Did I make the right move here? (first post)

[fluff]

Hello all,

I've been reading this and some of the other 2+2 forums, but this is my first post. Please be gentle to the newbie! /images/graemlins/laugh.gif

I've been playing on Party and Stars, mostly micro-limit and really low buy-in tourneys, while trying to learn the game.

Now this hand is from a 1 table SnG $5+0.50 at Stars. I think I made a mistake, and I'd like to know how to avoid this (or similar) mistake(s) in the future.

Blinds 25/50, down to 7 of 9 players.

Dealt to fluff (in BB) Q /images/graemlins/heart.gif J /images/graemlins/club.gif

UTG: calls 50
UTG+1: folds
MP: calls 50
LP: folds
Button: folds
SB: calls 25
fluff: checks

Flop comes 2 /images/graemlins/club.gif J /images/graemlins/heart.gif Q /images/graemlins/spade.gif

fluff: bets 100 (correct bet here? Should've gone higher?)
UTG: raises 440 to 540 and is all-in
MP: calls 540
SB: folds

Now here's my dilemma...what's the correct thing to do? UTG is short stack with T590. So I feel he's making a last ditch effort, and I have him beat. On the other hand MP is chip leader with T3050, and has been fairly conservative so far.

So anyway, thinking that MP is just trying to isolate short stack, I pushed all in for T1325 with 2 pair.

MP quickly calls and flips over pair of deuces. Poor shortstack actually had KK, but is now severe underdog.

So I know I made a mistake here as I'm now like a 5:1 underdog. Should I have folded when someone has gone all-in then got called before me? 2 pairs looked so good, I didn't think there was a better hand out there.

Thanks in advance for all the comments, and have a happy Thanksgiving day!

[Bozeman]

If you bet closer to the pot size on the flop, you get some information about MP's holding, but I think your play was not bad. Because your bet was small and small stack is prob. desperate, MP can have too many hands you beat to justify laying it down. Even with a bigger raise, you may not be able to lay it down depending on how the MP plays.

Craig

[CrisBrown]

Hi fluff,

At a $5.50 SNG there is no way you should let go of top two-pair vs. an all-in raise. Yes, it's possible there's a set out there -- there was, in fact -- but FAR more often than not that all-in raise will be on AQ, AJ, KQ, QT, Q3, Q-Old Maid.....

You played it correctly and there was a set out there. At those stakes, it's difficult if not impossible to read sets because people play any two cards as if they were dealt a full house.

Sorry. /images/graemlins/crazy.gif

Cris

[JayKon]

You played the hand correctly. However, the EP player misplayed it badly - it's better to win a small pot than to lose a bit pot.

Like everything else in poker, each situation is unique based on the playing styles and current context of the hand. If, for example, both EP & MP had been limping a lot, raising from the BB pre-flop might have been correct. If one, or both had been betting/bluffing a lot, then going for the check-raise on the flop might have been correct. And on and on and on ...

You chose a tight and conservative approach, which in round 3 of a $5 sit-and-go is usually correct.

Jay