AQo from SB

[redeye3030]

Party Poker No-Limit Hold'em, $ BB (6 max, 3 handed) converter (http://www.selachian.com/tools/bisonconverter/hhconverter.cgi)

BB ($32.45)
Button ($25.4)
Hero ($23.75)

Preflop: Hero is SB with A/images/graemlins/heart.gif, Q/images/graemlins/club.gif. Hero posts a blind of $0.25.
<font color="#CC3333">Button raises to $2</font>, Hero (poster) calls $1.75, BB calls $1.50.

Flop: ($6) A/images/graemlins/spade.gif, 8/images/graemlins/spade.gif, 2/images/graemlins/spade.gif <font color="#0000FF">(3 players)</font>
<font color="#CC3333">Hero bets $4</font>, BB calls $4, Button calls $4.

Turn: ($18) 2/images/graemlins/heart.gif <font color="#0000FF">(3 players)</font>
Hero checks, BB checks, Button checks.

River: ($18) K/images/graemlins/heart.gif <font color="#0000FF">(3 players)</font>
Hero checks, BB calls $26.45 (All-In), Button folds, Hero ?

This is a hand I played a few nights ago on Party 25$ 6max. I got scared when both opponents called the bet on the flop, so I checked the turn /images/graemlins/confused.gif .

Comments on all streets appreciated. I realized I played this hand very bad.

The BB in the hand has a VPIP of 68% and PFR 15% over 32 hands. The button has VPIP of 87% and PFR 33% over 40 hands.

[tbach24]

I'll take the same line as you. Betting the turn P/C's you.

[emil3000]

Looks fine, as long as you fold the river.

[MarkD]

Why not reraise pre-flop? Surely you have the best hand 3-handed. Make it 6 to go pre-flop and then fire 6 at any flop.

Given the way you played this I fold the river.

[tbach24]

You don't re-raise pre-flop because...

A) You don't want to be building a pot out of position
B) Because (as I learned today from Bobbofitos) you will be called by AK and AJ and lower will likely fold.

[MarkD]

[ QUOTE ]
A) You don't want to be building a pot out of position


[/ QUOTE ]

Although this is a concern, I don't think it's that big of one in this 3-handed confrontation where you hold a very strong hand. I'm guessing that there is a lot of raising pre-flop in this game and I think you need to take a stand somewhere. This seems like a good spot.

[ QUOTE ]
B) Because (as I learned today from Bobbofitos) you will be called by AK and AJ and lower will likely fold.

[/ QUOTE ]

So you think that it's 50/50 that you are either dominated or dominating when you are called. I like those chances. Also, I think other hands will call you here in this 3 handed game and I think you have good equity against these hands. KQs, small pocket pairs, etc. Axs may even call.

Again, I'm not an expert but I don't like your reasons for smooth calling pre-flop here. Maybe it's my limit thinking dominating my analysis but I like AQo in this spot and I'm willing to put some chips in the pot when I likely have much the best of it.

I'm certainly not going to be check/folding a lot of flops with this hand anyways - this is a spot that requires you to play poker IMO (if you don't want to get run over in this 3-handed game).

edit: Also, I don't know who Bobbofitos is, so no offense to him but referencing him doesn't convince me here. Referencing a thread may.

[tbach24]

AJ isn't the only hand that will fold to a re-raise. Lots of hands that you have dominated will fold. You will win more when you flop an ace against these.

[redeye3030]

Just a note, the game is five handed. One open seat. The converter apparently dropped the two players who folded to the button.

I'm a beginner, but my reasoning for smooth calling here was, like tbach24 mentioned, to try not to build a big pot when I'm out of position. Although this ended up happening on the flop when I led on the monotone flop and to my suprise got two calls.

[MarkD]

[ QUOTE ]
AJ isn't the only hand that will fold to a re-raise.

[/ QUOTE ]

I thought you said that AJ would call the reraise?

[ QUOTE ]
Lots of hands that you have dominated will fold. You will win more when you flop an ace against these.

[/ QUOTE ]

I argue that lots of hands that you dominate will call your reraise here and that you will win more against them when you both flop an ace.

If a lot of hands are folding to your reraise in this spot then you should be reraising fairly liberally IMO. It will add up fast in a 3-handed game.

The fact is, your hand is by far the best hand the majority of the time in this spot - it simply has to be based on the mathematics of a 3-handed game. Because of this plus the fold equity plus the meta-game considerations of reraising I think it is clearly the best play here.

[tbach24]

I don't think AJ will call a re-raise. I want to see what other posters think, as I am beginning to doubt myself. You do present a good argument.

[MarkD]

I'm sorry, I misread this quote:

[ QUOTE ]
B) Because (as I learned today from Bobbofitos) you will be called by AK and AJ and lower will likely fold.

[/ QUOTE ]

I thought you meant that AK AND AJ would call, but lower hands would fold. Obviously you mean that AK will call, but AJ and lower will fold.

I think this is wrong. But, I am primarily a limit player and by reraising it's possible you are committing too much of your stack to the pot. Even though, I still think it is the right play here (but maybe that's limit thinking clouding my judgement).

I just don't see the positional disadvantage overwhelming the fact that you probably have a superior holding, and you would prefer it if the BB folded.

[tbach24]

I think you are overly concerned about individual pots. Winning pots is not the object of poker, winning money is. You are looking at it from the wrong mindset. You are trying to fold out hands that are worse than yours right now. Whereas I believe you should be trying to make this a 3-way pot, where you could potentially have both of them dominated. With a superior holding (especially a dominated ace) you want them in this pot.

[MarkD]

[ QUOTE ]
I think you are overly concerned about individual pots

[/ QUOTE ]

No, I'm not. I play poker to win money. I think reraising is the best way to do this. Unless AQo suddenly started to play better three ways instead of heads up against an inferior hand I stand by what I said above.

I'm not here to flop big and hope to get paid off. I'm not scared of putting in money with small edges. I see an edge here, and I think it's worth pushing and I think it's +EV. I think it's more +EV then playing 3 ways out of position without the initiative.

[TheWorstPlayer]

I don't think a re-raise here is necessarily bad, but I don't think a call here is bad either. I think it depends in large part on the nature of the table. Since it sounds like there were some maniacs here, I would probably smooth call because I don't want to give them a chance to push back at me with what might be crap and I think that playing a hand like AQ passively can yield some VERY positive results against a maniac (or two.)

Once you smooth call, though, I don't like leading out at this flop at all. I would much rather a check/raise here. You know that they are going to be betting behind you and you want to get dead money in the pot before you raise to protect your hand. You know that you are ahead here a VAST percentage of the time. They almost definitely have high spades and are drawing or have weak aces, otherwise they would have raised on the flop. OP lost a lot of value on this hand, in my opinion. And he definitely should have called that stupid river bet.

[redeye3030]

I like the smooth call, check raise line. So, assuming that BB bets 4$ and button calls, then I should check raise to about 12$? Then on a non /images/graemlins/spade.gif turn, I push all-in?

On the river the bet from the BB didn't make sense to me because he showed no aggression up to that point. I felt like I had to call, but I didn't like the position I ended up in through my play on previous streets. I called and he showed Q /images/graemlins/spade.gif 10 /images/graemlins/club.gif

[TheWorstPlayer]

Yes, I think you have the check/raise line exactly right. And I hope people see why that line would be much better. And also why you have to call that ridiculous bet on the river. Glad you made the right call. As a rule of thumb at SSNL, passive on flop, passive on turn, no draw hit, big bet on river is a missed draw bluff 99% of the time.