played this hand horribly or very well. I would believe either. Since he re-raised all-in and I called based on my holdings and a pseudo-read...
A while later I am in the big blind with Ah/2h with 60 big blinds. The cut-off opens to 3 big blinds with 114 behind everyone else folds.
I normally fold here. I am out of position, trying for a 1 in 15ish shot at the nut flush with no other hand making me happy. For some reason I called.
The flop was about as good as it could be, a 6s/Kh/8h giving me the nut flush draw. This is good and bad…it is good because I hit the hand I was playing for. It is bad because…well, it will be hard to get paid off if I hit and cost me a pretty penny if I do not since I tend to stick with my draws too long based on the classic “implied odds”.
He bets almost a pot-size bet. I am not getting the correct exact odds by far, but my implied odds, I convince myself, are good enough…I call.
The turn is the jackpot…the 5h. I check and he checks behind. The river is the 2s. Now I face a decision. I have the absolute nuts..how to get him to pay off?
I have check-called all the way. I can check and hope he bets, lead out with anywhere from a half-pot to a full pot…or try to look like a bluff. I choose that. With 16 bb in the pot, I raise all in with my last 52 big blinds. It is a horrible bet that makes no sense. I was trying to look like I was bluffing.
He called with Kd/9d…a pair of Kings. Yeah, he paid off with top pair, modest kicker on a flush board. Woo-hoo! There is a reason TJ Cloutier advises not playing K/9 and why I routinely fold it.
So sitting behind 112 big blinds, I am getting into that hazy zone. I had hit a really rough patch over the course of several weeks where when I got it in good…say, pocket Aces against pocket jacks…I would get out-drawn. Then I would get frustrated and push a draw or just two big cards or a clearly out-drawn pair too hard and give back every chip I had won and more.
I was losing buy-ins hand over fist.
So typically, I have been starting with 40 big blinds and rat-holing once I get to about 80 bb. I just did not want to lose what I had won all in one go. This has the interesting side-effects of A) forcing me to play tighter and B) keeping me from playing speculative hands which I tend to play poorly.
So to be sitting on that many buy-ins, there was a real danger of either A) playing scared which leads to folding when I should not or B) playing afraid of playing scared, which means over-valuing my hand and sticking with it when obviously beat.
And under the gun I pick up one of those troubling hands…pocket Jacks. I raise to 3 big blinds, get called by a guy with 210 big blinds, and the big blind also calls with 36 big blinds.
Great…I am sandwiched between someone who will probably be willing to move in with a pretty wide range and a guy playing deep-stack, I have a hand that will most likely see over cards on the flop and, as the pre-flop better, I already know I plan to continuation bet.
The flop is about as bad as it can be…Ks/9c/Ad. Big Slick, A/Q, A/J, A/10, K/Q, pocket nines…all those hands have me crushed and are quite believable. I am not too nervous about pocket Kings or Aces…but I am way behind their ranges.
Big blind leads out with a pot-size bet, I triple his bet. The deep-stack guy takes his time but finally calls. I do not like that. It feels like he hit a big hand and is trying to figure out if it is better to get the chips in now or try and bring the big blind along.
The turn is a blank, the 4h. No flush draws. The big blind checks, I check behind, deep stack piledrives his last 200 blinds in.
That screams strength to me. He did not bother to size his bet, just shipped them. The big blind calls and I am done with the hand. Time to figure out what they had.
I am thinking the big blind has a soft ace or a stupid draw, maybe the 10/J, A/J, or A/10 type thing hoping to hit a straight or that his Ace is good. The other guy feels like A/K, maybe suited A/9, pocket Aces or, unlikely but possible with his turn move on the 4, pocket 4s or even A/4..
Well…sort of. The move-in was with Aces up, he did indeed have A/K and I got away from the hand relatively cheaply, just 12 bb lost. But the Big Blind?
He over-called with K/6. He over-called a re-raise with K/6. He called an all-in with K/6. Wow. That is just…that is awful. I feel pretty good about my play on the hand comparatively! Not sure about my re-raise…but other than that I am satisfied.
The good thing about hands like this is they really help me establish how people play various hand ranges. I mean, I do not really expect people to play K/6 in that situation, but people defend their big blind with all sorts of trash and I need to take that into account in blind battles.
I also need to be more willing to release my hand on flops like that. I know I said I was planning to raise regardless of flop…but upon further review, maybe that was not so good.
To be sure, often enough my opponent folds on a continuation bet or re-raise on a flop like this…but that is against ONE opponent. It stretches the bounds of credibility I would be facing TWO or more opponents without an Ace or big pocket pair in their hand. I should have saved that bet.
But at least I am thinking about it and learning. Getting better. And that makes me happy.
Thursday
This is me playing poorly
Sitting behind 49 bb, I watch UTG, with 135 BB, open to 4 times the big blind. It is folded to me in the cut-odd where, with pocket Queens, I elect to re-raise. He thinks about it and finally calls.
The flop is one of those frightening but fun flops where things can go horribly wrong when you get stacked or very right and double you up…Qc/Kc/Jh. I am way behind the Cowboys, about even with A/10, and way ahead of everything else. He comes out firing about a third pot bet.
Why would he lead out into the pre-flop re-raiser? My best bet was he had a marginal hand and/or was trying to prevent the draw at the flush. It did not feel like he hit the flop hard but more like it missed him, he thought it might have missed me too and wanted to drive me off.
I re-raised him all-in. Now he faced a decision. I was laying him about 2-1/2 to 1 to call. I had twice shown strength, re-raising pre-flop and on a dangerous flop.
What types of hands could I do that with? Considering he was under the gun, I should respect his hand and indeed I figured him for 6+, any suited Ace, and any unsuited A/J+… a pretty wide range, many of which suited his actions.
So if that was what I put him on, he had to put me I would think on a stronger range…JJ+, MAYBE suited Aces if I am loose, perhaps two face cards. The only way he is chasing me off that hand is if I have something like pocket 8s type hands.
Unless, of course, he is thinking deeper and trapping, trying to make it look like he missed the flop or hit it semi-hard and is trying to draw me in.
He ended up calling with A/Q, catching an Ace on the turn, and the river….was a blank. Nice. Scary as he had lots of outs…any Ace, King or ten gave him a winner on the river, so 8 outs. But I always like getting it in as the favorite and having my hand hold up. I actually think I played the hand pretty well, though perhaps some people would try for pot control and just call on the flop.
The problem with that approach is the turn card. When the Ace falls, it makes calling off the rest of my chips a tougher decision. With Aces up he is shoving, but at that point, I have to give serious thought to him having a straight or two pair. The 2 pair counterfeits many of my outs.
If I put him on A/10 then I am drawing to 13 outs and need to be getting 4-1. I would not be and have to fold. If I put him on 2 pair I am actually still ahead and need to call. Having him on a range where I do not know what he has means I have to guess at what is the positive EV play…and I am not good enough to figure that out.
