Pot Limit 7 Stud Brutality

We're in my home game playing pot limit stud, a game which I abhor for its huge swings, but what can you do? It's part of the rotation. I typically wait till 5th street make a move, even seeing how big pairs develop before committing a lot of money. Things can just get too ugly in this game to make the pot huge early. Besides, the other players do much of the betting anyway. There is a $1 ante, stack sizes are about $300 each when this beauty comes up. I look down to see (9,9) 9. Queen is high and bets the pot $3, which is standard for him. He likes to build pots early and likes to blow tight players like me off hands with large bets at the end. Other guy folds a jack. I call. On 4th, I catch a 6, he catches a 4. I check, he bets the pot ($9), I call. On 5th, I catch a King. He catches an 10. Here are the boards.


(9,9) 9 6 K (ME)


(x,x) Q 4 10 (NEMESIS)


By the way, he has two hearts. I check and call his $20 bet. Anyone make a move yet. I can see he is going to put his whole stack in anyway and don't want to discourage it. On 5th, I catch the King to fill up. He catches the jack, and the 3rd heart on his board.


(9,9) 9 6 K K (ME)


(x,x) Q 4 10 J (NEMESIS)--3 hearts


I check and he bets $40 without hesitating. He looks surprised as I call. I figure that if I raise he will put me on a boat and likely fold, which I don't want him to at this point.


On the river, I catch a blank. I check to him, he bets $60. Knowing this player I put him on a flush or straight. I pretend I'm Mason at the Bellagio and toss a Benjamin and a Jackson in the pot, making it $120. He immediately raises me all in for my last $53. UGH. At this point I have to call even though I am getting a sick feeling in my stomach. Please comment on how I played this hand and the results are to follow.

My opponent started with pocket 4's, caught the 3rd on 4th street, and rivered the case 4 for quads. One of the worst slaughterings I have taken in this game. I never would have put him on that hand in a million years. In hindsight, I should have raised all in on sixth street, but figured he wouldn't call with a flush or str8 in this spot against my board kings (assuming he had a flush or straight). I'm convinced that he would not have layed down trip 4's on 6th, but who knows? He said he thought a boat would have been good. A shitty hand that has kept me up for a little while now.


Jeff

If you think that game's brutal, some joker I play with likes to call no-limit seven stud, which is just a nightmare. I try to tell him that noone plays that game for a reason, but he doesn't care. It's okay usually cause everyone sucks, but still there have been some disasters. We also play a match the pot game with low card down wild and tens wild, and if you get a ten up you have to match the pot or fold. Choice of the last card up or down. Anyway to make a long story short I lost a 200 dollar pot to a total beginner who called everything for 2 hours who wouldn't fold to me even though I payed for a 50 dollar ten and had 3 kings showing (could have easily had five or pulled five on the run) and of course he pulled 5 7's at the end and I didn't improve. Moral of the story, don't put all your money in with some sucker who calls everything on something that is very slightly in your favor. But that's off topic. I think you should have given him a chance to fold before the end. The pot was big, and if i read right, then he could have had a straight flush draw, too. But in any case, it's borderline, cause I'd believe my hand would hold up too. just a damn bad beat. I dont' think that game should be played pot limit or no limit. Too brutal and too many unknowns.