$50 HUSNG -- Top pair Call Station
 

Opponent (not the same as the other thread) is fairly loose, but no clear reads at the moment.

PokerStars No-Limit Hold'em Tourney, Big Blind is t20 (2 handed) internettexasholdem.com

Hero (t1940)
Button (t1060)

Preflop: Hero is BB with T[img]/images/graemlins/diamond.gif[/img], A[img]/images/graemlins/heart.gif[/img].
Button calls t10, <font color="#CC3333">Hero raises to t80</font>, Button calls t60.

Flop: (t160) 9[img]/images/graemlins/spade.gif[/img], Q[img]/images/graemlins/club.gif[/img], 2[img]/images/graemlins/diamond.gif[/img] <font color="#0000FF">(2 players)</font>
<font color="#CC3333">Hero bets t80</font>, Button calls t80.

Turn: (t320) 9[img]/images/graemlins/heart.gif[/img] <font color="#0000FF">(2 players)</font>
Hero checks, Button checks.

River: (t320) A[img]/images/graemlins/club.gif[/img] <font color="#0000FF">(2 players)</font>
<font color="#CC3333">Hero bets t140</font>, <font color="#CC3333">Button raises to t280</font>

Hero calls t140

Bad river call? What do you put him on?

Nichomacheo

Re: $50 HUSNG -- Top pair Call Station
 

I think he would have raised you at some point before river if he can beat AA99Q board. Call and it's a split pot 80% of the time. 5% you're beat, 15% you win. You did the preflop aggro, flop c-bet, turn nothing, river "last try to win the pot"..

So I'd put him on Ax where x is not 9.

Re: $50 HUSNG -- Top pair Call Station
 

No, a good call, and well done for not raising. You have to pay him off, if for no other reason than the fact that he could read your bet as a steal.

Re: $50 HUSNG -- Top pair Call Station
 

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I think he would have raised you at some point before river if he can beat AA99Q board.

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That is not the board.

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You have to pay him off, if for no other reason than the fact that he could read your bet as a steal.

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Most people wont min-raise to steal. There is also the point that I raised preflop, so its easy for me to have an ace here. Min-raising would be a terrible bluff in this spot. I think he calls with Ax, raises more for AQ, raises more for a bluff. That leaves, in my opinion, a nine.

How's the analysis?

Re: $50 HUSNG -- Top pair Call Station
 

Well, since the minraise screams "NINE" I think it's very worthwhile as a bluff too. I agree he may well be holding a 9, but I still think you have to pay it off.

Re: $50 HUSNG -- Top pair Call Station
 

You're assuming he's thinking on the third level arent you?

Re: $50 HUSNG -- Top pair Call Station
 

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I think he would have raised you at some point before river if he can beat AA99Q board.

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That is not the board.

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I should've said 'hand'..
but I meant is that you are SO obviously representing an ace here that it might as well be on the board.

So he might be trying to pick that off, like saying "I don't believe you have the very obvious ace there. I'm instead telling you I have it and I give you a way out"

Re: $50 HUSNG -- Top pair Call Station
 

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So he might be trying to pick that off, like saying "I don't believe you have the very obvious ace there. I'm instead telling you I have it and I give you a way out"

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Thats a very, very dangerous way to play if you're min-raising.

Re: $50 HUSNG -- Top pair Call Station
 

I would prefer to check the river . If he has a queen , he may be trying to represent the 9 by betting out a substantial amount .

The river bet has almost no positive EV value . Any ace hand would result in a chopped pot if the kicker is less than the queen . If this player does have a queen , then you may argue that you lose value by not betting but I actually think the paired 9 induces a bluffing opportunity for this player . The 9 is a potential scare card for you and this player knows it .

Re: $50 HUSNG -- Top pair Call Station
 

Without any other read on the player, I call here but expect to see a 9 a lot of the time. I too don't like the river bet. I prefer a check call here. I don't put him on a Q, I think he has a 9 or an A.

With some other history, I may find a fold here. Specifically, is he a value bettor with his big hands vs. an over bettor, I probably fold. If he is a thinking player, and I believe he sees me the same way, I call as this is also a nice bluff spot. I check call the river since you are OOP and he checked the turn.