Thus it was a case where I was better off taking a strong hand, adding the fold equity and shoving on the flop. This time it worked out.
Later on I made what I think was a completely poor play.
I have picked up a move where if I am in position and the pre-flop aggressor, I regularly make continuation bets, expecting flop calls, then raise again on the turn and have them fold. Having rat-holed a nice gain, I was sitting behind 43 bb and picked up 10h/qd.
When I am playing well I often fold that, but this time did not have the option. The button open-limped with a deep stack, the sb folded and I checked.
The flop was As/Qc/9s. Top pair, mediocre kicker. I bet half the pot, he merely calls. The turn was the 9c, adding a gut-shot. I bet half the pot…and he triples my raise. No problem, this is a clear fold.
What hands can he open limp, call the flop, and raise with? 10/J is the most likely holding, but so is stuff like A/8/ For that matter, 8/9 suited is a reasonable holding as well. Nor would I be surprised to see him have pocket 8s or pocket 10s.
Across his entire range,the only thing I am ahead of here is a semi-bluff with something like K/J. It is a clear fold. Whenever someone re-pops on a second barrel, they always have SOMETHING. Just let the hand go.
Or be an idiot, call planning to bet again on the river if a good card comes, so that is what I did. The river was the irrelevant 3s. I suppose if he has K/J or picked up the club flush draw on the turn he MIGHT fold here…but cut your losses.
Or put in a half pot bet, watch him call with A/9 and lose a sizable portion of my stack in a hand I would not even have been in had I not been big blind.
I do not hate my flop and turn raises…but the rest of the hand…I played like a chump and deserved what I got. Putting in half my stack with second pair, mediocre kicker against demonstrated strength is a horrific play I am embarrassed to have made.
Of course, making correct choices does not always have a good outcome either.
Sitting behind 68 bb, late medium position raises 3.5 times the blind with 80 bb behind. I re-pop from the button to 13-1/2 bb, the big blind, sitting behind 45 bb, repops to 30 big blinds. Then the mp calls.
Now I have a decision. The re-raise by the big blind screams Aces or Kings, MAYBE A/K on a move, but I am weighting it towards the pairs. The call is less sure…he can easily get squeezed by me as I have enough left to force him to a decision if I re-re-raise. So I figure I am behind one guy, ahead of the other, and getting about 4-1 real odds with much better implied.
I elect to call.
The flop is rags, 6d/9s/2c. No flush draw, no believable straight draw. BB raises his last 15 blinds all in, the mp flat-calls. It just screams weak to me. I figure I am way behind the big blind, but the MP looks like 10s or jacks maybe? Or maybe that is what I am hoping.
I want to get his chips, and if he called one bet, he will call another. I come over the top for my last 38 blinds, he calls, and sure enough, BB had Aces and he had…7s?
Sweet! I thought he had a stronger hand. I will most likely lose the initial bet and still come out ahead by taking his chips…until the turn is a 7.
Sigh.
I had him where I wanted him, read him correctly, and made the right move. It just failed when he hit his 2-outer.
So up and down, get down to about 26 bb when the button, with 140bb, opens 3xbb. For some bizarre reason I decide to defend with 10/9 off. But I go about it the wrong way.
To properly defend, I should re-pop here. Just calling does nothing to differentiate between someone on a blind steal with any two cards or someone with a legit hand. Now I will spend the hand out of position with a marginal hand.
Nor is there anything reassuring in the Jh/Kd/6d flop. I have the ignorant end of a gut shot straight draw…do not think I will be happy to see a Queen, either, as A/10 is certainly in the realm of possibility. I have yet to narrow his hand. I check, he bets 30xbb, and I fo….call?
What? Well, actually, I had an idea he was on a steal. I had notes on him as being pretty aggressive. I planned to see what he did on the turn and go after him on the river. It is a pretty standard play on this level to continuation bet any hand on any flop and it seldom means anything.
Sure enough, the turn is 3c, I check, he checks behind. The river is a harmless 6c, but it works well for me. The way I played this hand it is well within the realm of cards I COULD have and was just trying to see the river. So does anything with a Jack or king with weak kicker…maybe even something like Q/10.
Still, I am highly unlikely to win if it is checked down and I am not a good enough player to check-raise a pure bluff, so I bet half the pot and he folds.
In all honesty, as soon as he checked the turn it was almost impossible for me to NOT bet the river. I had twice called with nothing, I had to take a shot at winning the pot. I acted in those manners because of things I had noted him doing and it paid off THIS time.
A bit later I am utg+1 with 37 bb. The utg, sitting behind 57bb, opens to 3xbb and I look down at Ad/Qd. Ironically, this is a hand I routinely fold. Easily dominated, against a first position raiser, I am simply not a good enough player to play this hand. But this time I decide to call for whatever reason.
Everyone folds and we take a 6c/Ks/9d flop heads up. He bets the pot and, with no hand, no draw, but position, I call, planning to raise the turn after he checks and take it down. But the turn is the 7d and he goes all in. Well, that changes things, doesn’t it?
Why would he over-bet the pot here? Most likely holding is a set he is protecting but if so, it is a big set. He raised under the gun, thus representing strength. He made a standard continuation bet, but then bet 3 times the pot, all-in, so he is absolutely committed to the pot.
The only thing I can beat here is a pure bluff and I am getting less than 3 to 1 on a call, so calling based on a flush draw is a poor play. Time to fold and move on…or, idiotically, call and get stacked by the A/K when the flush draw misses.
I was not getting the proper odds, I was just hoping to "get lucky". Not a good choice.
There are times when it is good to follow up with a second barrel, other times it is not. I really need to differentiate between the two.
On my over-pair that stacked off against the suck-out set, I should more carefully consider the long-term odds. On drawing hands, I need to get BETTER than the actual odds because I usually do not think on enough levels and have secondary plan to win the hands.
So this was not an example of good play at all.
The flop is one of those frightening but fun flops where things can go horribly wrong when you get stacked or very right and double you up…Qc/Kc/Jh. I am way behind the Cowboys, about even with A/10, and way ahead of everything else. He comes out firing about a third pot bet.
Why would he lead out into the pre-flop re-raiser? My best bet was he had a marginal hand and/or was trying to prevent the draw at the flush. It did not feel like he hit the flop hard but more like it missed him, he thought it might have missed me too and wanted to drive me off.
I re-raised him all-in. Now he faced a decision. I was laying him about 2-1/2 to 1 to call. I had twice shown strength, re-raising pre-flop and on a dangerous flop.
What types of hands could I do that with? Considering he was under the gun, I should respect his hand and indeed I figured him for 6+, any suited Ace, and any unsuited A/J+… a pretty wide range, many of which suited his actions.
So if that was what I put him on, he had to put me I would think on a stronger range…JJ+, MAYBE suited Aces if I am loose, perhaps two face cards. The only way he is chasing me off that hand is if I have something like pocket 8s type hands.
Unless, of course, he is thinking deeper and trapping, trying to make it look like he missed the flop or hit it semi-hard and is trying to draw me in.
