Slowplay of AA in BB Heads Up

[mike_wzrd]

Party 2/4 Holdem
Table had been loose, but was tightening up.

Mike in BB with A /images/graemlins/heart.gif A /images/graemlins/club.gif. SB is a good player.

Everyone folds to the SB. 1st time this had happened. SB raises. Didn't know if this was a steal attempt or a real hand. Mike calls. Didn't want to show my strength. My intent was to slow play the As.

Flop: 5 /images/graemlins/spade.gif 3 /images/graemlins/heart.gif 8 /images/graemlins/diamond.gif
SB bets. Mike calls.

Turn: K /images/graemlins/club.gif
SB bets. Mike calls.

River: 9 /images/graemlins/heart.gif
SB bets. Mike raises. SB calls.

SB has A /images/graemlins/spade.gif K /images/graemlins/diamond.gif.

Did I play this wrong? I thought that the K on the turn might have hit him. Should I have reraised on the turn? Anyone disagree with the slow play. Have at me.

[Gravy (Gravy Smoothie)]

I'd say that flop is a pretty good license to slowplay rockets heads-up. I might have raised the turn, but I'm not sure.

[Nottom]

I would usually make it 3-bets preflop, but thats because I do that with about any normally playable hand anyway in this situation. You do that too, correct? If not, you should be.


Anyway, heads-up I will often wait till the turn to get in a raise or sometimes even a bet. If he capped pre-flop, I would probably go ahead and raise the flop and hope he 3-bets.

In this particular hand, I'm sure you can see that you probbalt missed quite a few bets considering his hand.

[gonores]

I think you took a fine line here. Spring the bad news on him later.

[mike_wzrd]

I can see how the preflop reraise would work for you if you've established the table image of always reraising with a decent hand. My table image was reasonably tight. SB was a good player, not loose. I was concerned that a preflop raise would give away my hand and possibly make him fold if he was just trying to steal.

[Nottom]

The problem is if you are only raising with AA/KK/QQ/AK here you are giving up to much.

Even against a good player, if hes the type who will attempt to steal you need to be 3-betting with a wide variety of hands, you even have position on him so that makes it even better. If you do that you a) discourage him from trying to steal with mediocre hands and b)disquise the times you have a legitimate big hand.

Smoothcalling this raise, is like not openraising with AA when its folded to you in the CO. Its not so much a bad play in itself if you are afraid of people putting you on a big hand, but it shows that you likely have other areas in your game that need work.

[chesspain]

[ QUOTE ]
Smoothcalling this raise, is like not openraising with AA when its folded to you in the CO. Its not so much a bad play in itself if you are afraid of people putting you on a big hand, but it shows that you likely have other areas in your game that need work.

[/ QUOTE ]


Nottom,

I do not agree, and I think that your response is a bit harsh. I think that smoothcalling headsup in the blind with AA agaist a strong player's steal attempt is an excellent play. The fact that the flop likely did not vault SB's hand anywhere near overtaking a pair of aces makes it more correct for Hero to continue to play bluff-catcher. Since there are hardly any chips in the pot at this point, the value of Hero's hand is in the peace of mind in knowing that he can play bluff-catcher because he will win headsup way more frequently than he will lose. For those infrequent times that his opponent outdraws him with a lucky catch by the river, so be it.

[Nottom]

My point is if you are afraid to raise AA because you don't want to reveal the strength of your hand, then I think you aren't raising enough in ths situation. Honestly I don't have as big an problem with the actual play (as I certainly sounded in my original response) as much as the reasoning behind it.

Also, I have basically no problems with how he played the hand post-flop.

I also still think the statement you quoted is reasonably accurate in most cases.

[GuyOnTilt]

My point is if you are afraid to raise AA because you don't want to reveal the strength of your hand, then I think you aren't raising enough in ths situation.

I completely agree. I 3-bet with the Aces here about 80% of the time, because that's what I'd do with 80% of the hand I'll play here anyways. If you're calling to disguise your hand, then you aren't aggressive enough PF in the BB versus an SB steal raise. If your hand is most going to be better than the SB's average steal hand, then you should be 3-betting. Even if it's only better than 45% or so you can still 3-bet, since you have the positional edge postflop.

GoT

[Alobar]

Raise the turn. What good is disguising your strong hand if your not even going to make some money off it. If he folds to your raise, oh well, it happens. But if he has a hand (which he did) he'll be inclinded to 3 bet or at least call and call your river bet. If hes got junk he's going to fold to your river raise anyway, and a raise on the river is more likely to make him just call instead of 3 bet with a good hand because it looks like you picked up 2 pair. Raise his ass on the turn when the king hits and he just thinks you've got a king and prolly 3 bets you.

I'm with the people who say to raise this pre flop too. If your only raising AA KK QQ AK against possible steals, your not raising enough. It also just looks like you think he's stealing, so when he has a good hand it will take a few raises on your part before he believes you actually have a good hand and just arnt trying to bluff his steal attempt

[Mike]

I agree.

It isn't too bad to lose with AA multiway because the next time(s) you get AA multiway you will make up the losses, but to lose with AA in a hand that isn't going to generate many chips anyway because it's heads up, it isn't worh slowplaying, the loss is too big. I would have raised and reraised post flop until SB folded or we showed at the river.

Preflop SB had to think either BB would fold under the pressure of a raise. If he knew BB wouldn't fold a good hand SB has to hold a good hand also. Then it doesn't matter what BB does as SB is committed to the river in most situations.

A nothing flop is no fit to SB's raising hand. SB is drifting in the floatsam of 'I missed', and the best he can hope for is the good sense to fold or BB is really playing catch up.