Two quick q's re live game play

Hitchhiker's Guide to...

Playing the 75+5 euro DC tournie in Sporting Emporium. Managed to scrape into the money, but wasn't happy with two plays. Any advice?

1. QQ vs ?? on K-high flop, and tricky player.

I am very large chip leader, as I have been getting good hands all night. Would have a table reputation as a tight player with a high starting range.

Blinds are 50/100. Get QQ on BB. One raiser before you to 400, i make it 1,400 and just he calls. He is second chip leader on table with circa 7,000 to my 17,000. He would have a good starting range playing against me, but would be willing to make loose calls against loose players.

Flop comes K-x-x. I'm first to act and put in a stack of circa 9,000. He thinks about it, then folds, and i pick up the pot.

My problem with how i played this, was that he is only going to call me when he has me beaten, e.g. with A-K. He is almost never going to call me when he is behind. So, i was playing with fire with my bet. Having said that, if i had checked the flop, he would also, almost certainly, have bet large to put me off my hand.

What should you actually do in this situation? My push-and-pray approach doesn't seem optimal.

2. Absolutely nothing.

Final table, five get paid. Still nine players left. You start as chip leader, but there are others near to your chip level. Players have shown themselves willing to go all-in and call large bets with very little.

Am willing to be aggressive on the table, but it seems unwise to be superaggressive given the calling stations and loose players.

From the moment I sit at the table, i go absolutely card-dead. Not a single card over maybe an 8, and slowly get blinded away. What should you do in this situation? Do you have to go super-aggressive and play any two cards?

cooker3

For the QQ hand, the pot is about 3000 if my maths is correct so why not put a pot size bet in, if he raises you then your done with the hand and if he calls then you can judge at the turn whether you think it's correct to fire another bullet but such an overbet of the pot as you already said is only going to be called by a hand that beats you.

As for your spot in the final table, it's all about picking your spots, but if people are raising every hand and will call you down then you pretty much have to wait for a hand, at least with a big chip stack, you have a bit of time to wait for one soo ultimately you probably just have to wait for a hand unless you get low.

Culchie

Hand 1 .... Is that a 900 bet or a 9000 bet ? If 9000 = :eek:

I think the 3/4 pot continuation bet is neccessary even with the K high, otherwise he'll just play back at you, and put you on the back foot. If he raises, you know you are probably behind and time to put on the brakes.


Hand 2 ... You should try and play hands against the opponents you were playing with before you got to final table....your image will count for a lot, and maximise your chances of stealing a few pots.
You have to start playing, otherwise you'll get blinded out .... don't go below 6/7 BB's (minimum) otherwise you are a dead duck.

You can afford to wait for your hands early on in a MTT, but not on the final table, you have to play if you want to win.

Hitchhiker's Guide to...

afraid it was 9,000 = :eek:

Culchie

Roundtower2 wrote:

afraid it was 9,000 = :eek:

Smilies are great

You sure dug yourself a big hole there if you were called.

He was only going to call if he had the best hand there, you would have been sick if he had the King.....anyways lesson learned I'd imagine.

careca

I'd agree with the previous posts. 9K is crazy. Pot bet and see what happens.


As for the FT all you have to do is rob the blinds once every round. As culchie said pick spots against players who feel you are only playing the goods. Cards like suited connectors are good in this spot, because you will most likely have two live ones if called. Also you could wait til bubble time and then start pushing any two as lots of players will tighten up then.

Hitman Actual

QQ Hand: Pot sized bet, and take it from there. I think his range could be fairly large here, from pairs 88-JJ, to the usual big Ace's, even suited connectors (trying to mix up his game), etc. You're right in that you'll mostly only get called here when your beaten.

Final table: No matter how loose it is, you should still be able to find spots to keep your stack alive. There's always someone who wants to limp into the money. And when you hit the 10BBs area, you're in all-in or fold mode. You say the players are very loose, but when it comes to bubble time, a 10BB all-in is still hard to call. Dont get blinded away, you have to win your 60/40's, etc, at most final tables in Dublin casinos to finish in the decent money.

Hectorjelly

You say if you check he will almost certainly bet. Well check raise him all in then. If you bet that flop he will never fold a better hand, and never call with a worse hand. That means that everytime you are in that situation and make that bet you are losing equity. If he is aggro enough to bet most of the time when chkd to, then he has created a profitable situation for you, and the stacks are just perfect for it.

Bandana boy

Leading for 9k is nuts

You are not bluffing any better hand so 9K means you think you have best hand
if you think you have best hand then check raise or check call

often if you can read you have best hand check calling will let our villain impale himself on his own mediocrity

opr

Hectorjelly wrote:

You say if you check he will almost certainly bet. Well check raise him all in then. If you bet that flop he will never fold a better hand, and never call with a worse hand. That means that everytime you are in that situation and make that bet you are losing equity. If he is aggro enough to bet most of the time when chkd to, then he has created a profitable situation for you, and the stacks are just perfect for it.

Not sure i get this in situation above. Ok i check and he bets and i raise all in ........... is this not just as bad as betting the 9000 over bet in the first place ??

In both situations i am putting all my money in without any real read that i have the best hand ??