He ended up calling with A/Q, catching an Ace on the turn, and the river….was a blank. Nice. Scary as he had lots of outs…any Ace, King or ten gave him a winner on the river, so 8 outs. But I always like getting it in as the favorite and having my hand hold up. I actually think I played the hand pretty well, though perhaps some people would try for pot control and just call on the flop.
The problem with that approach is the turn card. When the Ace falls, it makes calling off the rest of my chips a tougher decision. With Aces up he is shoving, but at that point, I have to give serious thought to him having a straight or two pair. The 2 pair counterfeits many of my outs.
If I put him on A/10 then I am drawing to 13 outs and need to be getting 4-1. I would not be and have to fold. If I put him on 2 pair I am actually still ahead and need to call. Having him on a range where I do not know what he has means I have to guess at what is the positive EV play…and I am not good enough to figure that out.
Thus it was a case where I was better off taking a strong hand, adding the fold equity and shoving on the flop. This time it worked out.
Later on I made what I think was a completely poor play.
I have picked up a move where if I am in position and the pre-flop aggressor, I regularly make continuation bets, expecting flop calls, then raise again on the turn and have them fold. Having rat-holed a nice gain, I was sitting behind 43 bb and picked up 10h/qd.
When I am playing well I often fold that, but this time did not have the option. The button open-limped with a deep stack, the sb folded and I checked.
The flop was As/Qc/9s. Top pair, mediocre kicker. I bet half the pot, he merely calls. The turn was the 9c, adding a gut-shot. I bet half the pot…and he triples my raise. No problem, this is a clear fold.
What hands can he open limp, call the flop, and raise with? 10/J is the most likely holding, but so is stuff like A/8/ For that matter, 8/9 suited is a reasonable holding as well. Nor would I be surprised to see him have pocket 8s or pocket 10s.
Across his entire range,the only thing I am ahead of here is a semi-bluff with something like K/J. It is a clear fold. Whenever someone re-pops on a second barrel, they always have SOMETHING. Just let the hand go.
Or be an idiot, call planning to bet again on the river if a good card comes, so that is what I did. The river was the irrelevant 3s. I suppose if he has K/J or picked up the club flush draw on the turn he MIGHT fold here…but cut your losses.
Or put in a half pot bet, watch him call with A/9 and lose a sizable portion of my stack in a hand I would not even have been in had I not been big blind.
I do not hate my flop and turn raises…but the rest of the hand…I played like a chump and deserved what I got. Putting in half my stack with second pair, mediocre kicker against demonstrated strength is a horrific play I am embarrassed to have made.
Of course, making correct choices does not always have a good outcome either.
Sitting behind 68 bb, late medium position raises 3.5 times the blind with 80 bb behind. I re-pop from the button to 13-1/2 bb, the big blind, sitting behind 45 bb, repops to 30 big blinds. Then the mp calls.
Now I have a decision. The re-raise by the big blind screams Aces or Kings, MAYBE A/K on a move, but I am weighting it towards the pairs. The call is less sure…he can easily get squeezed by me as I have enough left to force him to a decision if I re-re-raise. So I figure I am behind one guy, ahead of the other, and getting about 4-1 real odds with much better implied.
I elect to call.
The flop is rags, 6d/9s/2c. No flush draw, no believable straight draw. BB raises his last 15 blinds all in, the mp flat-calls. It just screams weak to me. I figure I am way behind the big blind, but the MP looks like 10s or jacks maybe? Or maybe that is what I am hoping.
I want to get his chips, and if he called one bet, he will call another. I come over the top for my last 38 blinds, he calls, and sure enough, BB had Aces and he had…7s?
Sweet! I thought he had a stronger hand. I will most likely lose the initial bet and still come out ahead by taking his chips…until the turn is a 7.
Sigh.
I had him where I wanted him, read him correctly, and made the right move. It just failed when he hit his 2-outer.
So up and down, get down to about 26 bb when the button, with 140bb, opens 3xbb. For some bizarre reason I decide to defend with 10/9 off. But I go about it the wrong way.
To properly defend, I should re-pop here. Just calling does nothing to differentiate between someone on a blind steal with any two cards or someone with a legit hand. Now I will spend the hand out of position with a marginal hand.
Nor is there anything reassuring in the Jh/Kd/6d flop. I have the ignorant end of a gut shot straight draw…do not think I will be happy to see a Queen, either, as A/10 is certainly in the realm of possibility. I have yet to narrow his hand. I check, he bets 30xbb, and I fo….call?
What? Well, actually, I had an idea he was on a steal. I had notes on him as being pretty aggressive. I planned to see what he did on the turn and go after him on the river. It is a pretty standard play on this level to continuation bet any hand on any flop and it seldom means anything.
Sure enough, the turn is 3c, I check, he checks behind. The river is a harmless 6c, but it works well for me. The way I played this hand it is well within the realm of cards I COULD have and was just trying to see the river. So does anything with a Jack or king with weak kicker…maybe even something like Q/10.
Still, I am highly unlikely to win if it is checked down and I am not a good enough player to check-raise a pure bluff, so I bet half the pot and he folds.
In all honesty, as soon as he checked the turn it was almost impossible for me to NOT bet the river. I had twice called with nothing, I had to take a shot at winning the pot. I acted in those manners because of things I had noted him doing and it paid off THIS time.
A bit later I am utg+1 with 37 bb. The utg, sitting behind 57bb, opens to 3xbb and I look down at Ad/Qd. Ironically, this is a hand I routinely fold. Easily dominated, against a first position raiser, I am simply not a good enough player to play this hand. But this time I decide to call for whatever reason.
Everyone folds and we take a 6c/Ks/9d flop heads up. He bets the pot and, with no hand, no draw, but position, I call, planning to raise the turn after he checks and take it down. But the turn is the 7d and he goes all in. Well, that changes things, doesn’t it?
Why would he over-bet the pot here? Most likely holding is a set he is protecting but if so, it is a big set. He raised under the gun, thus representing strength. He made a standard continuation bet, but then bet 3 times the pot, all-in, so he is absolutely committed to the pot.
The only thing I can beat here is a pure bluff and I am getting less than 3 to 1 on a call, so calling based on a flush draw is a poor play. Time to fold and move on…or, idiotically, call and get stacked by the A/K when the flush draw misses.
I was not getting the proper odds, I was just hoping to "get lucky". Not a good choice.
There are times when it is good to follow up with a second barrel, other times it is not. I really need to differentiate between the two.
On my over-pair that stacked off against the suck-out set, I should more carefully consider the long-term odds. On drawing hands, I need to get BETTER than the actual odds because I usually do not think on enough levels and have secondary plan to win the hands.
So this was not an example of good play at all.
Big Blind pain
I was playing some short-stack, trying to work on my game. Sitting behind just under 30 BB, in the big blind. UTG+1 limps, the button limps, the small blind folds, and I look down at the horrific A/6 off.
