50NL, 22 flops set, did I do alright?

[_TKO_]

Poker Stars
No Limit Holdem Ring game
Blinds: $0.25/$0.50
6 players
Converter (http://www.neildewhurst.com/hand-converter)

Stack sizes:
UTG: $55.10
UTG+1: $17.75
CO: $53.65
Button: $108.70
Hero: $49.50
BB: $56.15

Pre-flop: (6 players) Hero is SB with 2/images/graemlins/spade.gif 2/images/graemlins/heart.gif
UTG folds, UTG+1 calls, CO folds, Button calls, Hero calls, BB checks.

Flop: 7/images/graemlins/spade.gif 2/images/graemlins/club.gif 9/images/graemlins/spade.gif ($2, 4 players)
<font color="#cc0000">Hero bets $2</font>, BB calls, UTG+1 calls, Button folds.

Turn: J/images/graemlins/diamond.gif ($8, 3 players)
<font color="#cc0000">Hero bets $7</font>, BB calls, UTG+1 folds.

River: 6/images/graemlins/diamond.gif ($22, 2 players)
<font color="#cc0000">Hero bets $9</font>, BB calls.

[closer]

bet more on the river, $17ish sounds good.

[br.bm]

I'd raise PF
everything else is fine

[ama0330]

Thumbs up! You can probably get another dollar out of him on the river.

[Sigurd]

Why would you want to raise 22 OOP against a limping shortstack without reads?

[TheDespot]

Agree with the rest, bet the river a bit harder, as he seems to have a pretty strong hand here.

[ama0330]

[ QUOTE ]
Why would you want to raise 22 OOP against a limping shortstack without reads?

[/ QUOTE ]

You wouldn't, doing this will kill your implied odds and you are OOP.

[TheDespot]

[ QUOTE ]
Why would you want to raise 22 OOP against a limping shortstack without reads?

[/ QUOTE ]

+1
Don't think raising with 2-2 from the SB into previous limpers should be done very often.

[Marshall28]

i dont have a problem w/ raising the 22 from sb here, i think its pretty difficult in general to build a pot if its unraised were it the case that u hit your set ... u dont have to c-bet the flop if u miss, but i dont think u r gonna make as much money if u never were to raise it in this situation

[Triggerle]

I often complete this also but I also raise this if the table dynamics are such that I think I can take it down pre-flop or get a free card on the flop.

[ciki57]

I raise with all PP preflop because it's hard to get all the money in with a set in unraised pot.

And even if you don't flop a set you will often take down the pot with c-bet if you raised PF.

[GoadToad]

My feeling is that although raising all PP at 6max is usually good, it is better to complete/check in the blinds with a full table of limpers, especially when half of them are short-stacked, and especially with the smaller PP. This is because:

a)there probably aren't hands with 2 high cards or they would have popped, so the only people calling your raise are other small pairs and suited connectors. They are not going to get all-in unless they also hit, and if they hit they beat you.

b) worst case you fold out the big stacks and the little ones stay in (they're more likely to)

c) if 2+ people DO stay in, you have little cbet value with 22 OOP

d) you may be perceived as stealing and one of the short stacks might push. Don't know if this still happens as often at NL50 but it happens a lot at NL20. This factor also reduces your cbet value

e) part of the reason to raise PP is because open limping them is too obvious. Here you are completely disguised because you would complete with 80% or more of hands.

[TheDespot]

[ QUOTE ]
I raise with all PP preflop because it's hard to get all the money in with a set in unraised pot.

[/ QUOTE ]

In my experience many unraised pots become pretty big when someone flops a set. In this case, the limping villain could easily have something like 9h-7h or suited spade overs where the pot is going to swell. I think it's better to flop a set in an unraised pot with a number of limpers than a raised pot with only one or two callers. This relates specifically to implied odds. True, a c-bet will work a good deal of the time where the low pair whiffs and the board looks a little scary, but it will fail when the opponent flops some type of hand, and the value you get when flopping the set without raising I feel outweighs that which you get from raising and stealing the pot only a certain portion of the time when missing.

[Thremp]

Raise preflop, pot every street.

[TheDespot]

[ QUOTE ]
Raise preflop, pot every street.

[/ QUOTE ]

Why raise preflop with a low pair from the SB with a number of limpers? To maximize your implied odds for hitting the set you want a good number of people in. Raising preflop will thin the field at least somewhat. Yes, the preflop raise will sometimes allow a c-bet to take it down when whiffing on the set, and also if the deuce comes and you raised in this spot it will be tough to put you on a set of deuces, but again I don't think this comes close to the value gained when flopping a set in a hand with a bunch of limpers. It is an extremely sneaky hand when it hits, and will more often than not lead to a win of a usually relatively large pot. In short, I do not really understand the rationale behind raising the low PP in the SB with a number of preflop limpers aside from just making a play that is unusual and will add deception to your game. In a high-quality game this may be useful but at the micros I don't really see it as necessary. Raising with it will thin the field and reduce implied odds. Let's say you raise with the 2-2 and the flop comes something like K-9-5 rainbow. You c-bet and everyone folds except a middle position limper who calls. The turn comes a blank, let's say a 3. Now what is the move? Raising with the pair leads to sticky situations, and it will mask your hand when you do hit the set, but the set is such a masked hand anyways? Any thoughts on this? I'd like to see the value others see in raising the PP here preflop.

[T-Bone98]

With that many limpers I wouldn't raise with 22 from the sb either. Played fine but I think u might get more money on the river with a slightly bigger bet.

[iamVillaiNmo]

[ QUOTE ]
I'd raise PF
everything else is fine

[/ QUOTE ]

Thats a pretty bad idea with the limpers and pretty much period if you dont know the opp. well or you arent blind vs. blind.

I bet about 14.5 on the river and puke when he pushes.