An Interesting Hand of Poker: What would you do?

Image via WikipediaAn Interesting Hand of Poker: What would you do?

I am playing in a $15-$30 live cash game of limit hold'em. It is a full table of 10 players.

In this hand, I am on the button with As-Ts.

Everyone folds to the player in the cutoff. This player is winning tonight and he has been super aggressive with many pre-flop raises.

As expected, he raises.

I already had decided that whenever he raises first in a pot in late position, I would re-raise him with a calling hand or better. My objective is to get heads-up on the flop.

I re-raise here.

The small blind is a selectively aggressive player. He has been having a losing session, though, and he may be a little on tilt after the last few pots he lost. He calls-which is a little surprising

The big blind is straight forward in his play. A little too conservative and predictable. It surprises me when he calls as well.

The Flop

The pot is $180.

The flop is Ad-7h-6h.

The player in the small blind bets out. The big blind calls. The cutoff folds.

I raise..Why? I think I am ahead, and this raise will help me to find out more on where I stand in this pot.

Well, to my surprise the small blind re-raises and the big blind caps it!

What the heck is going on here?

Would you call two bets with your hand here?

I take some time to think this over. I put the big blind on a flush draw since he didn't raise the first time the small blind bet. I put the small blind on top pair. The question is does he have me out-kicked?

Well, I take some more time to think about the small blind. If he had A-K or A-Q, he would have re-raised me pre-flop. That means that he either has A-J, A-T or worse. I doubt he flopped two pair or a set.

I make the call.

Three of us take the turn.

The pot is now $360.

The Turn

The turn is a 6c, pairing the board.

The small blind bets out and the big blind calls.

Okay, what should I do here?

What would you do?

I could raise--but I doubt I will slow down the small blind or get anyone to fold given the pot size. And, I won't necessarily get a free card either.

The pot is too big now, but I really don't want to see a river bet from my opponents. How can I get the small blind to stop from betting on the river?

I say out-loud ..."I'm either way ahead or way behind."

I figure that if the big blind misses his draw, there is no way that the small blind will bet as he has to believe that I may have A-K or A-Q now.

I call.

The pot is now $450.

The River and the Results

The river is a 2s.

My opponents check...should I bet here?

Well, given what I said on the turn, I check.

The small blind shows A-8. The big blind mucks.

I win with my A-T!

What a hand...it seems so clear now.

How to Play From the Small Blind in Limit Poker

How to Play From the Small Blind in Limit Poker

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My sense is that poker players need a lot of help when it comes to blind play, especially small blind play. The small blind is in for 1/2 a bet usually, and will feel the urge to "defend" his chips.

I want to begin with one of the most frequent situations and how you should handle it. The situation is when you are in the small blind and a player in late position is first into the pot and raises. What should you do?

Here is what I ask myself:

1. Is it a steal raise or an authentic raise?

To help you decide if it is a steal raise or not, you need to identify how that opponent plays. If he is an aggressive player, a raise from the button and cut-off are more likely to be a raise to steal the blinds.

Of course, if the player is tight or predictable, then be more inclined to give him credit for a real hand. If it is an authentic hand, it is right to fold all but your premium holdings.

2. If you believe it is a steal raise, what then?

If your hand is good, you may want to call the raise to see the flop. This is a mistake.

If your hand is good enough to call, you should re-raise almost all of the time. The main reason for a re-raise is that you don't want to give the big blind the pot odds to call. If you call, it will cost him one bet to win five bets. If you re-raise, now it will cost him at least two bets to win six bets.

When you get the BB to fold, you create dead money in the pot and improve your chances of winning the hand.

3. With which hands should you re-raise?

I don't like to provide precise hands here since everyone's comfort level is different. However, try to set up a range of hands you want to re-raise the steal raiser. No, it is not any two cards. You don't want to re-raise with junk.

One way to begin setting up a range of re-raisin hands is to do the following:

Assume the steal raiser had just called instead of raising.
What would you do with your hand?
If you would have called or raised, then re-raise your opponent.