Frankly, I even thought to myself "I wish someone had raised this so I could fold." This is the type of hand I hate. If an Ace flops, it is harder to get away from because nobody raised. A/6 is bad though because it only beats A/5, A/4, A/3, and A/2...most of which, including A/6, will also be beat by the board.
Nor am I too excited about flopping a 6, not with two limpers. I do not want to play this hand at all, particularly out of position.
Sure enough, the flop comes A/A/2. The early guy raise, the button flat-calls. I am nowhere near a good enough player to get away from this hand yet...though I actually thought about folding, but it was not a serious option.
I flat-call and watch the turn change everything...another deuce.
Okay, now I have Aces full. I am behind exactly one hand...pocket deuces, which if they have, I am paying off.
Sure enough, early guy raises, button flat calls. This is good...one of them HAS to have the case ace, and the other must have pockets of some sort. It is good because I am splitting with the other ace and need to beat the rake.
The river is a 10. Early guy checks, button goes all in. No way am I folding a boat here...though I should have.
He was playing Ace 10.
So a hand I never wanted to play, should have folded on the flop, did not make a move at the one point I was tied for best hand, ended up costing me all my chips.
There is a reason I hate getting free checks with hands like this...
Frankly, I even thought to myself "I wish someone had raised this so I could fold." This is the type of hand I hate. If an Ace flops, it is harder to get away from because nobody raised. A/6 is bad though because it only beats A/5, A/4, A/3, and A/2...most of which, including A/6, will also be beat by the board.
Nor am I too excited about flopping a 6, not with two limpers. I do not want to play this hand at all, particularly out of position.
Sure enough, the flop comes A/A/2. The early guy raise, the button flat-calls. I am nowhere near a good enough player to get away from this hand yet...though I actually thought about folding, but it was not a serious option.
I flat-call and watch the turn change everything...another deuce.
Okay, now I have Aces full. I am behind exactly one hand...pocket deuces, which if they have, I am paying off.
Sure enough, early guy raises, button flat calls. This is good...one of them HAS to have the case ace, and the other must have pockets of some sort. It is good because I am splitting with the other ace and need to beat the rake.
The river is a 10. Early guy checks, button goes all in. No way am I folding a boat here...though I should have.
He was playing Ace 10.
So a hand I never wanted to play, should have folded on the flop, did not make a move at the one point I was tied for best hand, ended up costing me all my chips.
There is a reason I hate getting free checks with hands like this...
Wednesday
This is me playing well
Playing some .05/.10.
Sitting behind 53 bb I see the utg, with 38 bb, open to 3-1/2 bb. Sitting utg+2, I look down at the cowboys. This is a position where I definitely want to isolate and go heads up, as Kings will not hold up against several callers. I re-raise to 12 bb and it is folded to the first raiser who merely calls.
I like that he just calls. He should have 7/7+, maybe a suited Ace or even some medium suited connectors. He would probably re-pop with Queens or better.
The flop is good and bad. 9d/7d/2h. He leads out for his last 26 blinds all-in. So I would need to call 26 bb to make 48. What hands could he have here to raise/call/all-in with?
Pocket 9s or pocket 7s are definitely in his range, maybe even pocket deuces if he is super loose. So are Aces and Queens, though unlikely, but any pocket 10s or pocket jacks could make that move, as could a suited diamond ace.
Even against a suited Ace, I am a favorite. The only hands he could reasonably hold that I am behind are pocket 2s, 7s, or 9s, or the bizarre 7/9s of some other suit. I think it is a pretty clear call.
He turns up the A/Qd. So he has 9 diamonds to complete the flush and 3 aces to hit a bigger pair, 12 outs twice for about 48%. The turn is the Ks which helps a bit as it counterfeits the 2d. Ultimately, the river is the Ac so my set of Kings holds up.
Going back over the hand, though, I am not sure the call is as automatic as I thought at the time. In fact, if he check-raised me all-in, I am less likely to call as I will put more emphasis on the set which I am drawing thin against. His leading into the pre-flop raiser screams more he has a weaker hand or is semi-bluffing…
Not that I am sure I thought that at the time, but in retrospect, it makes the way he played the hand make more sense. Certainly a lesson to tuck away in the back of my mind.
A while later I am sitting behind 70 big blinds in the cut-off. Utg, with 123 bb, limps. It comes to me, I decide my hockey sticks are worth seeing a cheap flop and limp behind. The big blind, with 381 bb, checks and we take the flop 3-handed.
The flop is the 6c/As/6d. Check, check, and now I have to see if my 7s are any good here. I bet half the pot. The big blind folds, the under the gun calls. Time to narrow his range of hands.
He open-limped, so an Ace is unlikely unless it is A/x suited. Medium pairs, medium suited connectors are the most likely holdings. If he check-raises the flop, I will figure him for a good pair, say Queens or better, and if he just calls, I am either way ahead of someone fishing or way behind and he is luring me in.
The turn is the innocuous 3c. That changed nothing. He checks. Now, what to do? If I check and he bets the river, it will be difficult to call. If I bet and he re-raises, I am done with the hand. If he check-calls I will fold to any bet on the river as I am beat. But there is a chance he called just to see if I was serious.
Check behind and hope to see a cheap show-down or raise to try and drive out a better hand? No way am I getting called by a worse hand here. I again bet half the pot and he folds.
Mindless aggression for the win…
A while later I have 76 bb and the button. When it is folded to me I decide to open to 3bb with Ac/Ts. The small blind, with 133bb, calls and the big blind folds.
I never like it when the small blind calls. He needs a stronger hand because A) he is getting a smaller discount and B) the big blind is yet to act. So anything except a limp that gets action is usually facing a big hand and is therefore dangerous.
The flop is 10d/qh/Qs. As expected, he checks, I bet half the pot, he calls. The good news is he did not raise. The bad news is…he called. A/Q, K/Q, J/Q, and J/10 are all reasonable, believable holdings and I am head of only the J/10. He could also have a medium pair and just be seeing if I am just making a continuation bet.
The turn is the 8c. He again checks. I raise half the pot. If he calls or re-raises, I am done with the hand. If he folds, I take down a nice little pot. He check-calls.
The river is the somewhat dangerous 9d. if he had J/10 he hit his straight.
Otherwise, it is pretty innocuous. I by no means think he has the j/10, but the possibility is there. All he has to do is breathe at this pot and I am folding. He checks.
Reviewing the hand, he called a dangerous flop, called again on an innocent card. I cannot imagine him calling any bet I make with a worse hand than the tens I hold, and cannot imagine him folding any better hand. I check behind expecting him to flip up a Queen or maybe even Jacks or something like that.
Instead he shows the Jh/Kh. Okay, so not really a hand I put in his range after the flop. And from strictly an odds perspective, he played very poorly, though from an implied odds stance…maybe not so much.
Of course, what could he think I had to keep raising on a dangerous board like that? If I raised with Q/10, Q/9 type hands…quite plausible from the button…he is bidding fair to get taken to the cleaners on the river when he pretty much has to call or raise after hitting his hand.
