A weird hand with a maniac

[jlocdog]

I am biased when it comes to suited Aces. I like them very much since they make nut flushes. Two things need to be understood though when playing them. 1)You need to recognize what a good flop for your hand is (given relative position and recent play by both you and opponent/s) 2)You need to be able to manipulate the pot to your liking.

#1 should be self explanatory. Vs. some, TP is good while vs. another you are playing for 2pair+. Obviously the more players in the hand (which is ideal) the harder you need to flop. I realize this isn't much different then how all hands are played but I feel suited Aces need that extra special attention since it may be easier to lose bigger pots if you play them wrong (thus the averseness of playing them to begin with). #2 is sort of a feed off that in respect to you dictating the pot size. Position is always good in any hand but with I feel less so with suited aces. The reason is because you have to be very conscious of your flop play. Thus if you are continuing after the flop, most likely you flopped strong enough to be in control of how big or small the pot becomes so you have more weapons to use comfortably when OOP.

This absolute ramble is an attempt to preclude those who say just fold PF. In my opinion people are too quick to release a hand like this when OOP.

As for the hand, I don't like opening the betting again where you are on a total bluff and will have to fold to a 4bet. I want to see a flop with this hand. Especially 3 way with some money in the middle. So no likey the flop play. Just call.

Most of the weight for the top of monkeys ranges with this PF line is typically mid PP's. So if he didn't hit this flop, he didn't miss it either. I also see no truly good turn card that will make you feel remotely comfortable. I realize that last statement is an endorsement to bet/shut down but too often you need to fire 2 barrels minimum and often 3 to get the desired fold so the investment on a bluff here seems too high.

I fold to any turn bet except a clean heart (no 2h or 9h) and even then it needs to be a 2/3PSB or so to call. Anything larger and I fold.