100 NL: 2 hands including Analysis

[slimbob]

From my blog. I have some nonrelated poker readers so I tried to keep it simple with some explanations for beginner.

Feel free to discuss, flame, whatever. I know the first reply is "BBV" but I did it to encourage other player to provide hands with an analysis of their thinking process.

Ahh yes: No reads because this were my 2 first hands at the table. Table was quite loose due to the lobbystats.

I played both hands against the same villain.

Poker Stars
No Limit Holdem Ring game
Blinds: $0.50/$1
5 players
Converter

Stack sizes:
UTG: $256.55
CO: $111.25
Button: $169.90
SB: $100
slimbob: $100

Pre-flop: (5 players) slimbob is BB with Q[img]/images/graemlins/heart.gif[/img] K[img]/images/graemlins/club.gif[/img]
UTG calls, 2 folds, SB calls, <font color="#cc0000">slimbob raises to $6</font>, UTG calls, SB calls.

In a six handed game I raise QK from all positions with the exception of UTG.

Here we have 2 limper one UTG who can have a hand and the SB who calls with most of his hands.

If UTG is slowplaying a monster and reraises me I instafold that hand of course.

My standard raise is 4 Big Blinds (4$) plus 1$ for every limper.

I decided to raise it a bit higher to increase the chance that they fold because I dont like my position between these two players.

Flop: 7[img]/images/graemlins/heart.gif[/img] 3[img]/images/graemlins/club.gif[/img] 6[img]/images/graemlins/diamond.gif[/img] ($18, 3 players)
<font color="#cc0000">SB bets $5</font>, slimbob calls, UTG folds.


comment: 2 bad news: I missed the flop and SB decided to bet.

Should I fold, call or raise?

SB probably hit the flop.

A straight draw is also possible so he tries to buy the pot now with a semibluff.

Complete air is also possible but less likely because he has to bluff into 2 players and its a raised pot so I could have an overpair.

A weak tight player is folding here because he missed the flop and dont get good enough effective pot odds to call with his 6 outer.

But in NL you have huge implied odds (The ratio of the total win if I hit my hand to the cost of calling a bet).

Example: I hit my Queen on the turn make a 2/3 potsize bet and SB calls with the 7 or his draw because he dont believe me.

The pot odds here are 4.5 to 1. These odds are so huge I have to call. If hes on a draw I have still the best hand.

Raising is not an option because SB is likely to call and the pots gets too big.

Its also more difficult to impossible to bluff him from the hand later if he decides to call. I invest only the minimum in this hand.

Turn: 2[img]/images/graemlins/spade.gif[/img] ($28, 2 players)
SB checks, <font color="#cc0000">slimbob bets $10</font>, SB calls.

Good news: UTG limper folded his Aces :-) and the pot is HU now. SB checks to me so he most likely has a draw now. May be he has a pair below the seven. With a 7 he bet most of the time.

He showed weakness so I have to bet. I dont give him a free card to improve his hand. I hope he decides to fold.

slimbob bets $10, SB calls.

River: A[img]/images/graemlins/diamond.gif[/img] ($48, 2 players)
SB checks, <font color="#cc0000">slimbob bets $30</font>,

SB called but checks again AND the river is a very scary card for him who probably give me a pair of aces so I treid to bluff him from the pot by representing a pair of aces.

My turnbet was weak compared to the pot so this makes sense. If he has a draw I have still the best hand but its very likely that he has one small pair so I decided to bluff him from the hand

Why 30$? At NL always consider the risk/reward ratio. If I bet only 10-15$ in this pot hes getting huge odds to call even with a 6.

I shouldnt overbet the pot here because if he has a hand (2 pair like A3, set, straight) and decided to slowplay that to the river I lose more money.

So I decided a 2/3 bet should bluff him from the hand. The higher you play the higher normally you should bluff because the player are more likely to call your bluff.

I have to win this pot 2 out of 5 times I bluff here with a 2/3 pot size.

SB folds Uncalled bets: $30 returned to slimbob.

Results:
Final pot: $48

The next hand:

Poker Stars
No Limit Holdem Ring game
Blinds: $0.50/$1
5 players
Converter

Stack sizes:
UTG: $111.25
CO: $169.90
Button: $100
slimbob: $125
BB: $250.55

Pre-flop: (5 players) slimbob is SB with 7[img]/images/graemlins/spade.gif[/img] 9[img]/images/graemlins/club.gif[/img]
2 folds, <font color="#cc0000">Button raises to $3</font>, slimbob calls, BB folds.

Normally I fold here. Why? The hand is crap and I have to play it out of position. Sure I have huge implied odds but it adds up to call with these hands. I made an exception because I played the hand before with the same player and if I hit its more likely that he pays me off.


