Daily Poker Quiz: Archive

EPT Dublin
2008-07-13

Let's revisit the 2006 EPT stop in Dublin for a second, since yesterday's A9 hand brought another A9 hand to my thoughts.

The tournament has gone one for about 1.5 hours and the blinds are at 50/100. You've been playing fairly straightforward - called a bit pre-flop, made a few bets and raised pre-flop maybe 2-3 times. No big pots so far. You might have shown a weak side when you bet on the turn and folded to a min-raise in one pot.

Praz Bansi has about 10k and is flashing his newly won WSOP bracelet. He raises to 300 from UTG+2. So far, he's been relatively passive, and this is only the second time he raises pre-flop.

You, with 9k, make a loose call with A 9 on the cut-off position, and decide to play this hand very carefully unless you hit the flop well.

The big blind also makes the call, so there's 950 in the pot when the flop comes A T 8. The big blind checks, as does Bansi. You decide that you want to win the pot outright and bet after Bansi's check. The bet is 600, and the big blind gets out of the way but Bansi raises to 1,500.

It's not a big re-raise and you're trying to put him on a hand. Most likely, you think he's got AK, AQ or TT. Maybe 88 or AA, but it doesn't seem as likely. You don't want to display weakness again, so you choose to call in order to see the turn and make a decision there. You do have runner runner draws.

On the turn, the board is A T 8 9. It's a 3,950 pot and Bansi bets 2,400. You have about 7,700 left - what should you do?





Fold
If you think that you're still behind, you should obviously fold, but the most likely scenario is that you're up against AK or AQ - so shouldn't you go all-in?

Nope! This isn't a small internet tournament, it's a live prestige tournament against a reasonably good opponent. If you go all-in, he'll be able to fold AK. And if he calls, you're done for.

If you're ahead, he'll have about six outs. If you're not, you have between zero and four outs.

In cases such as this, it's better not to put all chips in and pray, but to call calmly.

After that, you'll have to make a river decision. If he checks, you can sell your hand with a value bet. If he bets, you'll call (unless the river comes a ten). Your call on the turn gives him the chance to bluff the river - don't take that away from him.

Besides, if he bets, say, 3k on the river, you'll have about 2k left even if you make the call and lose the pot. It's not a lot of chips, but it's enough to make a desperate comeback.

Call (correct)
If you think that you're still behind, you should obviously fold, but the most likely scenario is that you're up against AK or AQ - so shouldn't you go all-in?

Nope! This isn't a small internet tournament, it's a live prestige tournament against a reasonably good opponent. If you go all-in, he'll be able to fold AK. And if he calls, you're done for.

If you're ahead, he'll have about six outs. If you're not, you have between zero and four outs.

In cases such as this, it's better not to put all chips in and pray, but to call calmly.

After that, you'll have to make a river decision. If he checks, you can sell your hand with a value bet. If he bets, you'll call (unless the river comes a ten). Your call on the turn gives him the chance to bluff the river - don't take that away from him.

Besides, if he bets, say, 3k on the river, you'll have about 2k left even if you make the call and lose the pot. It's not a lot of chips, but it's enough to make a desperate comeback.

Raise to 5k
If you think that you're still behind, you should obviously fold, but the most likely scenario is that you're up against AK or AQ - so shouldn't you go all-in?

Nope! This isn't a small internet tournament, it's a live prestige tournament against a reasonably good opponent. If you go all-in, he'll be able to fold AK. And if he calls, you're done for.

If you're ahead, he'll have about six outs. If you're not, you have between zero and four outs.

In cases such as this, it's better not to put all chips in and pray, but to call calmly.

After that, you'll have to make a river decision. If he checks, you can sell your hand with a value bet. If he bets, you'll call (unless the river comes a ten). Your call on the turn gives him the chance to bluff the river - don't take that away from him.

Besides, if he bets, say, 3k on the river, you'll have about 2k left even if you make the call and lose the pot. It's not a lot of chips, but it's enough to make a desperate comeback.

All-in
If you think that you're still behind, you should obviously fold, but the most likely scenario is that you're up against AK or AQ - so shouldn't you go all-in?

Nope! This isn't a small internet tournament, it's a live prestige tournament against a reasonably good opponent. If you go all-in, he'll be able to fold AK. And if he calls, you're done for.

If you're ahead, he'll have about six outs. If you're not, you have between zero and four outs.

In cases such as this, it's better not to put all chips in and pray, but to call calmly.

After that, you'll have to make a river decision. If he checks, you can sell your hand with a value bet. If he bets, you'll call (unless the river comes a ten). Your call on the turn gives him the chance to bluff the river - don't take that away from him.

Besides, if he bets, say, 3k on the river, you'll have about 2k left even if you make the call and lose the pot. It's not a lot of chips, but it's enough to make a desperate comeback.



Result:

Fold 11%
Call 24%
Raise to 5k 21%
All-in 44%

Totally 878 vote(s)