[Aces McGee]

[ QUOTE ]
Mike, I almost agree with you. But much of the range that James is trying to represent doesn't make sense given preflop.

As a player that trys to play well, I would put James on a hand like AQ given the way he played it. He raised first in and called a reraise preflop. I bet a player like James has played AQ that way over the course of his poker career.

[/ QUOTE ]

Yeah -- AQ and 88 -- are a part of his range that jive logically with preflop.

But I have outs against the former and am calling the turn -- and is James really firing again if the river blanks off, particularly if it's still three ways? (Let's not forget that there's an apparent calling station still involved here, and that he took a lot of heat on the flop. There's nothing to suggest he folds.) And if he does, are players really folding a top pair, good kicker hand in a pot that big? Not very often. (I know you don't think he has to have a hand that big, but I disagree - he's checking anything less than an ace through on the turn with two opponents).

And we still haven't talked much about the big hands that are certainly a part of the button's range. He could have a set, or AQ himself. In those cases, James is often charging himself three bets to draw when he could've done it for one.

I don't think it's horrible, and I recognize and appreciate the strength James is representing. I just don't think it's the right situation.

-McGee