Flop: 6[img]/images/graemlins/heart.gif[/img] A[img]/images/graemlins/heart.gif[/img] 5[img]/images/graemlins/diamond.gif[/img] ($7, 2 players)
slimbob checks, <font color="#cc0000">Button bets $4</font>, slimbob calls.



I have a gutshotdraw to the straight and my hand is disguised so I decided to call the 4$. If he has an ace with a good kicker he pays me off but in the long run this play is -EV because normally you dont get enough money to make it profitable and even if I hit its not sure that I win.

Turn: 8[img]/images/graemlins/heart.gif[/img] ($15, 2 players)
<font color="#cc0000">slimbob bets $20</font>, Button calls.

Jackpot. I hit my 4 outer and have a straight. I dont like the flush not because villain could have but he could think that I hit the flush.

Because of the flushdraw and that the other player has probably an ace theres no time to slowplay. He probably checks this down with an ace.

I decided to slightly overbet the pot (potbet is the standardplay) because I thought he hit his hand and because this 20$ overbet looks more like a bluff and there is no reason to bet a flush that strong.

b]River:[/b] A[img]/images/graemlins/club.gif[/img] ($55, 2 players)
<font color="#cc0000">slimbob is all-in $98</font>, <font color="#cc0000">Button calls all-in $73</font>.
Uncalled bets: $25 returned to slimbob.


Bingo. If he has an ace with a good kicker thats very hard not to fold that hand so I decided to push. Some weaktight player may think that he could have the flush or a boat. This is true but than I have to call anyway with my monster.

It is possible that the other player could fold this hand after my push at the river but not after the first hand when I played so aggressive. If you have a weak tight table image the other players dont pay you off.

This is one big mistakes a lot of straight forward player do. They think they can wait for the nuts and the other player pay them off. This is most of the time not the case.

I forget the results:

* SHOW DOWN * slimbob: shows [7s 9c] (a straight, Five to Nine) Button: shows [As Ks] (three of a kind, Aces) slimbob collected $199 from pot [img]/images/graemlins/grin.gif[/img]

[mikechops]

Hand 1

check turn


Hand 2

fold pre-flop
fold flop
If he called 2 overbets with three hearts on board, he either had a flush, can beat a flush or he is an idiot. Relying on an unknown being a donkey is asking for trouble.

[DaDizz]

spend time reading other posts and replies. Hand one is marginal, hand 2 is...i don't even know=disgusting

[slimbob]

[ QUOTE ]
Relying on an unknown being a donkey is asking for trouble.

[/ QUOTE ]

He told me that hes a donkey when he coldcalled my 6$ raise OOP from the small blind. He is supposed to raise every hand which he can call my raise.

The 79o hand was the hand after the KQ hand.

[Bukem_]

wow.

I used to have the hardest time reading hands vs stars players, but most of the ones that play like you seem to have gone busto. Gonna bookmark this incase they come back and I have to try to read their hands again.

[slimbob]

I got villains thinking process in the 2 hands (Dont ask me how).

Please look at my 2 hands first.

The 1. hand:

villain has 56s in the small blind.

villain: nice 56s and I see a cheap flop. Easy call.

After my raise to 6$. Of course this moron tries to raise me from the hand with his first hand at my table. Obviously a drunk retarded donk. Pot odds are 2.5 to 1. I call.

Flop: Sweet. I have a pair and a gutshot. I have the best hand. I bet.

Turn: Mmmh may be my hand is not good I should check to keep the pot small. After my bet: MMh, if he has an overpair I have 10 outs but I guess hes bluffing.

River: Damn. He beat me with almost any pair and any ace. May be hes bluffing but its not worth to find out. I fold this time and wait for a better hand.

The 97o hand.

Preflop: AK. Standard raise. I hope the donk calls me again.

Flop: teh nutz!!!. I keep donk in the hand with a standard continuation bet. He pays me off.

Turn: WTF!!! Flushdraw and donk overbets the pot. Nobody plays the flush like this. Nice try. this time I call.

River: Sweet. Trips with the best kicker.

After my push: Damn does he has the flush? A boat is possible but probably another bluff. Whatever. I have to be good only 50% of the time. I call.

[snakekilla88]

yuck at both of em

[Kurtiii]

well the way you got to the river in hand 1, may as well fire there. Questionable to just call a flop bet with no plan for the hand though. So easy to talk yourself into spew; let´s make the turn a 5 and you think SWEET I CAN REPRESENT THAT and villian slowplays etc. ...

hand 2 is realy terrible, only thing that made it work is an even more terrible villian. It´s cool to call for a gutshot here and there, but on a 2 flush board .. wtf ? And hitting it and then essentialy bluffing it isn´t a good idea either.

Oh and clearly villian sucks "WTF!!! Flushdraw and donk overbets the pot. Nobody plays the flush like this" EVERYBODY at stars plays teh nuts like this ...