And the only hand I might call him with that he can beat with a straight would be precisely A/10 or A/q. I do not hate his pre-flop or flop calls…but the turn call feels pretty loose. Still, he made the call and took the pot.
The funny thing is, Sklansky and his basic theorem claim I won the hand. He would not call pre-flop, on the flop, or on the turn if he knew the cards I was holding, nor was he getting the correct odds to do so.
Maybe Sklansky feels like I won the hand…and in a sense I did, though dropping 14 BB to someone who hit their gut shot sure does not FEEL like a win…
For some inexplicable reason, I begin going the conservative route. In the small blind I pick up Big Slick suited with 59 big blinds. Utg raises to 3xbb, utg+1 and the hi-jack call. The correct play here is a re-raise to drive out hands like pairs of 9s, medium suited connectors, weak aces. The second best play is to fold, which I have done several times.
Not that A/K is not a good hand…it is. But it is a distinct dog to that much action. Add to that being out of position and for a player who sometimes refuses to release hands that clearly are no longer good…well, better to just ditch them pre-flop.
So I call because I am an idiot. The bb also calls and we take a flop 5-handed. I am out of position with a drawing hand. Any serious action on the flop means I am done with the hand barring a 10/J/Q rainbow flop or a stout flush draw.
The flop is all trash….7c/6s/3c. This hits right in the heart of the types of hands people are all but guaranteed to be holding. Seeing pockets 6s, 7s, and 3s would not surprise me, nor would 6/7 suited, 5/6 suited, 8/9 suited. This is the type of hand I need to train myself to get as far away from as possible unless I have a draw. This time, I have the draw...the nut flush draw.
Check to utg who leads out with 2/3rd the pot bet. One fold, one call. Okay, the first bet COULD be a blind continuation bet…and could easily represent pocket Kings or Aces which my flush draw will have an easy time getting paid off. I base this on the fact he fired into a dangerous flop with 3 people left to act.
It could also be a hand like A/K trying to protect itself from getting drawn out on.
There are a fold and call in front of me…the call indicating they have something worth seeing another step even with people behind to act. I obviously want as many people in the pot as possible here, so a re-raise is out of the question. I call as does the big blind.
The turn is the Jc, giving me the nut flush. In fact, unless someone is playing something goofy like a 5/6c, I have a lock on the hand unless, of course, the board pairs.
Worst thing I can do now is bet it. Too much interest in the hand to give away my strong holdings. I am really hoping for a second barrel from UTG and a couple “I have a set” type calls.
Unfortunately, it is checked around. The turn is the harmless 9h. Unless someone was playing the 8/10, nothing changed. I do not want to see it checked around, so I put in about a half-pot bet. BB calls, UTG folds, other guy calls. So lets check out the reads.
The big blind had pocket 9s…he was counting on first an over-pair, then got to take off a free card which meant he paid me off with a set. Costly river for him.
The middle position guy had pocket Jacks…over-pair that became a set when he turned the Jack.
So knowing what I know now, did I play it right? Well…maybe. If I knew the one guy had Jacks and nobody would bet, I raise here to keep him from drawing at his 10 outs with infinite odds…but probably drive off the pocket 9s and thus not get paid on the river.
Conversely, if I check the river, there is a good chance the Jacks check, the river raises and then I am faced with another decision to either call or re-raise. On the one hand, I have an excellent conundrum…the only way I lose this hand is if power goes out on my computer or I have the spack-out of all time and fold the nuts.
On the other hand…I am not sure the best way to build the pot here. If they are paying attention, the way the hand played out screams at least one flush and maybe two. I am guessing utg had a big over pair, knew he was beat and released his hand. There were two sets…just not the ones I expected, though certainly they both made sense when the end came.
After that hand I am up pretty well and I have noticed that stacks about 120 blinds deep or more get a lot more respect to their raises which I respond to by widening my raising hands. So from the hi-jack with 150 BB I open to 2xbb with a modest Ac/6s. Not a very good hand…but I actually expect to win the blinds.
Both blinds spoil my plan by calling. I have mentioned before how little I like it when the small blind calls…
Worse yet, he has me covered and the big blind is just a blip with 25 bb remaining.
The flop is the 10d/Ah/Qc that hits a lot of hands the blinds would be tempted to call with…2 face cards, any Ace, 10/J and of course big pocket pairs all love that flop. A/6…not so much.
But they check to me so I continuation bet half the pot. 3 blinds to win 6 is a cheap price that does not have to work all that often.
The small blind calls, big blind folds, and we see the Kc. Ouch. Now a humble jack beats me. He checks and I have to decide…bet again, probably with the worse hand…or check and hope to see a cheap river. I elect the latter course. The river is the 10c, just making it even tougher for an Ace to win.
I am beating almost nothing here. Q/K I am ahead of, any A/9 or worse is a chop, and every other conceivable hand…A/10+, 10/J, A/K, A/Q, A/J I am behind. I am extremely happy when he checks and I check behind. There is no possible holding he will call with if he is worse off than I am and I am ecstatic to get away from the hand cheaply.
For the record…he had K/Q, a hand I did not honestly think about when playing it and I drew out on him when the river spiked the 10. Turn-about is fair play as he had out-drawn me on the turn…but with a board that dangerous, we both wanted to keep it small.
That is a lesson I often struggle to keep in mind. There are times to play small pots, I do not always have to fire that second barrel into a dangerous board.
At the same time, I need to work on building bigger pots when I hit a big hand.
Sitting with just under 160 big blinds I am utg+ 3. UTG click-raises sitting behind 140 bb, I elect to call with pocket 3s and we get 3 more callers. Good. Makes the hand easy to play…I either hit it hard or go my merry way, having gotten pretty spectacular implied pot odds.
The flop is beautiful…4c/3c/8h. I am behind pocket 4s and pocket 8s…both believable hands…but way ahead of over-pairs which I am hoping people have. Good chance to stack someone…and then the big blind goes all in for his last 23 big blinds.
Well now…that changes things a bit. Suddenly that pocket 4/pocket 8 seems a bit more likely, doesn’t it? Also in the hunt are pocket 9s or better and A/x of clubs, betting the flush draw and over betting the pot to get us all to fold. Also very likely are bigger but vulnerable face pairs (jacks, queens).
The utg calls it. Oh, ouch. That makes it trickier. The first guy MIGHT have a set. The second guy…much more likely. It is still possible they both have over-pairs. Ideally I am against Aces and Kings or some such over pair. Regardless, I am not even close to being a good enough player to lay down a set in this situation. In fact, I am still trying to build a pot!
So with one player to act behind me, I have to choose between calling or raising yet again. Since I have position on the caller, I elect to just call and either check or raise the turn depending on what falls. The guy behind me folds and the turn brings the case three.
Great. Now I have a virtual lock on the hand. Even if the other guys both have sets, I have a hand that is a 96% favorite. I am ecstatic.
