Critique this play

[bweiser8311962]

I don't have the hand history, but I'll give to you as best I can.
6-handed LHE 1/2 at PokerStars.

UTG raises, 3 callers, SB folds, I'm in the BB and can close the action with 6h 8h. Easy call, right? 10 SB in the pot, so I'm getting 10:1 on my call.

Flop is K 10 7 rainbow, giving me a gutshot, needing a 9 to make a weak straight, but my feeling was no one had JQ so i thought the 9s were clean.

Flop action is I check, UTG bets, 2 callers and it's to me at 13 SB. So 13:1 is good enough here to make the call, right?

Turn is the 9 and I bet out. Couple callers. River is the Ace. Again, I bet out and get called down by AK who doesn't understand how I can possibly play this hand.

Thoughts?

[SheridanCat]

I think you played it right. Your actions are justified based on pot odds alone. The only thing I might do differently is go for a checkraise on the river when that ace hits. Of course, I may not get it, but my feeling is that if someone is strong enough to call my bet, they may also be strong enough to bet out and let me get a couple extra bets.

Either way, you played it right. Also, I wouldn't consider a straight made with both cards on a rainbow board weak at all.

Regards,

T

[Songwind]

Looks like good play to me.

I'd have gone for the check-raise on the turn. That 9 probably doesn't look threatening to Kx (which I put UTG on before you told us what he had).

[davebwell]

If the guy berated you and went on tilt from this, you might want to add him to your buddy list. I wouldn't worry about his criticism. It's not like he would have returned your money to you had he won and thought you were stupid for playing that way. The pot odds justified every call you made.

If one of the board card was a heart, you'd have backdoor flush and straight draws as well as the gutshot straight. This is about 6 - 6.5 outs which gives you about 25% pot equity against 3 opponents. A check raise on the flop may be a good play because you could get a free card on the turn if your 9 doesn't hit thus saving 1/2 big bet when you miss your draws.

[davebwell]

I couldn't edit my last post so let me say that your pot equity is only about 20% not 25% so raising may not be such a good play from a pot equity perspective.

[ottsville]

Good thinking on the odds and the calls. Well played in this respect.

A check raise on the flop may be a good play because you could get a free card on the turn if your 9 doesn't hit thus saving 1/2 big bet when you miss your draws.


Check raising the flop from the BB with a gutshot will most likely not result in a free card if you whiff the turn. The result being that it would cost you at least an extra sb to see the river(utg could rers/ costing you 2sb to go forward and possibly folding the other callers). I think it's best just to call the flop and keep the other players in...why try to bully one player who has shown strength when you can milk him and two others. However I would check raise the turn rather than bet out, hoping to catch the 2 callers for at least calling UTG's bet, maybe even get them to call your raise.

[ottsville]

Good thinking on the odds and the calls. Well played in this respect.

A check raise on the flop may be a good play because you could get a free card on the turn if your 9 doesn't hit thus saving 1/2 big bet when you miss your draws.


Check raising the flop from the BB with a gutshot will most likely not result in a free card if you whiff the turn. The result being that it would cost you at least an extra sb to see the river(utg could rers/ costing you 2sb to go forward and possibly folding the other callers). I think it's best just to call the flop and keep the other players in...why try to bully one player who has shown strength when you can milk him and two others. However I would check raise the turn rather than bet out, hoping to catch the 2 callers for at least calling UTG's bet, maybe even get them to call your raise.

As for the guy wondering how you could play such a hand, tell him you "just had a feeling."

[IndyFish]

I would have C/R the turn. UTG will almost certainly bet, and since you have relative position, you can get extra money in the pot without losing any callers (by making them call two cold). I'm greedy though.

I love the comment about adding him to your buddy list.

[Texibus]

I would have let that hand go a long after the raise. 6h,8h is an extremely weak hand even though you were getting great pot odds if the hearts came the best scenario you could ask for and he turns over Ace, King of hearts and your dominated. Only hand you could have ask for was a straight and you were really a long shot for that one. Also, Anyone willing to open a pot UTG is definetely going to have a stronger hand than normal if they understand the game and at 1/2 most people generally do. Also, i just figure that the guy had no idea why you were betting first in the hand instead of waiting for the action to come around to you considering you first to act everytime.

[SheridanCat]

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I would have let that hand go a long after the raise. 6h,8h is an extremely weak hand even though you were getting great pot odds


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Are you saying that you would fold 86s preflop getting 10:1 and closing the action? I have to disagree. If you put the UTG raiser on the top 5% of hands AA-TT, AKs, AKo, AQs, AQo, KQs and KQo, you still have plenty of equity to make this call.

[ QUOTE ]

if the hearts came the best scenario you could ask for and he turns over Ace, King of hearts and your dominated.


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It's rare to make a 2-card flush and lose. I'm not sure what you're worried about here. You think UTG has exactly Ax[img]/images/graemlins/heart.gif[/img]? And since you talk about the gap concept, you must be putting him on AK[img]/images/graemlins/heart.gif[/img] or AQ[img]/images/graemlins/heart.gif[/img] exactly.

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Only hand you could have ask for was a straight and you were really a long shot for that one.


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Sure, but the point is - he has proper pot odds the entire way to draw at it. If you pass on these high equity drawing situations, you're leaving a lot of money on the table in the long run.

Your point about the gap concept is well taken, but the OP still had proper odds to make all the plays he did. Even in the face of AA, his plays were correct.

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Also, i just figure that the guy had no idea why you were betting first in the hand instead of waiting for the action to come around to you considering you first to act everytime.

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I definitely don't understand this comment.

Regards,

T