Too aggressive or just right?

[Ulysses]

Aggressive 15-30 game w/ a bunch of expert lobbyers. We're playing 5-handed right now, even though it's 9-handed and there's a list...

I open-raise w/ A /forums/images/icons/spade.gif 9 /forums/images/icons/heart.gif. Button (pretty aggressive, solid player) and BB (good player who has no idea what to do short-handed) call.

6 /forums/images/icons/spade.gif 7 /forums/images/icons/heart.gif 8 /forums/images/icons/spade.gif

I check. Button bets. BB calls. I checkraise. Button 3-bets. BB folds. I call.

K /forums/images/icons/spade.gif

I bet. Button raises. I 3-bet. Button calls.

2 /forums/images/icons/club.gif

I bet.

Comments?

[snakehead]

I open-raise w/ A 9

another one of those games that's a tad loose?

Comments?

let me guess. you lost?

[ben mo]

I would 4-bet the flop sometimes, but otherwise it's a no-brainer the whole way.

b

[Binkus]

Open raise with A9os, In a short handed game this hand is stronger but I still not sure I would always raise this in a 5 handed game. If the first 1-2 players had folded or if it was suited I would feel much better about raiseing with it. the rest was played well

[Ed Miller]

I've noticed something about your hands, Ulysses... you are constantly checkraising the flop where I would just have bet out.

I think the 3-bet on the turn is way too much... what hand do you put the button on to cold-call your raise preflop (strange for a "solid" player short-handed in and of itself) keep raising on the flop, and raise you again on the turn, and then lay down like a little pussycat on the river. After all, you are the one with the Ace of trump...

[J.A.Sucker]

Did you ever consider that you are beaten in this hand? If so, people don't fold good hands in shorthanded games, and you can't win. At worst, they'll just call you down and win. A9o can be raised, if you think that you can be headsup and that you play well after the flop. Pounding on a hand like this indicates that maybe you shouldn't do this. On each street ask yourself why you did what you did:

Enter conversation with self:

Preflop: What do I want to do here? I want to win the blinds. If this doesn't happen, maybe the BB will call and check-fold the flop. If the button comes in, I'm gonna back off, since he's a good player, unless I hit my hand. I could also fold it, and avoid any aggrevation. But what the hell, let's raise it up and play it.

Flop: Well, I have an OK board to semibluff at here 3 handed, but there are many draws that will call. I should take a stab at it and see what happens... but I don't really have that good of hand to be checkraising. Why did I checkraise?

Turn: Now that I dug my hole here, what am I gonna do? Am I gonna get a good hand to fold here with a bet? Answer: no. Do I have the best hand here? Hell no! Maybe I should check and call. Give me a spade, dammit!

River: I missed everything. Ugh. Am I gonna get a better hand to fold by betting the river? No.

End conversation with self.

Aggression ain't everthing in poker. Sometimes you gotta make the correct decision, not the aggressive one.

This is just my opinion, but I'm Just Another Sucker

[Ulysses]

As I've said before, I like to post hands that I think I may have misplayed here. The ones I play well typically don't require much in the way of comments.

It might be worthwhile to note that when the game was full, I was by far the tightest player and people only saw me show down monsters. Turns out that had some impact in this hand.

The open-raise w/ A9o in a five-handed game was what I was most interested in hearing comments on. Obviously, none of you like it. But would you limp in or fold here?

On the flop, I'm obviously likely behind, but have a ton of outs. I checkraise mainly to show more strength than I really have, thinking this might help me out if I don't hit. The 3-bet from the button made me think he likely has top pair or better.

When I pick up a few more outs on the turn, I bet out, pretty sure the button can't beat a pair of Kings. When he raises, I'm pretty sure that he won't 4-bet unless he has a pair of Kings or better. I think a 3-bet here is the only way to take down this pot on the river if I miss.

After I bet on the river, he turns over 8 /forums/images/icons/diamond.gif and says "no way this is good if you're still betting" and folds.

I didn't think this was played quite as poorly as the rest of you did, but definitely appreciate your comments.

[Ulysses]

what hand do you put the button on to cold-call your raise preflop (strange for a "solid" player short-handed in and of itself)

Any ace, any pocket pair, any suited King or Queen.

keep raising on the flop

Any pair, any nine.

and raise you again on the turn

This is where I questioned my play the most. My thought was simply that there were a lot of relatively weak hands that he would raise to "find out where he is." For example, A8s. If I call, no way he's laying down on the river if I miss. I figured the 3-bet was worthwhile to increase the probability I can take the pot down w/ one more bet on the river.

[Ulysses]

Thanks for your very well thought out post. I definitely appreciate the comments.

Did you ever consider that you are beaten in this hand?

All the way. /forums/images/icons/smile.gif Here's how my conversation went...

Preflop: What do I want to do here? I want to win the blinds. If this doesn't happen, maybe the BB will call and check-fold the flop. If the button comes in, I'm gonna back off, since he's a good player, unless I hit my hand. I could also fold it, and avoid any aggrevation. But what the hell, let's raise it up and play it.

Preflop - That's almost exactly what I said.

Flop: Well, I have an OK board to semibluff at here 3 handed, but there are many draws that will call. I should take a stab at it and see what happens... but I don't really have that good of hand to be checkraising. Why did I checkraise?

Flop - Hmm, nobody is going to believe I hit that board at all if I bet out. Button will raise just to put pressure on me and see if I 3-bet. Button likely has a bigger ace or maybe a pair. Maybe I can take it down on the next street by showing some strength by checkraising here.

Turn: Now that I dug my hole here, what am I gonna do? Am I gonna get a good hand to fold here with a bet? Answer: no. Do I have the best hand here? Hell no! Maybe I should check and call. Give me a spade, dammit!

Turn - OK, I hope button was playing games on the flop. It sure felt like that. Probably not with AK, since he would have 3-bet that. I can get something like AQ to fold with a bet here. Let's bet and take it down right now before I get in trouble by catching an Ace on the river. Crap, he raised. Hmmmm.... Maybe he has a King, maybe not. If he has a big hand, I'll need to hit. I think he'll only 4-bet with a real monster, so let's invest one more bet here to give me a few extra chances at winning on the river if I miss.

River: I missed everything. Ugh. Am I gonna get a better hand to fold by betting the river? No.

River - I missed everything. Ugh. Since I showed so much strength all the way, maybe he'll lay down a small pair for one more bet here since he's a good player and mistakenly thinks I am too based on my decent play when the game was full.

[Binkus]

I would probably fold the hand unless I was on the button with no callers or the game texture was prety tight. Than it would be a good hand for stealing the blinds. But most flops I wouldnt feel to strongly about playing this hand

[FishyWhale]

Well done (it seems), but make sure to pick the right spots to do this!

[J.A.Sucker]

I understand your thinking on all streets; I used to have similar thoughts, but no longer. Any good or very bad player will just call you down with all that raising. The only guys who will lay down on the river when a total blank comes for one bet are real weak players who think they are good. I suspect that the button doesn't play as well as either of you think he does. Ni han! Still, I advise that you just back off in these pots. Raising in a 5 handed game with A9o ain't terrible, provided the things I said in my earlier post. Limping in a short game is something I won't ever do unless there's already players in, then I still won't do it unless I have a good reason to. Folding A9o isn't bad either.

[adios]

With the pot that big it's amazing that your opponent would fold on the river. You must have had an idea that he might. Not many would fold an 8 in this spot.