Opr

fuzzbox

Check/raise all-in is certainly better than betting 9k, thats for sure, as you win his bluff money when you do have the best hand, which probably makes up for the times that you lose 9k when you dont have the best hand.
This does not make it the optimal strategy, but its better than shoving, and hoping your QQ is good.

I wouldnt bet the pot here either - 2000 seems plenty to try to win this pot. The pot is 3000. I would bet 2000 or so, and take it from there.

opr

fuzzbox wrote:

I wouldnt bet the pot here either - 2000 seems plenty to try to win this pot. The pot is 3000. I would bet 2000 or so, and take it from there.

The pot or not I also think a bet of 2000-3000 is the best thing here.

ollyk1

Roundtower2 wrote:

afraid it was 9,000 = :eek:

Bloody hell Mick!

And you reckon you had a tight image??? ROFL
What you think/want your image to be and what it actually is may be two different things. Just because a guy is getting a good run of cards doesn't mean I think he's tight.

You played the Queens bad end of story. Bet out a standard two thirds pot and take it from there.

As for the FT thats the more worrying thing. If you have two cards less than 8 then they must have some connectedness potential

You should be raising and reraising (especially if a guy is pussy enough to leave himself enough to fold unless you have him marked as a strong player which I doubt generally :rolleyes: ) with position and saying, to use a phrase from your blog "all you can eat baby!":p and "how do you like dem apples" and various other things.

You gotta switch gears at a shorthanded FT or you'll never win the big cash.

Hitman Actual

fuzzbox wrote:

C

I wouldnt bet the pot here either - 2000 seems plenty to try to win this pot. The pot is 3000. I would bet 2000 or so, and take it from there.

If opponent is in any way tricky, does a bet of 2K not leave you more open to an all-in raise, against a possibly worse hand? A pot bet is half opponents stack, so he's less likely to try that.

Rnger

The villian only has just over 5.5k left in the hand anyway so I pot sized bet (3k) is committing yourself. You have to call is all-in if he raises. Don't you?

edit: you defo dont...

opr

fuzzbox wrote:

Check/raise all-in is certainly better than betting 9k, thats for sure, as you win his bluff money when you do have the best hand,

I am just not sure no matter how much of a bluffer this guys is he will bet. I mean its very risky to try and bluff the chip leader of a tornament that has you well covered.
By checking you then leave yourself open to giving a free card for him to catch up or to let him be tricky with his king.

charlesanto

Absolute Genius...

Hectorjelly wrote:

You say if you check he will almost certainly bet. Well check raise him all in then. If you bet that flop he will never fold a better hand, and never call with a worse hand. That means that every time you are in that situation and make that bet you are losing equity. If he is aggro enough to bet most of the time when chkd to, then he has created a profitable situation for you, and the stacks are just perfect for it.

fuzzbox

lenny_leonard wrote:

If opponent is in any way tricky, does a bet of 2K not leave you more open to an all-in raise, against a possibly worse hand? A pot bet is half opponents stack, so he's less likely to try that.

I normally bet between 1/2 pot and full pot. 2/3rds is fine for me ... and if he is "tricky" enough to raise me all in with a worse hand than mine, on this board, after I have reraised preflop and bet strongly at the flop, then he deserves the pot.

fuzzbox

opr wrote:

I am just not sure no matter how much of a bluffer this guys is he will bet. I mean its very risky to try and bluff the chip leader of a tornament that has you well covered.
By checking you then leave yourself open to giving a free card for him to catch up or to let him be tricky with his king.

I said that c/r all in is BETTER than push.
I didnt say that I liked it too much.

However - if villain will auto-bet if you check, then its a good move - especially with villains stack.
If villain will not auto-bet, then I like a bet here.

cardshark202

This remind me of a hand I played last night in one of the 180 man sngs on stars. Dow to the last 2 tables, I have just above average stack (19.5k), blinds are 500-1000 i think. I get QQ in MP and make it 3200, CO(35k) calls.
Flop is K74 all hearts (I have no hearts). I bet 4500, CO re-raises all in, I think for a while and call. He has AJo with the J of hearts. I suckout and win. Does anyone prefer check-calling with this hand all the way?

Hectorjelly

fuzzbox wrote:

However - if villain will auto-bet if you check, then its a good move - especially with villains stack.
If villain will not auto-bet, then I like a bet here.

Rountower said in the OP that he would almost certainly bet if checked to

Hectorjelly

opr wrote:

Not sure i get this in situation above. Ok i check and he bets and i raise all in ........... is this not just as bad as betting the 9000 over bet in the first place ??

In both situations i am putting all my money in without any real read that i have the best hand ??

Opr

??? Its the same when we have the worst hand, but we pick up 3000 more chips when ahead, so no its not the same at all.

Hectorjelly

on a more important note roundtower I want to hear more about that foreign chick !

Ste45

Culchie wrote:

Hand 2 ... You should try and play hands against the opponents you were playing with before you got to final table....your image will count for a lot, and maximise your chances of stealing a few pots.

Never thought about that before,
Thanks,
Steve

RoundTower

I don't understand why anyone is shocked at 9000, and recommends a pot sized bet of 3000 leaving you 2600 behind. But if your opponent will definitely bet then you should check.

In the second one just play each hand on its own merits. You can never be in the middle of a bad run of cards.