Reader's Choice Blog

A few blogs ago I posted some ideas for my next efforts.  In response to one of the requests I would like to discuss "waiting for big hands vs. making plays".  Card dead, we have all been there.  Some days you look down at 7/2 (I know you live for those days, Lynne) or similar cards seemingly every other hand.  Or, you get late position playable hands under the gun.  Think Q/10, K/2 suited, A/9 etc. These are hands that you could well shove with on the button but are suicide in early position.  What is a player to do?

Big hands are so very hard to come by.  We all love to be short stacked and have the dealer send kings, queens, A/K our way in any position.  This does not necessarily happen for us.  So, what this means is that we sometimes have to get our chips in the pot with less than premier hands.

There are two considerations.  First, how desperate are we?  With just a few blinds we are in deep trouble for various reasons.  We do not have enough chips to make healthy stacks fold once they have limped in or will defend their big blind with almost any cheese. We also must consider position as well.  The earlier we are, the better our hands should be to make our final stand.  If we are in the unfortunate position of being to the right of big stacks, we must make our moves with better hands. This is a time when when we should consider moving in earlier when we can do more damage to a big stack and they will be less likely to defend.  If shoving against a small stack, we must consider their desperation point as well as what point we are in the tournament.  If we are on the bubble, they may fold just to survive to eke out a cash.

In general, I would like to make my "moves" against passive players who will not defend weaker holdings, or against medium stacks who are vulnerable but not desperate or big gamblers.  I want to shove with reasonable holdings but not necessarily garbage....though that is o.k. if other conditions are prime.  Remember that "any two cards can win", just as "any two cards can lose".  A few Friday nights ago a highly skilled short stack moved all-in from the small blind with 2/8 against the tight big blind who found A/Q.  Naturally, he hit a 2 and doubled up.  Like I say, any two can win.

Lately I have been questioning my authority as some sort of expert or guru.  Most of what I write about as recommendations are based on my poker readings.  I enjoy reading poker books, watching instructional videos on youtube, and analyzing my own and others play.  Like I say, I am not an expert just a poker degenerate who likes to blog.  Recently I passed along a book to a poker friend that covered this same subject.  Even though I play against this person regularly I like to share information and tips.  In general, I like better play at the tables.  At coffee today talked to yet another poker pal about this.  We would both prefer playing against better players than rookies, clueless players and calling stations.  Good players will lay a hand down, donks will not.  Thus they cannot be bluffed and will get lucky against you often enough that you will feel the pain.  This is just how it works.

On another topic, Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to all of you.  My cards are running pretty good right now, managed to win the Friday night tournament with a two way money chop (30K in chips vs. 22K).  Looking forward to the new year, some trips to Las Vegas and a financially successful poker journey.  Will publish the hard facts about my poker year in the next blog, have kept very detailed records and will summarize after Friday night's tournament is over.  

Slow Play Controversy

Last night at the Legion I got involved in a controversy regarding slow play.  There is a regular there who is by far and away the slowest player in our game.  He will routinely agonize and Hollywood before acting on his hand.  He really slows the game down and I hate, hate, hate having him at my table.  When I deal, my attitude is that I want to deal as many hands as possible to the table.  It is a turbo tournament and if fewer hands are dealt then you are at a disadvantage to another table.

So, here is the situation.  There is probably a minute left on the clock before the first break when a shortstack player on the button shoves (K/10).  It is folded to the cutoff, our annoying slow player (as I am opposed to writing critical pieces using actual names, I will call this player "Darren") who absolutely tanks (he has limped in).  This goes on as he looks at the clock, letting the time run down so we will be unable to play another hand before the break, then finally calls....with Q/Q!!!!  Unbelievable.  The flop contains a queen, but also a jack, so our hero has the open ender.  The turn brings a 9, making him a straight, and the river brings an ace making a bigger straight.  Karma is a bitch, is it not?

After the hand is over the dealer takes "Darren" to task about his slow play, and he admits that he did not want to play another hand before the break (?????).  The dealer points out that QQ is a snap call situation (heads up with a shorter stack).  The discussion goes on for a few minutes, we chip up the tables and I talk to the dealer briefly about the hand.  He asks me if I would say something to the player which I am more than happy to do.  I also talk to the other players and ask them to chime in as well (they do not).   When we return we have a pretty nasty discussion involving slow play and karma as well.  The table breaks up soon after and thankfully he is assigned to a different table.

What is your take on this?  All the players agreed that this was a major dick play.

