KQ flops top two on nasty board, Stars $22 6-handed PLH

[nath]

Early on so no reads. Best line?
(Converter hates PL hands. Sorry.)

PokerStars Game #4181422344: Tournament #20356930, Hold'em Pot Limit - Level I (10/20) - 2006/03/05 - 03:55:55 (ET)
Table '20356930 19' Seat #1 is the button
Seat 1: The_Dova (2760 in chips)
Seat 2: pawnstar1 (1410 in chips) is sitting out
Seat 3: SneakOne (3950 in chips)
Seat 5: Cap'nJackpot (1390 in chips)
Seat 6: sweetangie (900 in chips)
pawnstar1: posts small blind 10
SneakOne: posts big blind 20
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to Cap'nJackpot [Qd Kh]
Cap'nJackpot: raises 40 to 60
sweetangie: folds
The_Dova: calls 60
pawnstar1: folds
SneakOne: folds
*** FLOP *** [Kc Tc Qc]
Pot: 150

[ZBTHorton]

A couple of questions:

Are you in the red zone?
What does Kill Phil say?

I say push PF.

[yabastid]

Lead for 100-150, call a raise. If turn blanks check call, reevaluate river.

Any more action?

[nath]

[ QUOTE ]

A couple of questions:

Are you in the red zone?
What does Kill Phil say?

I say push PF.

[/ QUOTE ]
This is the worst and best answer to this question ever.

[HighStakesPro]

This is one of those hands where he could have a lot of outs against you, but you probably have the best hand right now. Leading is an obvious play, but if he calls, there are so many cards that can scare you that you'll often end up either folding the best hand to a bluff or calling down against a hand that beats you. So my suggestion is to check the flop. If he leads, checkraise the pot. If he leads for 100, your raise will be to 450, which is just over a third of your remaining stack. If he leads for 150, your raise will be to 600. This gives you the best chance of winning the pot on the flop, and if he calls, you can go all in on the turn if a blank comes knowing you probably have the best of it and you have 4 outs if you don't. His large stack increases the likelyhood that he's willing to semibluff all in on the flop with a big draw, so I would get it all in if he put you to the test on the flop.

If you can checkraise to 600 on the flop, and the turn brings an ace, jack, or club, try and check it down, but checkraise all in if he makes a significant bet on the turn. You're invested almost half your stack and you've probably gone too far to come back, and you have those 4 outs. By checking, you could induce a bluff, especially if low club comes. And if he has a low flush, trips, or even a straight, there's a good chance he'll check it down and let you save your remaining 730.
On the other hand, if you were only able to get 450 on the flop, you have 880 left. This might be enough for you to bet 200 on the turn if a scare card comes and hope he goes away, planning to check/fold the river if he calls, and fold if he puts you all in. Or you can check down as in the previous case, although you may now want to consider folding if he makes a bet. I know, the difference is only 150 chips, and it's totaly up to you, these are just suggestions. Also, remember, it's a 6-handed game, so his hand could be worse than you might expect.

The other thing about checkind is that if he checks behind you, you've solved a lot of your problems. If a scare card comes on the turn, you can either check/fold, check/call, or lead out, in all three cases saving yourself a lot of money. If a blank comes on the turn, you should bet the pot, and if you get raised, strongly consider folding. If he checked behing you on a flop like that, it probably means either a flush, straight, or set, all of which dominate you. If you just get called, the play on the river should be relatively straight forward.

[DougShrapnel]

What is wrong with a bet-fold? How much to bet? I don't know, 60-100, 150.

[Chris Daddy Cool]

POT + PUSH

[eritas2]

a lot of the responses have been to play it fast on the flop to avoid getting "outdrawn", but who knows, your opponent could have already either flopped a flush or could have AJ... i say..why risk going broke on this hand by trying to bet your opponents out...this flop isnt one where you want to build the pot with a vulnerable hand..especially in a lower-buyin shorthanded event with usually a lot of action... i mean think about it, youve only invested 60 chips...i check behind on the flop...and probably lead out with a small bet on a blank turn...minimize losses if your opponent has flopped an even better hand, plus, if your opponent is slow playing a made hand like a flush or a straight, this gives you a free opportunity to boat up, and get lots more action later on in the hand...i mean so many people are just like ooooh top 2 pair...i HAVE to bet this hand...ummm...nooo.not true at all, top 2 with KQ may be an awesome hand on KQ4 rainbow. (long story shory, im trying to say hand strength is all relative)..some might argue your opponents get a free draw and might hit a gutshot or a 7 high flush and take your 60 chips)...so what, you arent losing the tournament on 60 chips, but if you do boat up against a flopped flush etc...you may end up doubling up your whole stack against a slow played monster...also checking behing lets you call a pot sizedbet on the river, or reach a showdown where you have the best hand anyways...just my opinion, im generally a conservative player [img]/images/graemlins/wink.gif[/img]

[HighStakesPro]

Yes, it's possible that you're beat. But you have a very high chance of being ahead. Probably 90% of the time you'll have the best hand. The only hands he can have to bet you are probably AJ, TT, and Ax clubs. Most people don't call raisess preflop, especially in pot limit, with suited connectors, although I guess you never know. With TT a lot of people reraise. I would guess that his hand is probably a middle pair (maybe with a club), AQ-A9, , KQ, KJ, or maybe KTs or QJs. In my experience these are the kind of hands people liek to play. If they have a suited ace, they have 12 outs against you which makes you still a favorite. If they have a hand like KsJc, well you'll just have to dodge the 15-outer, but you're only a slight underdog because you have 3 outs to fill if they hit. But remember, this is a 6-handed table, so his hands will generally be worse than when you're playing at a 9-handed table. And since it's early in the tournament, I think you have to play aggressively and take a few risks to try to build up your stack so you have a realistic chance to make the money. That's why I like checkraising the flop. You send a powerful message to your opponent by playing this way, that you have a real hand that you want to get all the money in with, and he'll have to have either a made hand (unlikely) or a big draw to stay in against you.

The last, but still very important, thing to consider is your relative stack sizes. If you had as many chips as your opponent, that along would be enough to completel change the way you play the hand, because you simply can't get enough of your chips in on the flop when you're probably ahead. But if your checkraise works, you'll have half of your original stack in on the flop, and this will probably committ you enough to get it all in on the turn even if a scare card comes, but again you can make the judgement call for yourself. And if a blank comes (which will usually happen) then you can confidently move in and gain a ton of chips without having to show the hand down if he folds, and if you get called you're a big favorite to double up.