The guy who has been check-calling everything checks. Here is where I made a mistake. I should have checked. Even if he checks the river, I can bet then. Instead I put out about a half pot bet and he makes the prudent fold. Might have cost myself some chips there.
For the record, the guy who over-bet all in had pocket 10s. Over pair read for the win. Unfortunately, I was not patient and did not win as much as I could have. I need to be more willing to slow-play.
The problem is, from time to time I have slow-played stuff like nut flushes and gotten crushed on the river by a boat. Or flopped a straight and had someone runner-runner the flush when my turn bet could not get them off the hand. This has made me gun-shy about giving people “free” cards.
Later on, sitting behind 190 bb, everyone folds to the button who limps in with 111 bb. The small blind folds and I check my Ac/Jd. Wow. How many ways do I hate my play here? I have no idea if he is trapping with a big hand or succeeding in seeing a cheap flop with something like suited connectors.
That is a clear raise situation. The flop comes down 9c/Jh/2s. Up front I love this flop. I am hoping he floated something like J/10 and I am way ahead. I lead out with a pot based bet. He click-raises.
Now I am deeply troubled. Hands he could limp-raise with here include A/J, A/9, maybe A/2 suited…none of which bother me…J/10 which I am ahead of, J/9 which I am behind, or any variety of medium to low pocket pairs such as nines or even deuces. He could also be raising with air since many people consider a big blind leading out to be a fish move.
So my options are three-fold; fold, flat-call, or re-raise.
Folding in many ways makes the most sense. I checked my option instead of “defining the hand”/raising to drive out weak hands, etc.
At the same time, top pair top kicker against such a weak play as open-limping the button is pretty passive and does not seem wise. Better to see if he is serious about his even more fishy min-raise. No folding.
Calling is another option. Problem is, then I am pretty much locked into having no idea where I stand on the turn. Unless a Jack or Ace falls, I do not really like any card very much so most of the deck misses me and I will be hard-pressed to call another bet.
Re-raising is more my style; put heat on someone who seems marginally interested in the hand. I choose that option. Including pre-flop action and the raise/re-raise there is just over a buck in there, I repop to 2.05. I figure he will either A) fold (the more likely) or B)re-pop me in which case even with top pair, top kicker I know I am beat.
He surprises me by just calling.
Okay, so what is going on here? The most likely answer is one I see a lot in the micro-stakes level. People do not want to admit to bluff-raising, so they call any re-raise, then check-fold the next street. No matter what falls here, I am raising the turn.
And the turn is arguably the third worst card I could see. I had talked myself into believing he was most likely to have J/10. That would give him second pair, open ended straight draw. Q/J is also quite believable.
But I followed through with my plan and raised about half the pot. He folded.
I do not like my pre-flop play but I like my flop play. I had a good but not great hand and raised to protect it. I would rather have gone for the check-raise, but with his passive limp, I had no reason to believe he would raise so I needed to do so myself.
The re-raise is more questionable, but I was going with my read that his limp/min-raise indicated weakness and this time it paid off.
With 201 bb I was looking for places to put on pressure. I open from middle position with K/J off, a hand I routinely fold because it is trouble.
I am never happy to hit either card as I am all too likely to be dominated, and hitting both I am afraid of stuff like A/Q, A/10, Q/10 that have draws of varying quality. Very few flops are good for this hand. But I open click-raise from late middle.
The small blind calls, everyone else folds. I do not like this. Typically a small blind averages a better hand than anyone else as they are out of position, get a smaller discount, and still have one guy behind them. On the bright side, he just called instead of raising. Even brighter, he has just 40 bb, so I cannot get hurt TOO bad…
The flop is pure horror, 2h/Qc/8s. It hits A/Q, K/Q, J/Q type hands I see a lot of people play out of the blinds and I am drawing thin against all of those. He min-raises.
That screams weakness to me. A lot of guys will do that when they miss their hand, hoping to scare away better hands without having to call. So I did not hesitate to re-raise about the size of the pot, fully expecting him to fold. He called.
The turn was the mildly dangerous 2c if he was playing some random A/2 suited. He raised a bit more, 3 big blinds, into a pot of 12 big blinds, I re-popped to 10 big blinds, he folded and I won the pot, undoubtedly with a worse hand. He probably had something like A/K, maybe A/J.
I played a while longer, but these were some of the more interesting and memorable hands. There is a lot to think about on these.
I really need to key in on my reads again. I had gotten away from doing that and it was hurting. When I pay attention, I often can make some pretty solid plays.
I do need to work on the following parts of my game:
1) patience. The "check" option is better than raising sometimes when I have a chance to see a cheap showdown with a marginal hand.
2) building big pots with big hands and small pots with weaker hands
Sitting behind 53 bb I see the utg, with 38 bb, open to 3-1/2 bb. Sitting utg+2, I look down at the cowboys. This is a position where I definitely want to isolate and go heads up, as Kings will not hold up against several callers. I re-raise to 12 bb and it is folded to the first raiser who merely calls.
I like that he just calls. He should have 7/7+, maybe a suited Ace or even some medium suited connectors. He would probably re-pop with Queens or better.
The flop is good and bad. 9d/7d/2h. He leads out for his last 26 blinds all-in. So I would need to call 26 bb to make 48. What hands could he have here to raise/call/all-in with?
Pocket 9s or pocket 7s are definitely in his range, maybe even pocket deuces if he is super loose. So are Aces and Queens, though unlikely, but any pocket 10s or pocket jacks could make that move, as could a suited diamond ace.
Even against a suited Ace, I am a favorite. The only hands he could reasonably hold that I am behind are pocket 2s, 7s, or 9s, or the bizarre 7/9s of some other suit. I think it is a pretty clear call.
He turns up the A/Qd. So he has 9 diamonds to complete the flush and 3 aces to hit a bigger pair, 12 outs twice for about 48%. The turn is the Ks which helps a bit as it counterfeits the 2d. Ultimately, the river is the Ac so my set of Kings holds up.
Going back over the hand, though, I am not sure the call is as automatic as I thought at the time. In fact, if he check-raised me all-in, I am less likely to call as I will put more emphasis on the set which I am drawing thin against. His leading into the pre-flop raiser screams more he has a weaker hand or is semi-bluffing…
Not that I am sure I thought that at the time, but in retrospect, it makes the way he played the hand make more sense. Certainly a lesson to tuck away in the back of my mind.
A while later I am sitting behind 70 big blinds in the cut-off. Utg, with 123 bb, limps. It comes to me, I decide my hockey sticks are worth seeing a cheap flop and limp behind. The big blind, with 381 bb, checks and we take the flop 3-handed.
The flop is the 6c/As/6d. Check, check, and now I have to see if my 7s are any good here. I bet half the pot. The big blind folds, the under the gun calls. Time to narrow his range of hands.