Sometimes you are going to be right in identifying a steal raise and sometimes you will be wrong. That's poker. But, don't fold all of the time. Don't re-raise all of the time. And almost never, ever call.

I hope this helps and if there is interest I will get into other situations for small blind play.

Limit Poker Question: Did I Miss A Bet on the Turn?

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Limit Poker Question: Did I Miss A Bet on the Turn?

I am playing at a $3-$6 limit game online. I have $60. I don't use any software to analyze the style of my opponents.

I am in an early position with 7s-6s.

The player under the gun, Mr. A calls. He is the only loose and aggressive player at the table. Well, besides me. (FYI: He bought in with $500--which usually signals to me a loose player.)
I act next and call.

The next player, Mr. B, raises. Mr. C, re-raises, and Mr. D caps the betting. It's the first time a pot has been capped pre-flop at this table. Mr. A calls the 3 extra bets. I am next and I call, as do the remaining players. There is $64.50 in the pot and five players see the flop.

The flop is Kd-4s-3s.

Interesting flop. I have a (inside) straight flush draw, but I know that my chance of winning lies with hitting my flush.

Mr. A acts first and bets. This is a strange bet to me; that is, to bet into the raisers. I call.

By the time it gets back to Mr. A the pot has been capped again. Everyone calls. There is $120.50 in the pot.

With 4 opponents and the betting capped, I am attempting to put my opponents on a range of hands. Looks like the hands could be" AA, AK, sets, flush draws, and a straight draw.

The turn is a 2s.

I like that card, as it makes my 7 high flush, until Mr. A bets again! Wow, what is he thinking?!

Would you make that bet with a set? I didn't think so. I figure he may have a flush.

Is this a good time for me to raise? If I raise, and my opponents are not brain dead, they will fold if they can't beat a flush on the river. And, if Mr. A or one of the other players has a flush, I may be re-raised. I decide to call.

To my surprise no one raises. The pot is $150.50.

I am confident no one behind me has a made flush. Although I am thinking that Mr. A has a bigger flush, another opponent has a set and of course, another opponent is holding the Ace of spades.

The river is a 3d. Uh-oh.

Mr. A checks. Now, I'm fairly certain he has a flush.

I check. Instantly, the other 3 players check! There is a chance I have the best hand?!

Mr. A's cards open and he has As-5x offsuit for a straight on the turn and the nut flush draw. My cards are revealed--the 7 high flush. The other cards get folded. I win the pot!

I don't check the hand history. I never do.

Do you think I missed a bet on the turn?

Now that I know no one had a set, who is going to call my raise? Mr A will call with his nut flush draw. And, maybe if one of the other players had a K high flush draw, he'd call. But no one has two pair.

I guess a raise by me would have added another $6-$18 to the pot. But, that is hindsight as an opponent could have re-raised me.

Oh. No way I can bet the river when the board pairs, right?

What do you think?

It was a nice win. And, yeah, I was called an idiot by the player who capped the betting.

Poker Tip: A Limit Poker Move So You Can Win More Money

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Poker Tip: A Limit Poker Move So You Can Win More Money

I thought I would pass this move on since so many players are missing out.

You are on the cutoff with As-Ks. Everyone folds to you and you raise. I am on the button and call. The big blind also calls.

The flop is Ah-9h-8c. The big blind checks. You bet. I call and the big blind folds.

The turn is a 2h. You bet top pair, top kicker although you are worried about the possible flush against you. I call.

The river is a 7c. You bet and I raise. What are you going to do? What do I have? Did I hit an inside straight draw?

You call since the pot is giving you good odds. I turn over Kh-Jh. I hit the flush on the turn.

Let's look at what happens when most players hit their hand on the turn:

You are heads-up and in position against a lone opponent on the turn. He bets and you make your flush on the turn, so you raise. He calls. The river is a rag. He checks. You bet and he folds. You've won two bets.

