some online hands

zonemelt · 12-11-2004 12:46pm #1

Hi all,

I’ve been playing on Ladbrokes and a little on VC lately, during the day. I think I’m playing well but I’m not making any money at the moment, will you look at these hands to see if I’m bleeding cash or getting involved in pots that are too big? I’m usually a long term winner at both cash games and tourneys...

Hand 1

0.5/1 NL VC

I have about $50 and get 65s in CO and limp after 1 MP limper. “thebreeze” with about $100 raises to $3 in the BB, limper calls, I call.

Flop is 9 9 8 rainbow and pot about 10. thebreeze bets $2, limper calls and I call with my gutshot. I think I’ve got implied odds here as if he’s got a 9 or an overpair I’ll probably double up. I know his play fairly well and he usually raises preflop roughly in proportion to the strength of his hand. I think he would limp with 88 or make a huge raise to protect it.

Turn is an offsuit 7 for 9 9 8 7, giving me the idiot end of a straight and pot about $16

Thebreeze bets $1, limper calls, I raise to $6 (I misclicked and meant to raise more) and I’m promptly put all in. I decide my read is A9s or overpair and not a better straight since I’ve never seen this player play those cards. So I call.

Cards are flipped over and he has K9s. Great I’m ahead.

But the river 7 to give him a full house and I lose 50 BB.

Hand 2

0.5/1 NL Ladbrokes

I have about $125 and get KJs in the BB. SB completes and I check after a couple of MP limpers.

Flop is K J 2, none of my suit, pot about $5. I bet $3 and am called in one place (he has about $50 left).

Turn is a 6, for K J 2 6, pot $11 putting a flush draw on the board and I bet $8. Called again.

River is a 7, for K J 2 6 7 no flush, pot $27.

What’s the best play here?

I decide to push all in. My opponent has about $40 so it’s not a huge overbet for him to call and I think there are a number of hands that I can beat that he might call with.

He calls and has 22 and doubles up… oops!

Comments on the play? I think I was too aggressive considering I was out of position.

Hand 3

$10 short handed 6 max tournament, NL hold’em, 74 entrants, top prize a modest $250

Nearing the bubble, 13 left, pay starts at 10 left, blinds at 150/300 but going up to 300/600 next hand

I have 4000 in chips, after averaging around 6000 for the past half hour. I have been stealing a huge amount with preflop resteals and early position flop check raises, and have a very aggressive image, but I’ve been getting no cards!

I get 66 UTG and call 300. Folded to the SB who raises to 1800, I have about 1900 left. He covers me only by 1000.

I decide that if I want to win this tournament I need what’s in the middle right now or hopefully double up if called. I don’t want to slink into the money. I think there’s folding equity in raising all in as he might fold AQ, AJ or worse and a pair up to 77. Maybe even AK but I doubt it.

So I push.

He calls with AK, an ace flops and I don’t improve and get knocked out.

Comments on the play? Should I have just folded to the raise and waited until I was in postion again to steal?

Cheers,

Jono.

Hectorjelly · 12-11-2004 1:19pm

Hand one is unlucky. He priced you in, you hit & read him right, he drew out. Normally I dont like drawing to a hand that might already be dead, but his bet was so low its hard to pass. I think I would just flat called both turn and river, but you actually got most of the money in whilst you were ahead.

Does this guy often raise with K9s out of postition? Maybe I should play 50 1 again.

Hand two again was unlucky. There is only possible hand that beats you (JJ or KK would of raised preflop), and plenty that you beat. I wouldnt of pushed all in on the river, as it gives him too much chance to make a big laydown, just bet $20 and hell call every time with kx. In this case he would of reraised & you would of had to call, so it wouldnt of made any difference.

Hand three, you need to make a decision preflop. With that stack you cant afford to limp fold, if you limp there you are committed to the hand (bar a raise and a reraise). The only reason to limp is in the hope of a raise so you can reraise, as your not going to like the flop 7/8's of the time, ie every time you dont hit a set. Once your raised I would estimate your folding equity at about 10 - 15%, most players once they make a raise with that stack are committed to the hand. So you have to hope that he has overcards rather than a big pair, which he did have. The way you played it your very likely to run a 50 50, with plenty of dead money, which is fine.

With the blinds about to eat me I would of made it 2000 utg, called any raise, and if called pushed on the flop no matter what cards came up. This is probably a very slightly lower EV move, but with a way lower varience.

Another strategy would be to do a stop and go, ie call the raise and push on the flop no matter what comes up. You would of gotten a call in this case, but it will work a lot of the time.

In both alternative strategies you would of lost anyway, but both might of saved you had the A be on the turn or river.

Youll probably get better results playing at night!

Good Luck

sirchancealot · 12-11-2004 1:58pm

hand 1: His $2 bet on the flop should have made you think a bit more if as you say you know his play.Most on line players who have played for a while will protect an over pair by betting at least the pot,with this little bet hes either still drawing or he hit a miracle flop and hes trying to hook a fish.I tend to back off most pots where a pair has flopped if it gets bet in front of me even for $2 and besides you are still drawing to the worst end of the straight.If you are not winning at the moment then only draw to the nuts and raise coming in when you are the cut off to try and nick the blinds.

Hand 2: You didnt bet enough on the flop to know where you were,its hard to see a flopped set and the only way to guage the post flop strength of your opponants hand is to put in a decent feeler bet.Try taking down more small pots with aggressive play rather than sitting waiting for the one big pot.

Hand 3:Once you decided to play this the result was always going to be the same.....some days you win these others you take it up the gary.

Samba · 12-11-2004 2:38pm

I don't have much time so i will be brief....

Hand one, board paired on the flop, dangerous i would have put him on the fh there and then, in the end you were unlucky but that is unfortunately what happens when you call with cards like 67s....You might hit your gutshot some of the time but in the longrun you will bleed cash quite simply, see that crap for cheap.

Hand Two. All in on a two pair? Sorry but you need to tighten up and set yourself strict rules as to how much you will bet on certain hands.... The guy called all your bets, by the river you should have been asking yourself some questions.

Hand Three, call see the flop, run like the beejayzus when that A comes down as you know from his raise he has you beaten, keep your remainding 1.8k in chips and try to get another hand, at least you have a second chance of getting back into the game even if however slight.

The above is what I would have/do, nothing in stone everyone has their own style of play and it is important to find that for yourself.

In cash games you need to play a lot tighter than in tournies and imho forget about bluffing and steals, you simply have to have the **** to call or call only to the value you put on your hands, esp. on Ladbrokes.

zonemelt · 12-11-2004 2:40pm

sirchancealot wrote:

Hand 2: You didnt bet enough on the flop to know where you were,its hard to see a flopped set and the only way to guage the post flop strength of your opponants hand is to put in a decent feeler bet.Try taking down more small pots with aggressive play rather than sitting waiting for the one big pot.

I am generally quite aggressive and had done a few raises with trash in position with subsequent flop steals. I was sure this had been noticed so I made a smaller bet than usual (~40% pot instead of 70-90%) to make it look like I had more strength than usual...

Cheers,

Jono./