The last place you want to be

5-5-10 no-limit. I've killed it one off the cutoff. $40 to go. Fold to the guy on my right (RHG), who calls. He has been playing almost all his hands and routinely calling $100 raises with anything. He also is calling a lot on later streets, including several hundred with top pair medium kicker. Bobby Hoff is next on my left (the player who kills it acts last preflop). He makes it $160 to go. Fold through the blinds to me.


Bobby wants it heads up with RHG. RHG has the lesser stack at $2200. I have AKo. I call, leaving $1040 behind. RHG calls.


Flop KQ5 rainbow. Check to me. I check. Bobby bets $400. Fold. Heads up. The moment of truth.


Your move?

i understand your title....i have no idea what to do...gl

id never kill it with bobby on my left. you would never kill a pot unless you had to with aggressive players on your left.

besides woith only 1040 left after a 160 call with ace king its crazy not to reraise before the flop and win it there or gamble.

but since you found yourself in this spot again with so little left just put all your chips in. you lose if he has aa, kq or qq and the rest of the time you get whats out there or gamble against a draw.

Bobby might also even have 5-5 for the bottom set or something like KQs. After all he was playing against a blind and a weak call. But basically I agree with Ray - go ahead and get it all in - this is not the best flop, but still the kind of flop you are looking to hit with AK. Hope for the best when you put the money in but don't be surprised if you have to go to your pocket for more ammo. Like Ray I don't much like killing pots with a tough player right behind you.


What happened?

I am assuming that you checked the flop so you could come over the top. Was there another reason for checking?

I think the analysis on how to play this hand has been quite static. The correct play here, unlike what you did pre-flop, is to smooth call.


What does Bobby put you on? Could you have smooth-called his pre-flop raise with anything but AK or AQ? (His ease of putting you on a hand is a problem generated by your pre-flop play.) Does he think you could come over the top with just AQ?


My guess is he is either trying to buy the pot here or he knows he has you beat. Thus, the right play is to call (this is the last thing he wants, which means it is the best thing for you.) He is now the one off balance. What if he goes all-in on the turn? You have a coin-flip decision, no worse than where you are now. But you've called him twice. Is he thus less likely to make a move on the pot on the turn?

Ian you must have missed that he has only about 600 left after he calls bobbys bet. if you still think its a call and not raise you need to reconsider your position.

It was a forced kill. I had missed the blinds and went to post in the cutoff, but the player to my right killed it first. In this casino, I still had the right to a hand in the cutoff provided I killed it on the next hand - hence the situation.

I at first was going to reraise big but got overly excited about all the loose chips on my right. A mistake.

The kill was forced. The preflop call was an error, made too quickly. I was too focused on the loose chips to my right.


The follow-up was comical. Please visualize some crazy hand you've played in the past, get into a mindset for this doozy.


I thought a while and was ready to go all in, then thought about how Bobby saw me. I felt not only could he be on a draw, but that there was a good chance he had an underpair or a stone bluff. Against me, after a hesitant call, even for 40% of my chips, he'd push in on the turn with nothing. I called, planning to check-call the turn.


Alex walks up, sits down, sizes the situation, looks at me. Turn is a 5. I check. Alex stares at me, eyes wide. Bobby goes all-in. Why are you staring at me Alex? Thinking began. Very bad. Alex, who is behind Bobby, quickly turns his head away but I catch this contorted disbelieving look forming en route. I think, wow, he must really think I'm beat. Can I really fold here? As I fold, I realize of course Alex just couldn't believe I was hesitating. Dealer starts pushing, I'm thinking "WTF, I just called 40% of my chips and then folded," Bobby asks "Jack ten?" and then Alex comes over and says about 20 times he can't believe I called 40% of my chips and then even thought of folding.


And what can I say but he's right. ;-)


Sticking to limit for the next 10-20 years....


Matt

" ... and then Alex comes over and says about 20 times ..."


I wasn't sure whether to laugh or cry during this story. Wow, that musta been brutal.


Thank goodness our boy can't type. Could you imagine the threads?


Tommy

the Wizard looks at that weak call and kill money like a bulldog would look at a big bone. Matt let me take this opportunity to congratulate you on butchering the most beautiful hand in no-limit holdem at every turn. Of course you could always blame it on ALEX.

Hi Carl,


"Matt let me take this opportunity to congratulate you on butchering the most beautiful hand in no-limit hold 'em at every turn."


Thanks. A pretty good hat trick if I do say so myself. Although since it didn't go to the river, there was no chance to hit for cycle. Leaves something to aspire to.


"Of course you could always blame it on ALEX."


ROTFLMAO! If only I could keep a straight face for 20 seconds..... but no, not after making him WATCH that hand. It'd be too much.

So? Bobby's not going to call an all-in with less than AK. Matt should call a river all-in no matter. If he's beat, he loses all his chips regardless of whether he calls or raises the turn (folding was beyond lunacy and doesn't warrant comment here). So the only difference in calling versus raising all-in on the turn is that in calling, Matt could (and probably would) induce an all-in river bluff from Bobby. Only upside, no downside (other than the free card Bobby gets on the river, versus forcing a fold on the turn).

guess we all disagree on your play....I even disagree on the title of your post!!! would like to be there with best hand having Bobby betting at me.

How could you fold now? Sorry don't mean to rub salt in the wound. You had so many options to choose from that would not be terrible, and you chose the only one that would be considered a huge mistake.

One thing that might make you feel better. We don't know what Bobby's hand was. He may of had a big hand and you would have lost anyway.

ROTFLMAO.....I could just see the threads Alex would generate!

God I think we need to get him a puter!

If your going to play a hand against Bobby Hoff and you take the defense your in for a long night!!!!!!

it isnt any easier playing a hand against you Bill.