The Night of The 3 Outer

I would like to start by saying that top pair/top kicker is sort of a double edged sword.  Obviously it is a great situation as you have the best possible single pair hand.  That said, a single pair is a very vulnerable holding.  Another issue is dominated hands.  Often we have duplication in our holdings but when one player holds a higher rank card as his kicker the other player is usually drawing to only 3 outs. So, with that preamble I would like to share with you my experience this week during our Wednesday night tournament.

I started off very well the first hand of the tournament, calling a fairly large pre-flop bet with KQ suited.  I hit top pair with 2nd best kicker. There was action on my flop and turn bet, winning the river on showdown.  I was doubled up.  My trouble started early as well when I raised UTG with A/J and was called by almost the whole table.  Flop came down A/6/7.  I continuation bet and got one caller.  The turn brought an 8 and again called when I bet.  The river was a 9 and I made one last bet. Called.  He turns over A/6 off for a winning 2 pair.  So, now still above starting stack, I find AK suited in the big blind.  After a couple of limpers the button raises to 150.  I re-raise to 400.  Both a limper and the button call me.  Flop comes down K/J/10 and I fire a big bet.  The limper calls and the button folds.  The turn is a small card, I fire again and the limper shoves.  Call.  He turns over KJ for 2 pair.  I still have 6 outs but fail to find a queen or ace.  I am now short stacked.

My final hand is AK suited in the big blind, middle position short stack shoves, call.  He has 8/8 and I fail to find my spades, an ace or a king and am the first out of the tournament.  What did I do wrong? I am going out on a limb here and say "nothing".  I thought the first losing hand was sort of stupid as he caught his 3 outer on a hand that by all good judgement he should have folded preflop.  A/6 off? Really?  What early position raising hand is he ahead of?

The second beat was much worse in my opinion.  That guy was most definitely the monkey in the middle between a raising button who has position on him and a re-raising big blind with a big stack. I am continually amazed that players put so much faith in K/J.  It is an easily dominated hand, and also suffers from the gap.  Yet, I see players often getting very frisky with it, and sometimes winning.
The very last hand was sad because I was eliminated being unable to find 6 outs when the previous hands were lost with a total of 6 outs against me.  Just plain unlucky.

What Would You Do?

Playing last Friday night we consolidated the original 4 tables down to 2.  I was short stacked with 1700 in chips blinds at 200/400.  The player two to my right was playing fairly tight for him.  He is a good, aggressive player who will make big laydowns and switches gears at the right time.  At our previous table he told me during the break that he had pocket 10's twice under the gun, raising both times and folding after the flop when there was lots of action.  He will also lie about his hands, but in this case I believed him.

So, back to our action.  He had raised to 900 two hands earlier and showed AK suited after everyone folded.  He again raised to 900 vs. my big blind.  All players folded around to me and I found A/8 offsuit.  With probably not enough hesitation I shoved my remaining 1300 which he called.  He turned over AJ suited.  I understand that he will always call my shove given the chip count, and I could not guarantee that I was ahead of his range.

Total pot before my shove= 1500
My remaining chips= 1300
Total pot with his call= 3600
I would have 200 in the small blind next hand

So, what would you have done?

The results, which must be separated from the decision was that he caught a jack on the flop or turn and I was eliminated.  Just trying to decide if I made the right decision or not.

Reader's Choice

Sometimes I get tired of thinking up clever titles for my blog.  So, I would like to run a "reader's choice" title for my next one.  Here are your choices:

1.  The Comprehensive List of People Who Give a Sh-t About Your Bad Beats.  This would be a very short blog.
2.  Bad Beats I Have Taken.  This would be a very long blog
3.  How Hat Choice Impacts Your Poker Game Results.  Should the fedora be feared?
4.  Poker.  Hobby or Addiction?  This one is too close to call
5.  Short Stack Shove Ranges.
6.  Do Donks Realize They Are Donks?  Thinking about this lately.  I play with some very predictable players (sometimes I am one too).  Do they realize that when they call a raise their hand is almost face up?  One player always has an ace if he calls.  Some players shove with their small and mid range pairs.  Every time.
7.  Why do players fall in love with KJ?
8.  It has been said "any two cards can win".  The corollary is, "any two cards can lose".
9.  Position vs. Cards vs. Chip Stack.  Which is most common, which most powerful.  I am re-reading a book on this now.  According to no less an authority than Doyle Brunson, it is position.
10.  Waiting for big hands vs. making plays.