AQ in SB against 12xBB raise level 1.

[bigredlemon]

Party Poker No-Limit Hold'em Tourney, Big Blind is t15 (10 handed) converter (http://www.selachian.com/tools/bisonconverter/hhconverter.cgi)

CO (t800)
Button (t800)
SB (t800)
Hero (t800)
UTG (t800)
UTG+1 (t800)
UTG+2 (t800)
MP1 (t800)
MP2 (t800)
MP3 (t800)

Preflop: Hero is BB with Q/images/graemlins/spade.gif, A/images/graemlins/spade.gif.
<font color="#666666">3 folds</font>, MP1 calls t15, <font color="#666666">3 folds</font>, Button calls t15, <font color="#CC3333">SB raises to t172.5</font>, <font color="#666666">1 fold</font>, MP1 folds, Button calls t160.

Flop: (t377.50) 5/images/graemlins/heart.gif, Q/images/graemlins/heart.gif, 3/images/graemlins/spade.gif <font color="#0000FF">(2 players)</font>
SB all in, Button folds.

It's a step 1 SNG.
Do I want to see a flop here, or is it an easy fold?
On the flop, I've got TPTK and a backdoor flush. Can I call the SB all in?

Or is everyone here thinking kings?

[jcm4ccc]

I wouldn't have called the preflop raise. You could very easily be dominated by AK, or worse. Difficult to know where you stand with AQ.

On the flop, it's hard to say what he has. Clearly he doesn't want you to call. Could be AK, could be a flush draw, could be Kings and he's afraid that you have a flush draw. But I would let him have it. Your hand is good but not great.

[bigredlemon]

That's great to know. This was the first hand of the tournament so I had no reads. After seeig him play a little more and seeing him pull the same move with absolute crap and betting with no draws and K high, I'd wish I had called.

[Pokerscott]

[ QUOTE ]

Or is everyone here thinking kings?

[/ QUOTE ]

If I have kings why am I chasing everyone out of the pot?!? Maybe a 3/4 pot bet to make the flushes fold, but more likely an even smaller bet to keep people around. If I have kings I want all your chips not just those you have put in the pot.

His all in screams weakness (or at best a flush draw semi-bluff). Call him and double up /images/graemlins/smile.gif

Pokerscott

[Drac]

[ QUOTE ]
Or is everyone here thinking kings?

[/ QUOTE ]

Why would someone make that PFR with KK? What hand do you KNOW will call that bet? AA. Why do you want the one hand that beats you being the only one you entice into the pot? So you can haul down the nice 45 chip pot with your KK? As this is the first hand and I have no info on the guy I fold my AQs here every time. I think I'm holding overcards to his pair. If I do see the flop I'm shoving it all in without a doubt with TP/TK.

[bigredlemon]

I can think of a few reasons for raising all in on the flop:
1. nut flush draw had overcard on him and isn't that far behind.
2. there's a lot of suckers that might call with weaker hands
3. if he bets 300 to protect his hands, he's investing half his stack and is pot committing himself to the hand anyway, so might as well go all in.

[Voltron87]

Fold PF.

[gumpzilla]

Short of flopping two pair, trips or a flush this is about as good as it gets for AQ. I think this is a pretty textbook example of why people advise against playing AQ for raises early in an SNG. If you're going to fold this, don't play that AQ PF in this situation. If this were a few hands later and you had any evidence suggesting that the PF raiser was a maniac, then maybe you can make that preflop call, and don't back down when this flop comes.

Calling this flop really depends on what range of hands the raiser could be holding. KK-AA have you in serious trouble, QQ would be a total disaster but is quite unlikely, and you're doing great against JJ, TT and KQ. The huge preflop raise is frequently suggestive of a holding that's quite good, but maybe not so good that you really want to see a lot more action. 55 and 33 aren't completely out of the realm of possibility, but they're probably unlikely. If we just consider TT-AA, KQ, AQ, then I think this is probably a marginally +EV call; TT, JJ should roughly cancel out KK, AA, there are more KQs than QQs, and you are getting something in the neighborhood of 3:2. If you toss out KQ and TT, then I think this is probably a -EV call. With no read, it's really hard to get a meaningful range here. My instincts are that QQ-AA are not the only things you'll get shown here and there's enough chance he's behind to make this an okay call, but this is an awfully tough decision to make with no read at the beginning of an SNG.

You don't really have enough chips after his PF raise to make any kind of meaningful PF reraise other than pushing, I don't think, so that's out. Pushing with AQs on the first hand is ballsy and seems overly risky. Calling is an unpalatable choice as well, as we have seen, particularly since you don't want to play such a good AQ flop. So I think you fold this PF, given the situation.

[Mr_J]

I don't even call with AK.

[Pokerscott]

[ QUOTE ]
Calling this flop really depends on what range of hands the raiser could be holding.

[/ QUOTE ]

I agree completely. A large pre-flop raise and a post flop all in given the board is not consistent with any hand that has you beat (low pp or AA KK). Preflop AA KK generally encourage action with medium raises not discourage action huge raises. Low pocket pairs almost always just call to see a cheap flop.

Post flop, AA KK still want to entice action not cut it off. Based on the betting, I would put the raiser on TT JJ or AK AQ AJ. I would guess I am ahead 90% of the time and call in a heart beat.

If you are behind then the guy is either very very tricky or very very bad. Even if you lose watch a few more of his hands and figure out which so you can make the proper note /images/graemlins/smile.gif

Pokerscott