He open-limped, so an Ace is unlikely unless it is A/x suited. Medium pairs, medium suited connectors are the most likely holdings. If he check-raises the flop, I will figure him for a good pair, say Queens or better, and if he just calls, I am either way ahead of someone fishing or way behind and he is luring me in.
The turn is the innocuous 3c. That changed nothing. He checks. Now, what to do? If I check and he bets the river, it will be difficult to call. If I bet and he re-raises, I am done with the hand. If he check-calls I will fold to any bet on the river as I am beat. But there is a chance he called just to see if I was serious.
Check behind and hope to see a cheap show-down or raise to try and drive out a better hand? No way am I getting called by a worse hand here. I again bet half the pot and he folds.
Mindless aggression for the win…
A while later I have 76 bb and the button. When it is folded to me I decide to open to 3bb with Ac/Ts. The small blind, with 133bb, calls and the big blind folds.
I never like it when the small blind calls. He needs a stronger hand because A) he is getting a smaller discount and B) the big blind is yet to act. So anything except a limp that gets action is usually facing a big hand and is therefore dangerous.
The flop is 10d/qh/Qs. As expected, he checks, I bet half the pot, he calls. The good news is he did not raise. The bad news is…he called. A/Q, K/Q, J/Q, and J/10 are all reasonable, believable holdings and I am head of only the J/10. He could also have a medium pair and just be seeing if I am just making a continuation bet.
The turn is the 8c. He again checks. I raise half the pot. If he calls or re-raises, I am done with the hand. If he folds, I take down a nice little pot. He check-calls.
The river is the somewhat dangerous 9d. if he had J/10 he hit his straight.
Otherwise, it is pretty innocuous. I by no means think he has the j/10, but the possibility is there. All he has to do is breathe at this pot and I am folding. He checks.
Reviewing the hand, he called a dangerous flop, called again on an innocent card. I cannot imagine him calling any bet I make with a worse hand than the tens I hold, and cannot imagine him folding any better hand. I check behind expecting him to flip up a Queen or maybe even Jacks or something like that.
Instead he shows the Jh/Kh. Okay, so not really a hand I put in his range after the flop. And from strictly an odds perspective, he played very poorly, though from an implied odds stance…maybe not so much.
Of course, what could he think I had to keep raising on a dangerous board like that? If I raised with Q/10, Q/9 type hands…quite plausible from the button…he is bidding fair to get taken to the cleaners on the river when he pretty much has to call or raise after hitting his hand.
And the only hand I might call him with that he can beat with a straight would be precisely A/10 or A/q. I do not hate his pre-flop or flop calls…but the turn call feels pretty loose. Still, he made the call and took the pot.
The funny thing is, Sklansky and his basic theorem claim I won the hand. He would not call pre-flop, on the flop, or on the turn if he knew the cards I was holding, nor was he getting the correct odds to do so.
Maybe Sklansky feels like I won the hand…and in a sense I did, though dropping 14 BB to someone who hit their gut shot sure does not FEEL like a win…
For some inexplicable reason, I begin going the conservative route. In the small blind I pick up Big Slick suited with 59 big blinds. Utg raises to 3xbb, utg+1 and the hi-jack call. The correct play here is a re-raise to drive out hands like pairs of 9s, medium suited connectors, weak aces. The second best play is to fold, which I have done several times.
Not that A/K is not a good hand…it is. But it is a distinct dog to that much action. Add to that being out of position and for a player who sometimes refuses to release hands that clearly are no longer good…well, better to just ditch them pre-flop.
So I call because I am an idiot. The bb also calls and we take a flop 5-handed. I am out of position with a drawing hand. Any serious action on the flop means I am done with the hand barring a 10/J/Q rainbow flop or a stout flush draw.
The flop is all trash….7c/6s/3c. This hits right in the heart of the types of hands people are all but guaranteed to be holding. Seeing pockets 6s, 7s, and 3s would not surprise me, nor would 6/7 suited, 5/6 suited, 8/9 suited. This is the type of hand I need to train myself to get as far away from as possible unless I have a draw. This time, I have the draw...the nut flush draw.
Check to utg who leads out with 2/3rd the pot bet. One fold, one call. Okay, the first bet COULD be a blind continuation bet…and could easily represent pocket Kings or Aces which my flush draw will have an easy time getting paid off. I base this on the fact he fired into a dangerous flop with 3 people left to act.
It could also be a hand like A/K trying to protect itself from getting drawn out on.
There are a fold and call in front of me…the call indicating they have something worth seeing another step even with people behind to act. I obviously want as many people in the pot as possible here, so a re-raise is out of the question. I call as does the big blind.
The turn is the Jc, giving me the nut flush. In fact, unless someone is playing something goofy like a 5/6c, I have a lock on the hand unless, of course, the board pairs.
Worst thing I can do now is bet it. Too much interest in the hand to give away my strong holdings. I am really hoping for a second barrel from UTG and a couple “I have a set” type calls.
Unfortunately, it is checked around. The turn is the harmless 9h. Unless someone was playing the 8/10, nothing changed. I do not want to see it checked around, so I put in about a half-pot bet. BB calls, UTG folds, other guy calls. So lets check out the reads.
The big blind had pocket 9s…he was counting on first an over-pair, then got to take off a free card which meant he paid me off with a set. Costly river for him.
The middle position guy had pocket Jacks…over-pair that became a set when he turned the Jack.
So knowing what I know now, did I play it right? Well…maybe. If I knew the one guy had Jacks and nobody would bet, I raise here to keep him from drawing at his 10 outs with infinite odds…but probably drive off the pocket 9s and thus not get paid on the river.
Conversely, if I check the river, there is a good chance the Jacks check, the river raises and then I am faced with another decision to either call or re-raise. On the one hand, I have an excellent conundrum…the only way I lose this hand is if power goes out on my computer or I have the spack-out of all time and fold the nuts.
On the other hand…I am not sure the best way to build the pot here. If they are paying attention, the way the hand played out screams at least one flush and maybe two. I am guessing utg had a big over pair, knew he was beat and released his hand. There were two sets…just not the ones I expected, though certainly they both made sense when the end came.
After that hand I am up pretty well and I have noticed that stacks about 120 blinds deep or more get a lot more respect to their raises which I respond to by widening my raising hands. So from the hi-jack with 150 BB I open to 2xbb with a modest Ac/6s. Not a very good hand…but I actually expect to win the blinds.
Both blinds spoil my plan by calling. I have mentioned before how little I like it when the small blind calls…
Worse yet, he has me covered and the big blind is just a blip with 25 bb remaining.
The flop is the 10d/Ah/Qc that hits a lot of hands the blinds would be tempted to call with…2 face cards, any Ace, 10/J and of course big pocket pairs all love that flop. A/6…not so much.
But they check to me so I continuation bet half the pot. 3 blinds to win 6 is a cheap price that does not have to work all that often.
The small blind calls, big blind folds, and we see the Kc. Ouch. Now a humble jack beats me. He checks and I have to decide…bet again, probably with the worse hand…or check and hope to see a cheap river. I elect the latter course. The river is the 10c, just making it even tougher for an Ace to win.
