WPT Borgata Hand- how could I have played this better?

[Muellagio]

Nearing the end of the first 45 min level, blinds 25-50, stacks are still pretty even, started with 6k in chips. I'm on the button with 99, three people have limped and I raise 4xBB. Only the BB and one other guy call. The flop is J 5 9. The BB bets 400, other guy and I both call (my first mistake). The turn is a 2, BB bets 400, other guys calls and I raise to 2k. BB folds, other guy smooth calls. The river is a king. He checks. I bet 2k, he raises all in for not much more, I call and his straight knocks me out.

I know I made two big mistakes here, not raising after the flop and betting the river, but was my raise on the turn big enough? A raise on the flop would have had the same result probably-should I have pushed here? I didn't because I was worried about him having a set of jacks when he smooth called the raise on the turn, but I put him on AJ or maybe a straight draw. I didn't think he'd call 4x the BB out of position with Q 10, but he did. Other than obvious error of betting the river, I'm curious to hear how other people would have played this hand. Especially at this stage in a big MTT...

[Mclane665]

I would have raised the flop bet to 800 or 1000 depending on their stack sizes here not really to chase players out but to build the pot. Im not worried about Q10 or 810 and certainly not about JJ. I like your raise on the turn giving only 3/1 odds although Im still not overly scared of the str8 draw and would put him on AJ or 10-10 before the turn raise. After he calls the turn Im a little worried of the JJ but Im still paying it off if he bets. As it turns out he made a loose call PF a loose call post flop and again on the turn. He got lucky I probably bet the end aswell as Q10 is not really in my mind when I look at this. 55 or 10-10 is still the most likely and I can get all their chips in on the end.

[registrar]

I'd happily get it in on this river.

[TFGoose]

Don't spend any time worrying about set over set. If it happens, you're supposed to lose a lot of money. That's just the way it is.

Other than that, I agree with the above comments, but wanted to add something on the preflop action. If you're going to raise pre-flop, I'd go up a little more than 4x after 3 limpers. You're not really raising your nines for value here, as most flops in a multi-way pot will make your nines look like a dung heap. You raise to limit the field, so I'd bump it up to 300 or even 350 instead of just 200.

--TFGoose

[Popped Rod]

I think you played it fine. PF is okay since your the button and it's early, flop call is good as you are setting up to take it down on the turn, river value bet is standard.

He got lucky on the river...cards happens. Were the QT soooted?

[Cornell Fiji]

I am usually a fan of getting the chips in the middle as quickly as possible when I have a big hand but I think that this is a spot where your flop smooth call (representing a whiffed AK or TT) is optimal. We have multiway action in front of us so it looks like someone has a jack and a preflop raise followed by a flop raise in position could definitely scare away AJ/KJ/QJ. While it is possible that someone has a draw, QT is the only draw on this flop and a lot of players in these events are not limping and then calling a raise with that hand (nor are they calling a 4x raise in the bb with it) so it can be slightly discounted. I am not ok with losing value on my hand because they might have the somewhat unlikely QTs. I think the flop smooth call is the right play here.

The turn raise is fine and is a good amount too. You can't just call a 400 chip bet into a 1800 chip pot.

caution, rambling about his possible hands ahead. this is free flowing so sorry if I repeat myself...

Before the river card came down were you putting the villain on a hand? He open limped and then called a 4x raise (he has suited connectors, two broadways, suited one gappers, pocket pair less than QQ, A9s+)... After he called the flop bet we could narrow his range to (KQ, AJ, KJ, QJ, QT, A9s, 55, JJ, J9s).

Most real hands are raising that 400 chip bb turn bet so after his call of 400 chips and then call of your raise we can narrow his range to (AJ, JJ, J9s, 55, QT, KQs-if the turn brought a flush draw). I can not imagine him hanging on to KJ here. The only hand that he could really put you on that he beats is a very frisky AK (did the turn bring a flush draw?) or a frisky KQ. It is much more likely that you have a big hand with your line.

After the river king he can not call with AJ (and he should have raised the turn with AJ to begin with), he will call you with J9s and a terribly played KJs, he will call you with KQs but getting to the river with that hand would have been really tough for him, and he will call you with JJ/55 (although these would have been played pretty horribly), obviously he will cr with QT.

Your river bet was actually pretty marginal as his line looks a lot like QT or the one J9s combo. There is no chance that he is cring the river with 55 and I can not imagine him having air here. You have to fold to his check raise but I am not sure if your value bet was very good in the first place.

[kingwood kid]

I would've raised on flop. The other players were both willing to put 400 in; I'm sure you could've upped it to at least 1000. Since you had the best hand, getting more of their money in the pot should have been your objective. Not that you'd complain too loudly if they folded and you won a 2000 chip pot.

On turn, maybe you could've shoved, but maybe not.

Hope you end up at villain's table again sometime.