Hand 1)
Villain has been running me over thus far, playing aggressively and firing away. I haven't shown up with anything to play back with.
Full Tilt Poker, $0.10/$0.25 NL Hold'em Cash Game, 6 Players
LeggoPoker.com - Hand History Converter
Hero (SB): 100.40 BB
BB: 108.96 BB
UTG: 60.08 BB
MP: 134.20 BB
CO: 58.12 BB
BTN: 276.52 BB
Pre-Flop: A
9
dealt to Hero (SB)4 folds, Hero calls 0.6BB, BB checks
A9o is a strong and well-disguised hand here...I don't want to blow up the pot by raising and potentially getting re-raised OOP.
Flop: (2BB) 4
7 T (2 Players)Hero bets 1.8BB, BB calls 1.8BB
I nice flop...I'm willing to take it down right here, or build up a bigger pot on the chance that I make the nut flush. I expect villain to call with a wide range here.
Turn: (5.6BB) 4
7 T [ J ] (2 Players)Hero bets 4.8BB, BB raises to 10BB, Hero calls 5.2BB
I turn the nuts and continue my line, hoping to take advantage of an aggressive opponent and get more money in the pot. I don't think there's much point in re-raising here. Villain is repping a big flush, and I'm happy to let him fire another barrel on the end.
River: (25.6BB) 4
7 T J [ T
] (2 Players)Hero checks, BB bets 96.16BB and is All-In, Hero calls 87.6BB and is All-In
Well I don't have the nuts anymore, so that's bad. But what could my opponent have that would raise the turn and then be ahead of me here, other than 8s9s? Doesn't 44/77/T4/T7 raise the flop and then slow down on the turn, rather than vice-versa?
On the other hand, wouldn't you bluff smaller to make it more believable? Maybe pot size?
Given the combination of factors, and the aggressiveness of my opponent up to this point, I make the call....
Results: 200.8BB Pot (10.04BB Rake)
Hero mucked A
9 (a flush, Ace high) and LOST (-100.4BB NET)BB showed T
4 (a full house, Tens full of Fours) and WON 190.76BB (+90.36BB NET)So how bad was my call on the river? With so little invested, should I almost always avoid calls like this without the nuts or near to it?
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Hand 2)
Full Tilt Poker, $0.10/$0.25 NL Hold'em Cash Game, 5 Players
LeggoPoker.com - Hand History Converter
BTN: 54.60 BB
Hero (SB): 182.68 BB
BB: 200 BB
UTG: 200 BB
CO: 65.84 BB
Pre-Flop: A
K dealt to Hero (SB)UTG raises to 3.4BB, 2 folds, Hero raises to 12BB, BB folds, UTG calls 8.6BB
There's a good argument for cold calling PF from the SB, especially when we are playing close to 200BBs deep, but I take my more standard line and 3-bet. This is certainly defensible with AK, but this can be difficult to play from OOP, so we will have to proceed cautiously.
Flop: (25BB) 7
K 9 (2 Players)Hero bets 18BB, UTG calls 18BB
It's obviously good that we hit a K giving us TPTK. But in a 3-bet pot, when I bet and get called on a K-high rainbow board, there aren't nearly as many hands that I'm ahead of (KQ/KJs) as there are if I hit the A (AQ/AJ/Axs). Villain's range includes a lot of KA-KT, JT for a double-gutter, and maybe TT/JJ/QQ. Some other remote possibilities include A9s/T8s/68s.
Turn: (61BB) 7
K 9 [ 8 ] (2 Players)Hero checks, UTG checks
The offsuit 8 completes JT, but otherwise not much has changed. I choose to check for pot control, and to increase my chances of getting value on the river.
River: (61BB) 7
K 9 8 [ J ] (2 Players)Hero checks, UTG bets 43BB, Hero folds
Here's where I lose my nerve. The river is a really bad J, putting KJ/KT/JJ/TT all ahead of me. Given that I'm beating such a small part of his range, I decide to check. When my opponent bets 70% of the pot, I just don't think I can justify a call.
Results: 61BB Pot (3.04BB Rake)
UTG mucked and WON 57.96BB (+27.96BB NET)
This hand leaves open several questions. Is it a mistake to check the turn, since I forego value from worse Kx hands and medium PPs? On the river, is this a good check/fold situation, where I can easily fold to a raise, but still want to get value from KQ/QQ? Or are there just so few hands that I beat that check/fold is the right play? Or can I check/call, since I've controlled the pot and that was my plan?
2 comments:
Hand 1: If it folds to your SB, and you have an Ace, then make a 3x raise. You will usually pick up the BB right then. It's not much, but why get tricky and let your opponent see a free flop when you're OOP? You turned the nuts and he popped you, so pop back. If he has the 2nd or 3rd nut flush, then this is your chance to get paid. As played, I probably still call on the river. In a battle of the blinds it's just hard for me to give him credit for a boat.
Hand 2: You definitely missed a bet on the turn. Make a PSB there and he probably goes away. If he calls or raises then you can effectively shut down. As played, you made the correct laydown on the river. Can't call that big of a bet with a single pair.
Hef
Hef,
I think it's a mistake to raise the turn, b/c it announces my high flush. He is repping a big flush, possibly Q or K, so I want to look weak by calling so that I can check-raise the river. I'm not scared of a paired board b/c it is so unlikely it helps him. I think this was just a confluence of bad circumstances, but still, there may be something to be said about calling a huge overbet when not holding the nuts or close to it.
In hand 2, I'm not convinced that checking the turn is so bad...I'm gambling that the river won't be scary so that I can get an extra street of value. If I fire the turn, I may be overrepresenting my hand, building up a pot that is too big. And, I can't stand a raise there. On the river, the only real scare cards are T-Q, which is worthwhile to sweat out. That's my logic at least. I have a post about pot control coming, since it can be such a complicated concept to get right.
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