A littlr Q and A

by 8FOCUS8 Mon Mar 30, 2009 11:10 am

Hello all,

So yesterday was a very strange day at the office. Earlier in the week I won a seat into the Bankroll Builder $1000.00 free roll over at Doyals Room. I was feeling good going into it being that I finished 1^st in chips in the satellite. There were 2500 people and 100 get a seat. I chose not to play in the morning like I usually do because I wanted to be fresh for the tourney that started at 6:00. The first 10 hands were fairly normal folded until I caught KK on the button. I got a quick double up when someone in early position called my all in with KJ o after a 2 9 5 rainbow flop. It took me another 3 or 4 hands before I realized that everybody but me and 1 other guy were sitting out. For 1 hour we took turns collecting all the blinds, that was a 1^st for me. By the time I actually had to start playing I had a $13,000 and was 15^th in chips. This tourney had 1255 players and paid up to 180 so I was feeling pretty good. I played really tight until I got in the 180. I made a move with A9s on the button and doubled my stack and quickly went on a run to become 5^th in chips 97 people to go. Then I think I made a big mistake, what do you think? I was dealt A10s in seat 4. The table had really tightened up and I felt like I could make a move here. I raised to 6000, blinds were 2000/1000. It was folded around to seat 7, and after a few long seconds, a noticeable pause. He pushed in for another $18,000, I had made notes of his previous raises with AK and AQ 3x with both. So I put him on a med. or small pair. I had $54,000 in chips and made the call. He had pocket 9’s that held up! After the hand I got down on myself because the math was not right and I made the call anyway. I was right on the hand I put him on but I lost. Was this a dumb play on my part? That $18,000 would have had a lot of value later on being that I ran cold from there on out and went out like Broomcorn’s uncle getting blinded and anted into 32^nd place. I made $3.30 but I really feel like I could have mad the final table had I not made that call. What do you think?

by **datsme53** Mon Mar 30, 2009 12:41 pm

Ah yes... the old looking back on a hand after the tourneys over. Smile

We all do this and wonder if we did the right thing at the time. If you hit a 10,A or made a str8 or flush, the other player would be doing the same thing about now lol! Razz

All I can say is what I've heard many times.... there is no right or wrong about how or what method, strategy, or whatever that we use to play the game of poker. There are certain strategies, methods that a lot of good players in the game today agree and disagree on. Which is the best one to use? Hey, if everybody agreed exactly on how to play this game... we could read every player nearly every time. It's one of the elements of the game I really like.

Getting back to the question at hand.. yours that is! I would say this.. and this will be only my opinion and I'm not, repeat not an expert by any means.... you seemed to have his hand pegged for sure, but is that the odds you really want when you call such a big reraise after you raised it 3x the BB? Only you can answer that question... and at the time, I would say you answered yes. A,10 suited(I'm guessing you were suited) would still basically just give you 2 over cards to the PP of 9's. Probably 50/50 to 55/45 at best discounting a slight chance of a flush. The problem I would have with calling this hand at that particular instance(being such a big reraise) is that it would appear to me that he could have just as easily been 10,10....J,J....Q,Q... which could have changed the odds even more. I doubt if I could have put him on a hand with any bigger PP than those however. So I'm inclined to fold in that instance letting it go for another battle down the road. I don't really know how this player has been playing(aggressive,tight,tight aggressive) for sure so my decision is a little blind from what you explained. I am assuming that when you say "He pushed in for another $18,000" that he was all in at that point. I'm thinking that because you say the 9's held up, leaving me to assume that no other bets were made in the hand.

Soooo.. I'll also say this.. You played the hand and had his hand pegged and decided to call knowing you probably are in a very close odds position.. if that's the odds you like and play that way with a big reraise confronting you... then for you, you played the hand the way you wanted. Remember, no real wrong or right here.. just my opinion that given what unfolded(knowing what I know about the hand) I probably would have put him on QQ-77, and given the big reraise (9 times the BB) I would likely have folded. It's one of those border line calls we all face in every tournament, and the more we end up on the right end of those decisions.. the better we do in that tourney.

It sounds like to me that you did very well in the tourney, so looking back and questioning your decision about a particular turning point hand tells me that you are really constantly trying to improve your game...and that's a good thing. Smile

by 8FOCUS8 Mon Mar 30, 2009 3:46 pm

Great insite and yes he was all in. Looking back I dont believe the math would justify this call here. I discounted the math and let my instict take over, I think that was a mistake. Had I won I probably would still be pondering that call. It takes dicsipline to win and I was not very dicsiplined there.

by **chefjimmy** Mon Mar 30, 2009 4:35 pm

this weekend in fact..with alot riding on it..did i make the wrong move..hindsight is always 20-20..i play my gut...its what years of playing this game have taught me,no i,m not rich,and i,m not a pro,i dont even place 1st that often...but i see alot of final tables and ITMS,so go with your gut and learn from your mistakes...and know this..your going to lose its just part of the game

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Thanks

yeah i get stung too

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