LA Poker Classic $1000 buy in Limit Hold Em short stack hand

[SeriousStudent]

About 250 players participate and I find myself in the registration line with TJ Cloutier directly behind me and Men the Master just in front. They busted out of the PPT invitational being held concurrently, and all the big poker names were playing in the same ballroom ( except Gus) but in a separate tournament. Buy in provides 1500 in chips, no rebuys.

Half the field is gone and I am very short stacked with 350 in chips, blinds at 50/100.


I'm in the big blind, MP2 ( with 3000+ ) and CO ( with 3000+) both call and I look down to see a K7 unsuited and check. These players just joined the table so I have no read on them.

Flop comes rainbow T K 5.

MP2 bets, CO raises. I have 250 in chips and its 200 to me.

Fold, or all in?

[adanthar]

Let's see...it's a limit tourney, two guys limped in on the fourth or fifth blind level and they've got over twice their starting chips...

...yep, you've a great chance of having the best hand and if you don't it's because someone hit the 5 kicker. I'm calling this and expecting to see QJ/Kx.

[grandgnu]

With blinds at that level, you're too short-stacked to dump this hand. Easy all-in, you don't have much choice. Great opportunity to try and triple up.

[SeriousStudent]

Thanks for the advice.

I would have tripled up as that hand held up.

Then two hands later 2 limpers to me in a mid position seat with 55 and 200 left, and I folded that one but would have called for sure if I had a few more chips. Ended up being 5 limpers in that flop and a lot of betting afterward. The 5 came on the flop and the set would have held up.

So if I would have gone all in with the K7, after a few more hands I would have been at 3000 in chips or more instead of out of the tournament!

Amazing to me how decisions like this one can have such a multiplicative effect, as I'm learning tournament play.

[grandgnu]

[ QUOTE ]
Thanks for the advice.

I would have tripled up as that hand held up.

Then two hands later 2 limpers to me in a mid position seat with 55 and 200 left, and I folded that one but would have called for sure if I had a few more chips. Ended up being 5 limpers in that flop and a lot of betting afterward. The 5 came on the flop and the set would have held up.

So if I would have gone all in with the K7, after a few more hands I would have been at 3000 in chips or more instead of out of the tournament!

Amazing to me how decisions like this one can have such a multiplicative effect, as I'm learning tournament play.

[/ QUOTE ]

So with blinds at 50/100 and you've got 350 chips left, against two players on a flop where you spike top pair you fold. Then you face two limpers and are down to 200 chips and hold 5/5 and you fold?

You MUST push in these situations. You aren't facing a full table of 9 other players/hands against yours. Both times you are severely short-stacked and have what would be considered playable hands against two others.

In time you'll hopefully learn these things, but you have to take chances when you're short-stacked like that, otherwise you'll continue to be blinded/anted to death.

What hand were you waiting for? A/A or K/K? You don't have enough chips to wait that long, you have to make stands on any semi-playable hands (even 9/10 suited or J/Q offsuit)

Why would you not push with your 5/5 when short-stacked, but if you had a "few more chips" you would? That seems opposite to typical poker doctrine. Anyway, good luck, read more on these forums and continue to improve your play. /images/graemlins/smile.gif

[Rushmore]

Woah. Houston, we have a problem.

You're essentially out of the tournament. You are a snowball planning an escape from hell.

You have to play accordingly. You get a free look at a flop, flop top pair, and then fold? This is exactly the situation you were looking to get you out of the morgue and back onto life support. You can't fold here.

Later, the pocket fives? Same thing.

Neither of these plays is even remotely close, as far as I can see.

I'd be interested to see if anyone disagrees.

[boedeker]

yikes.

[yecul]

Can't disagree with the others. That short stacked, top pair is good enough to put your money in. If they have you out kicked or catch something later on, oh well. You're basically out anyway so take advantage of the favorable spot to climb back up.

Ditto the 55 hand.

Sounds like you wanted to catch a couple big cards and go out swinging rather than win with something junky like K7.

[SeriousStudent]

Yes, I was waiting for say 88 or two big cards like AJ, which I did get a few hands later and busted out on.

I've been successful with that strategy on occassion, placing 4th in a recent $50 buy in a PP multi after being down to 200 chips.

But clearly it appears that I am using a sub optimum short stack strategy. The raise - reraise after the flop spooked me and the spur of the moment decision I made was to fold my top pair bad kicker, but I regretted and questioned it ever since - hence the post here hoping for candid feedback which I got!