Pot Committed?

[Guernica4000]

I am a new player with probably a dumb question but any assistance would be greatly appreciated.

I know that if I have $110 chips and I am forced to post a $100 BB I would call any raise from any player(s) regardless of my two hold cards pre-flop. The same is true if I have lots of chips and a small stack raises to all in for $110 on my $100 BB.

My question is how can I figure out quickly if I should call or fold regardless of my hold cards pre-flop when it is not so obvious? And does it matter if I have the short stack an average stack or a big stack?

Thanks in advance for any replies,

[emp1346]

what i and from what i've seen most others do is first, only really consider calling if you have an above average to very large chip stack...

second, it depends on table position. don't call if there's a number of people behind you to still call... otherwise you're just donating...

otherwise, there's a good chance it's just a race on the money if the small stack was forced in...

[pzhon]

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My question is how can I figure out quickly if I should call or fold regardless of my hold cards pre-flop when it is not so obvious? And does it matter if I have the short stack an average stack or a big stack?

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You need to consider the amount of strength shown by the player's raise. If you have 2 BB after posting, and the small blind open-pushes, you can call with almost any two. You are getting 2:1 odds, and the SB could have almost anything. 32o wins 31.2% against a random hand (http://gocee.com/poker/HE_Value.htm), so you should fold it, but you should call with something like 92o. If a big stack UTG raised, you should fold garbage hands because UTG is often going to be much more than a 2.25:1 favorite over you.

If a small stack pushes, and you are last to act, the size of your stack is not very important. There are many people who call too much when they have a big stack, but this is a mistake. Knocking someone out is not worth much.

[TomCollins]

I'm going to assume this is a tournament, since I don't think he would have a $100 BB or come into a game with a $100 BB with $110.

If you have even close to 2BB, what is the advantage of folding unless you are right near the money or a payout difference? You have virtually no chance to do anything with 1BB. You have to play any hand here and hope. Even if you are getting the worst of it, you are getting the best odds you will see for the rest of the tournament most likely. You will probably not have a better chance to get back into the tournament.

[pzhon]

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If you have even close to 2BB, what is the advantage of folding unless you are right near the money or a payout difference? You have virtually no chance to do anything with 1BB. You have to play any hand here and hope. Even if you are getting the worst of it, you are getting the best odds you will see for the rest of the tournament most likely. You will probably not have a better chance to get back into the tournament.

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No, you shouldn't take the worst of it just because your situation is grim. You should not gamble without an advantage out of a sense of desperation. If you have a tiny stack, and you double up, you are still in deep trouble.

With 1 or 2 BB, your situation is bad, but it is not disproportionately bad. Each chip you have represents slightly more prize money than each chip of a big stack. If you double your stack, you roughly double the expected prize money you win. If you try to double up as a 4:1 underdog, on average you throw away 60% of the prize money you deserve to get.

Many people have bounced back from a chip and a chair to cash or even to win a tournament. The way to do this most often is to get your chips in when the odds favor you.