Stars $10 MTT

[BullChip]

Anybody else in? I'm on table 14

Here's a quick 3 way hand PF

I'm chip leader w/ ~6000 w/ 25/50 blinds.

UTG (T900) miniraises to 100. Could be anything. AJ maybe?

Everybody folds to me and I raise to 400 w/ QQ

SB goes all in to 3500 total. Really quick w/o hesitation. My instant read is AA or KK. I doubt AK here w/ the UTG mini-raise and my pretty standard big raise w/ big stack. He seemed pretty tight as well.

UTG instantly calls ~800. I'm pretty sure he would do this with anything from 55 to Ax.

Now what? I gotta call at least 3K in chips, half my stack to win ~5K.

I feel I'm way behind... so I fold.

comments?

results to follow

[patrick dicaprio]

not a bad fold here knowing nothing about the SB. but if one has AK and the other has AJ you will be kicking yourself. if there is any reason to think the SB doesnt have AA or KK then call. after all who comes over the top here with AA or KK. i would call and then play the flop in most situations since there is no guarantee that i can get anyone to call for a lot of chips.

pat

[BullChip]

I think you might be misreading the hand.

I'm going to have to call the guy who raised ME over the top all in.

I'm not worried about UTG. He only has 900, which would hardly put a dent in my stack and I was certain I had him.

It was the guy who raised all in that I was worried about.

Like I said I put him on AA or KK. I doubt QQ. Highly doubt AK from the action I've witnessed with him during the 45 min or so.

[Absolution]

Those weird bets in low-buy are always hard to deal with. It's a $10 so you never know. Why bet so much? My first instinct with those massive overbets is he doesn't want action, but in low-buys they get action so much from complete craps hands that they just get used to over-betting for value. Like I said, it's tough.

I think you need to give more information. Were you bullying with the big stack? Maybe he was giving you less respect because of it. Has he only come in with AA/KK/QQ? Did you see him play an AK hand before? Has the table been loose - i.e. calling big bets with marginal hands?

[BullChip]

I wasn't bullying w/ my big stack. I got AA twice early on and got plenty of action both times. Each time I was in the pot I had the goods.

I didn't just want to CALL the UTG miniraise. I was hoping it would fold back to him and he'd go all in and I'd call for sure and felt like I had him dominated.

[Absolution]

My first instinct is then good fold. He could be making a play with JJ or AK here to isolate the UTG (probably thinking just like you - he's going to go all in with something dominated and he gets your 400 to boot). But, any raise he's going to make here with something like AA/KK is probably going to pot commit him anyway (about 1/2 his stack) so why not just push now, take a juicy pot and if you come along, bonus for him?

Given the range of hands JJ, KK, AA, AK you could probably make this call with those odds, but it's such a small edge that folding this early wouldn't be a crime. :/

[BullChip]

Yea, those are pretty much my thoughts exactly.

I mucked my QQ fairly certain, about 80% at least, sensing I was beat.

UTG had AT. All in dude had KK /images/graemlins/grin.gif

Flop came xQx /images/graemlins/frown.gif

Turn 10. River 10. /images/graemlins/ooo.gif

KK gets cracked by the ol' runner runner.

I would've got a boat of course /images/graemlins/crazy.gif

[Absolution]

I have a question relating to this. Given that our read is correct - i.e. he just pushed in because any normal raise he makes gets him committed - is there a better way for him to play this? Could he have got more of your chips knowing you're a solid player? Would a raise to say 1500 just look too suspicious to you and would produce an immediate fold (giving you about 3:1 makes it look like he wants a call too much)? How about a smooth call? Still too suspicious? He's now giving you a card and you're probably playing cautiously. Given the stakes this is probably overthinking, but it's interesting to me.

[BullChip]

I think that's a good point.

I think smooth calling is the worst. Especially with KK. Maybe with AA. MAYBE. Smooth calling w/ KK invites any hand I have for no additional raise. Meaning, I could've raised to 400 w/ AT, 55, TJ, QT, 45s, etc. etc. He's only asking for trouble.

I think raising to 1200-1500 would be suspicious. Given my tight image and his tight image, I would fold. A mini-raise might do the trick here. He could hope for all low cards and he would get a big chunk of my stack, if not all.

[Absolution]

Ya the minbet is out, he has to at least charge you. But, say he bets 1000, UTG calls and then it's to you for 600. Now you're getting about 4-1 on your call. You've got the implied odds to hit your set or better now + you possibly think you'er ahead. He might as well have checked. I like his play now. Good discussion though.

[patrick dicaprio]

i am saying if i were him not you.

Pat