Re: $50 HUSNG -- Top pair Call Station
 

I would definately make the call... It's hard to tell with any certainty that you have the best hand, especially with no reads on your opponent other than "he's loose" but I don't think you can afford to fold here when if you do have the best hand your opponent will be crippled, and if you don't have the best hand, you'll still be close to even in chips and you'll have some addiitional insight into what your oppont is willing to call post flop.

Re: $50 HUSNG -- Top pair Call Station
 

Yes, paying for information is definitely an aspect of Heads Up play that most players dont consider. In order for it to be worth it though, you have to be an adept hand reader, which most people arent.

Re: $50 HUSNG -- Top pair Call Station
 

Did you end up revealing what the villain had, or is there a way to find that information?

Re: $50 HUSNG -- Top pair Call Station
 

97.

Re: $50 HUSNG -- Top pair Call Station
 

Thanks. Makes complete sense. The min-raise seems like an extracter. Of course, I may be speaking from hindsight. No, I am speaking from hindsight.

I probably would have ended up calling though.

Re: $50 HUSNG -- Top pair Call Station
 

720 in the pot, 140 to call, you have top pair good kicker you are going to win way more than the 16% required to call here, there is some merit to checking here, a queen is likely to have bet the flop and a 9 is all over you, but I would expect a 2 or a king to call this suspicious looking bet often enough to make betting more attractive than check calling.

Re: $50 HUSNG -- Top pair Call Station
 

I disagree; this is a clear check, call on the river. You have a hand that has good showdown value, but you want a cheap showdown. The A on the river and 2 9's are scare cards, you are going to lose more money calling reraise here or folding to reraises then you will make by an inferior hand flat calling your raise. You now need 2 calls by a K or 2 to make up for this bet and call. Phil G. talks about this in his green book.

Re: $50 HUSNG -- Top pair Call Station
 

The ace isnt that scary, and I'd expect to get paid off by weaker aces, pocket pairs and even the odd king sometimes here, as sizable raise is an easy fold, the raise in question is a fairly easy call

Re: $50 HUSNG -- Top pair Call Station
 

Weaker aces split with me and I dont get much from pocket pairs given that I can easily have an ace here.

If I bet, I only get called by an ace and an unlikely queen. I might get raised, and be committed to call.

If I check, he bets, and I have no idea where I am and am faced with a call. If I check, what size bets do you call on the river?

Re: $50 HUSNG -- Top pair Call Station
 

Anything $160 or less without a great read. Unless he is a true manic, I doubt your opponent puts a bet in here for more than $200 without having you crushed. And now you only have to win it 1 in 3 times to make it correct.

At the $50 level, I don't think you are going to win 1 in 3 when there is a reraise like this and now you have invested 2x as much. The worst hand that will RR here is Ax and you tie most of them and lose to AQ or AK.

So the bet is only correct if you plan to fold to a RR, I think this is a clear Check Call.

Re: $50 HUSNG -- Top pair Call Station
 

This hand illustrates why it is so dificult to raise out of position with AT. Your hand is not concealed and it will be hard to get paid off when you hit. Against weak opponents it can be done for value but in general I just think it is to difficult. If the blinds were bigger or his stack smaller I think raising preflop would have much more value. AT is a big hand but I would need very specific criteria to make this preflop raise. In terms of this hand I would call due to the pot odds. I would also of made a much smaller bet on the river. His check on the turn means he most likely has a hand he is willing to check down and you want that whole range of hands to call you. His turn check also makes it less likely you can induce a bluff on the river. A case can be made that your bet is a good defensive bet but I dont think this hand meets that criteria.

Re: $50 HUSNG -- Top pair Call Station
 

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This hand illustrates why it is so dificult to raise out of position with AT.

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Then what do you do? Check behind after a limper?

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So the bet is only correct if you plan to fold to a RR, I think this is a clear Check Call.

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I like your reasoning.

This all boils down to good river decisions. I'm not going to make any money by betting the river here, so I ought to check.

Re: $50 HUSNG -- Top pair Call Station
 

I missed the fact that the kicker doesnt play when against another ace and you split the pot, I'd say that does swing it to a clear check call, if the kicker played though I'd still favour a bet.

Re: $50 HUSNG -- Top pair Call Station
 

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I missed the fact that the kicker doesnt play when against another ace and you split the pot, I'd say that does swing it to a clear check call, if the kicker played though I'd still favour a bet.

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Yeh