I am beating almost nothing here. Q/K I am ahead of, any A/9 or worse is a chop, and every other conceivable hand…A/10+, 10/J, A/K, A/Q, A/J I am behind. I am extremely happy when he checks and I check behind. There is no possible holding he will call with if he is worse off than I am and I am ecstatic to get away from the hand cheaply.
For the record…he had K/Q, a hand I did not honestly think about when playing it and I drew out on him when the river spiked the 10. Turn-about is fair play as he had out-drawn me on the turn…but with a board that dangerous, we both wanted to keep it small.
That is a lesson I often struggle to keep in mind. There are times to play small pots, I do not always have to fire that second barrel into a dangerous board.
At the same time, I need to work on building bigger pots when I hit a big hand.
Sitting with just under 160 big blinds I am utg+ 3. UTG click-raises sitting behind 140 bb, I elect to call with pocket 3s and we get 3 more callers. Good. Makes the hand easy to play…I either hit it hard or go my merry way, having gotten pretty spectacular implied pot odds.
The flop is beautiful…4c/3c/8h. I am behind pocket 4s and pocket 8s…both believable hands…but way ahead of over-pairs which I am hoping people have. Good chance to stack someone…and then the big blind goes all in for his last 23 big blinds.
Well now…that changes things a bit. Suddenly that pocket 4/pocket 8 seems a bit more likely, doesn’t it? Also in the hunt are pocket 9s or better and A/x of clubs, betting the flush draw and over betting the pot to get us all to fold. Also very likely are bigger but vulnerable face pairs (jacks, queens).
The utg calls it. Oh, ouch. That makes it trickier. The first guy MIGHT have a set. The second guy…much more likely. It is still possible they both have over-pairs. Ideally I am against Aces and Kings or some such over pair. Regardless, I am not even close to being a good enough player to lay down a set in this situation. In fact, I am still trying to build a pot!
So with one player to act behind me, I have to choose between calling or raising yet again. Since I have position on the caller, I elect to just call and either check or raise the turn depending on what falls. The guy behind me folds and the turn brings the case three.
Great. Now I have a virtual lock on the hand. Even if the other guys both have sets, I have a hand that is a 96% favorite. I am ecstatic.
The guy who has been check-calling everything checks. Here is where I made a mistake. I should have checked. Even if he checks the river, I can bet then. Instead I put out about a half pot bet and he makes the prudent fold. Might have cost myself some chips there.
For the record, the guy who over-bet all in had pocket 10s. Over pair read for the win. Unfortunately, I was not patient and did not win as much as I could have. I need to be more willing to slow-play.
The problem is, from time to time I have slow-played stuff like nut flushes and gotten crushed on the river by a boat. Or flopped a straight and had someone runner-runner the flush when my turn bet could not get them off the hand. This has made me gun-shy about giving people “free” cards.
Later on, sitting behind 190 bb, everyone folds to the button who limps in with 111 bb. The small blind folds and I check my Ac/Jd. Wow. How many ways do I hate my play here? I have no idea if he is trapping with a big hand or succeeding in seeing a cheap flop with something like suited connectors.
That is a clear raise situation. The flop comes down 9c/Jh/2s. Up front I love this flop. I am hoping he floated something like J/10 and I am way ahead. I lead out with a pot based bet. He click-raises.
Now I am deeply troubled. Hands he could limp-raise with here include A/J, A/9, maybe A/2 suited…none of which bother me…J/10 which I am ahead of, J/9 which I am behind, or any variety of medium to low pocket pairs such as nines or even deuces. He could also be raising with air since many people consider a big blind leading out to be a fish move.
So my options are three-fold; fold, flat-call, or re-raise.
Folding in many ways makes the most sense. I checked my option instead of “defining the hand”/raising to drive out weak hands, etc.
At the same time, top pair top kicker against such a weak play as open-limping the button is pretty passive and does not seem wise. Better to see if he is serious about his even more fishy min-raise. No folding.
Calling is another option. Problem is, then I am pretty much locked into having no idea where I stand on the turn. Unless a Jack or Ace falls, I do not really like any card very much so most of the deck misses me and I will be hard-pressed to call another bet.
Re-raising is more my style; put heat on someone who seems marginally interested in the hand. I choose that option. Including pre-flop action and the raise/re-raise there is just over a buck in there, I repop to 2.05. I figure he will either A) fold (the more likely) or B)re-pop me in which case even with top pair, top kicker I know I am beat.
He surprises me by just calling.
Okay, so what is going on here? The most likely answer is one I see a lot in the micro-stakes level. People do not want to admit to bluff-raising, so they call any re-raise, then check-fold the next street. No matter what falls here, I am raising the turn.
And the turn is arguably the third worst card I could see. I had talked myself into believing he was most likely to have J/10. That would give him second pair, open ended straight draw. Q/J is also quite believable.
But I followed through with my plan and raised about half the pot. He folded.
I do not like my pre-flop play but I like my flop play. I had a good but not great hand and raised to protect it. I would rather have gone for the check-raise, but with his passive limp, I had no reason to believe he would raise so I needed to do so myself.
The re-raise is more questionable, but I was going with my read that his limp/min-raise indicated weakness and this time it paid off.
With 201 bb I was looking for places to put on pressure. I open from middle position with K/J off, a hand I routinely fold because it is trouble.
I am never happy to hit either card as I am all too likely to be dominated, and hitting both I am afraid of stuff like A/Q, A/10, Q/10 that have draws of varying quality. Very few flops are good for this hand. But I open click-raise from late middle.
The small blind calls, everyone else folds. I do not like this. Typically a small blind averages a better hand than anyone else as they are out of position, get a smaller discount, and still have one guy behind them. On the bright side, he just called instead of raising. Even brighter, he has just 40 bb, so I cannot get hurt TOO bad…
The flop is pure horror, 2h/Qc/8s. It hits A/Q, K/Q, J/Q type hands I see a lot of people play out of the blinds and I am drawing thin against all of those. He min-raises.
That screams weakness to me. A lot of guys will do that when they miss their hand, hoping to scare away better hands without having to call. So I did not hesitate to re-raise about the size of the pot, fully expecting him to fold. He called.
The turn was the mildly dangerous 2c if he was playing some random A/2 suited. He raised a bit more, 3 big blinds, into a pot of 12 big blinds, I re-popped to 10 big blinds, he folded and I won the pot, undoubtedly with a worse hand. He probably had something like A/K, maybe A/J.
I played a while longer, but these were some of the more interesting and memorable hands. There is a lot to think about on these.
I really need to key in on my reads again. I had gotten away from doing that and it was hurting. When I pay attention, I often can make some pretty solid plays.
I do need to work on the following parts of my game:
1) patience. The "check" option is better than raising sometimes when I have a chance to see a cheap showdown with a marginal hand.
2) building big pots with big hands and small pots with weaker hands
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