paradise 3/6 5 max

[stripsqueez]

i kept detailed hard copy records of playing on-line for about 5 months - at the end of those 5 months i bothered to collate the information contained in the records i had kept and they proved to me what i already figured - i was running good

1 stat that did stand out was how i did in the 3/6 5 max games at paradise - i lost $10.50 after 105 hours !!

ever since, i play this game a lot more carefully - really bad players are not uncommon in this game but it is more common that i find myself in reasonable games - no-one is good but no-one is bad - this was the sort of game when this hand occured

i get 108 of hearts in the BB - folded to the SB who completes - the flop comes J 9 2 rainbow no hearts - the SB bet and i raised - the SB called - the SB was passive and at this point i strongly suspected he hit a pair on the flop - turn came a 10 - SB checked - i went to plan B and bet - SB called - river was an eight and the SB bet

call, fold, or raise ?

stripsqueez - chickenhawk

[bigpooch]

Theoretically you have an easy call and the information
may also prove valuable in the future if you should ever
play this opponent again. For example, if you call and
it turns out that your opponent really holds QTo and you
lose the pot, you would now know that your opponent is very
passive in the SB versus the BB and your opponent at least
does semibluff.

About your 3-6 (5max) statistics: it's not really that big
of a sample. For example, I remember one month last year
when I played the 3-6 (5max) almost exclusively, I started
off up about 500 BBs in the first half only to lose back
almost 300 BBs in the second half (playing about 80 table-
hours per week). I have always thought if anyone had the
inclination, to determine their win rate more accurately, it
might be useful to look at the chips every orbit or two.
You only need to have a notepad (physical or computer file)
handy to record the amounts every time you are on the button
for example.

[Ikke]

Did you consider raising preflop?

[ QUOTE ]
the SB bet and i raised - the SB called - the SB was passive and at this point i strongly suspected he hit a pair on the flop -

[/ QUOTE ]

Could be a pair, but against a lot of players it could also mean nothing. After you check behind preflop (which is a mistake IMO), a lot of players bet the flop a large percentage of the times. Given your description of your opponent it might be less likely, but still wouldnt rule it out.

On the river I would only fold if I had a very strong read. But when heads up with mediocre action this almost always isnt the case. If you lose money here by calling it isnt much, and the information you get should make up for it. I think your riverdecision is not the most interesting part of the hand. IMO it's preflop; by choosing to check behind it changed the whole dynamic of the hand.

Regards

[anatta]

I think I need to raise preflop more in these situations. Against unknowns, what are the weakest hands you raise with preflop in BB vs SB limper?

[stripsqueez]

thanks for the replies

i folded

i knew this opponent was passive from a couple of other heads up contests earlier - i cant remember the detail but he completed the SB on one occasion and it was checked through and he showed Ax ! - its a common player type in this game

i understand that raising is a good option and maybe i should of - like i meant to infer in my initial post the SB wouldnt bet unless he had a pair or perhaps a really good draw so it seemed unlikely he would "auto" bet the flop - this is also why i folded - it seemed very wrong that such a passive player would bet into me without a straight

i am left to ponder whether this was a bad fold or a decent read - usual story for me - short handed is best played with lots and lots of aggression - keeping the big knife brandished is always the battle

stripsqueez - chickenhawk