Your play here? A2s ITM v. big stack

[2planka]

This is from the Atlantic Trout game last night. I think I misplayed this. Your thoughts?

PokerStars No-Limit Hold'em Tourney, Big Blind is t150 (3 handed) converter (http://www.selachian.com/tools/bisonconverter/hhconverter.cgi)

Villain (t13660)
BB (t3908)
Button (Hero)(t3432)

Preflop: Hero is button with A/images/graemlins/diamond.gif, 2/images/graemlins/diamond.gif.
<font color="#CC3333">Hero raises to t450</font>, Villain calls t375, BB calls t300.

Flop: (t1350) 4/images/graemlins/heart.gif, A/images/graemlins/heart.gif, 6/images/graemlins/club.gif <font color="#0000FF">(3 players)</font>
Villain checks, BB checks, <font color="#CC3333">Hero?

[schwza]

i'd check. a free card is unlikely to hurt you (very few hands containing a 6 or lower will call pre-flop; only a heart is scary), and you can take a look at the action on the turn. if it goes bet-call you can fold with confidence. otherwise i'd plan on calling just one bet. you'll look like a bigger ace that you are, so it's unlikely anybody's going to fire two barrels.

[durron597]

You don't necessarily have to lead out for your entire stack on the flop. This is how it probably would have gone if you had bet smaller on the flop... what do you do on the river?

PokerStars No-Limit Hold'em Tourney, Big Blind is t150 (3 handed) converter (http://www.selachian.com/tools/bisonconverter/hhconverter.cgi)

SB (Villian) (t13660)
BB (t3908)
Hero (t3432)

Preflop: Hero is Button with 2/images/graemlins/diamond.gif, A/images/graemlins/diamond.gif.
<font color="#CC3333">Hero raises to t450</font>, Villian calls t375, BB calls t300.

Flop: (t1350) 4/images/graemlins/heart.gif, A/images/graemlins/heart.gif, 6/images/graemlins/club.gif <font color="#0000FF">(3 players)</font>
Villian checks, BB checks, <font color="#CC3333">Hero bets t700</font>, Villian calls t700, BB folds.

Turn: (t2750) Q/images/graemlins/spade.gif <font color="#0000FF">(2 players)</font>
Villian checks, Hero checks.

River: (t2750) 8/images/graemlins/spade.gif <font color="#0000FF">(2 players)</font>
<font color="#CC3333">Villian bets t1000</font>,

[schwza]

i think you'd have to call that.

[durron597]

[ QUOTE ]
i think you'd have to call that.

[/ QUOTE ]

I agree, but does he raise? The pot is huge and Villian probably has to call with a weaker hand.

Realize that Villan will have put 75% of his stack in the middle if he calls and loses.

Don't get me wrong I think calling the river is correct but I'm just pointing this stuff out to keep in mind.

[junkmail3]

[ QUOTE ]
i'd check.

[/ QUOTE ]

What happened to gamble for first? If you think about betting 2/3 pot or pot here, you could have to push/fold on the turn if you get called, but you also allow yourself to fold to a check raise on the flop. If you're picking up the pot here, a pot sized bet or push will accomplish that. So, I think I might push here, praying no one has the better ace, and try to secure a better place to take on first place. You're not going to be able to challenge first place if you don't make a move and grab some chips anyway. And he's just going to push you and the other low stack around until you're close to busted, then you'll be folding to get second.

Let me see if I can makse sense. In this situation, the big stack has you pinned here in all future moves you make, so if you try to steal any future blinds, the big stack can easily call or push you all in, so you need to make moves so you don't get moved on every hand until you bust.

[2planka]

[ QUOTE ]
You don't necessarily have to lead out for your entire stack on the flop.

[/ QUOTE ]

This was my thinking... perhaps my read messed me up. Duron had been limping with medium-big pairs consistently in the later stages of this tourney. I had also been stealing with very little resistance. I made my standard raise, Duron called, and now BB has a great price to come along.

I hit TPNK on the flop. It's two suited against two opponents. A continuation bet won't get it done. There's 1300 in the pot and I have ~2900 left. Any bet I make gets me pot stuck. Checking behind on the flop invites a bluff that I have to call anyway.

I pushed. Duron flopped a set of 4's. C'est la vie.

In the end, it didn't matter whether I had A2 or AK. I was going broke here.

[schwza]

[ QUOTE ]
In the end, it didn't matter whether I had A2 or AK. I was going broke here.

[/ QUOTE ]

the difference is that you didn't have to broke with a2. fwiw, i think it's much better to bet and call a raise rather than push for 2x the pot. if you're accepting going broke against a better hand, you want to give the bad guys a chance to c/r with worse.

[durron597]

[ QUOTE ]
Duron had been limping with medium-big pairs consistently in the later stages of this tourney.

[/ QUOTE ]

Is that true? Check the HH?

[ QUOTE ]

I had also been stealing with very little resistance.

[/ QUOTE ]

Aggressive play works every time until it doesn't. These blinds were still fairly small, my goal was to play tight and passive for most of the hands and pick my spots to win the big pots.

[durron597]

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
In the end, it didn't matter whether I had A2 or AK. I was going broke here.

[/ QUOTE ]

the difference is that you didn't have to broke with a2. fwiw, i think it's much better to bet and call a raise rather than push for 2x the pot. if you're accepting going broke against a better hand, you want to give the bad guys a chance to c/r with worse.

[/ QUOTE ]

I didn't want to c/r him on this flop because I know he had been raising frequently and he didn't have to have an ace to lead out on the flop. If he tries to take a stab for 700 and I c/r allin he has to lay down his K7 that he was stabbing with. Unless he wouldn't take a stab into two opponents with K7.

[2planka]

I don't understand the "you didn't have to go broke with A2" comment. I thought I was ahead. The blinds may be smallish, but the pot is large on the flop and any bet I make means the pot is going to be more than half my stack.

I shouldn't have posted the results. My mistake. If i'm up against 77-KK here or K /images/graemlins/heart.gif x /images/graemlins/heart.gif or whatever - hands all more likely than a bigger A or precisely 44 and 66) - I think the push is my best option.

I think my mistake was the steal attempt, because of course I only steal with Ax or better /images/graemlins/tongue.gif.

[Moonsugar]

Checking this turn as hero is dumb in this and the alternate reality.

[durron597]

[ QUOTE ]
Checking this turn as hero is dumb in this and the alternate reality.

[/ QUOTE ]

This is only true if you assume that there is no way that the player with A2s can get away from this board under any circumstances. Of course that's not a terrible assumption, I was just offering a possible line that lets him keep some of his chips. I agree that betting the turn after Villian calls is better.