But, look at what happens when you wait to raise on the river:

Same situation except you call on the turn. On the river, your opponent bets again and you raise. In most cases, your opponent will call. You've won three bets instead of just two bets by waiting to raise on the river.

Next time you hit your hand on the turn, stop and think before you make that automatic raise.

Note: This is a better move when you are heads up and in position. And, yes, a scare card may come on the river to slow you down. But, overall, it will work more often than you think.

I hope this helps.

Sponsored Post: Limit Hold'em Myth About Pocket Aces

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Sponsored Post: Limit Hold'em Myth About Pocket Aces

Another post from Rakemeback.com. This one reviews the myth about pocket aces in limit poker. Frankly, if you get pocket aces in a limit game, you should raise and re-raise pre-flop in any position. Yes, even in the big blind.

Fixed Limit Poker (FL)

Fixed Limit poker is the ancestor of all other poker betting structures, and as such it should be respected. These days, with NL Holdem firmly ruling the roost, Limit Holdem is more and more marginalized. With most rookies going into business at the NL Holdem tables, the list of Limit Holdem haters grows longer each day.

The truth about these haters is though that their attitude reflects nothing but ignorance. Ask any good poker player whether he/she hates limit Holdem or not. You’ll probably be told that while Limit Holdem does have its peculiarities, there’s absolutely nothing to make it less attractive then NL, or PL for that matter.

Most haters base their attitudes towards the game on myths. There are countless myths surrounding the game, mostly spread by those who have never spent enough time at the FL tables to really get to know the game.

Pocket Rockets: A Myth

One such myth is the one about pocket rockets losing value dramatically in FL. Some people will tell you that because a player has his hands tied when it comes to protecting a starting hand, all solid starting hands lose value. Some will even go as far as to tell you that you should not commit anything on pocket rockets because they’re guaranteed to be cracked.

I’m here to tell you though that pocket rockets represent the best starting hand in Holdem, regardless of whether it’s FL, PL or NL we’re taking about, and that they’re equally valuable in all three betting structures. The way that value manifests itself is different though.

With that in mind, my advice to you is to stuff that FL pot the best you can when you pick up pocket rockets, and I’ll prove to you why that’s indeed the reasonable thing to do.

The Value of Aces

I’ll start from the premise that everyone calls everyone in FL poker all the time: the very reason why haters say there’s no value left in the game. This is obviously a theoretical premise only, it won’t happen in real life, but I’ll start from a worst-case scenario just to make my point easier to comprehend.

At a 10-handed table, (going up against 9 other players) your aces will win about 28% of the time against non-random hands like K,K, Q,Q, A,K and some suited connectors and suited one-­gappers. If we are to consider 9 random hands, that percentage climbs to around 30%. What that means is that your pocket rockets will win 1 out of 3 confrontations against 9 other players, on average.

There’s your explanation to why it looks like your rockets lose often: because that is the case indeed. The only thing is, stuffing the pot on pocket rockets still remains profitable and here’s why:

Suppose you invest 10 units on every pocket-rocket hand that you play. That means after 3 hands, you have 30 units invested of which you lose 20. You win the 3rd hand so that’s not a loss for you. Considering that your opponents call you all the way, that means the third time you book a clean profit of 90 units. 90-20 = 70: that’s a very handsome profit over those 3 hands of play indeed. As the number of players goes down, your odds go up, so you’ll always be able to book a nice profit on your pocket rockets.

The conclusion: pocket rockets are just as profitable in FL Holdem as they are in NL. It just takes longer for your edge to yield palpable results. On top of that, you do not risk dropping your entire stack on a cracked pair of aces like you do in NL.

The bottom line: playing well pays just as well in FL as it does in NL. Make sure that you stuff the pot on those rockets every time and sign up for a rakeback deal or for a poker prop deal for cryin’ out loud. Because of the peculiarities of the betting structure, your stack is going to last longer, and you’ll have to eke out your profit over more hands than in NL Holdem. More hands mean more poker rake though and you need to compensate for that somehow.