What would you do?

Hi guys,

4-8 holdem game, usually 4-5 people seeing the flop. A total fish on my right, one or two ok players and the rest of the table are pretty much hopelesss to average.


I have K7 offsuit in the BB and take a free ride with 3 other players. Four people see the flop of 77A rainbow. Total fish bets, i call so do the other two players, turn is 9 hearts (no flush possible), Total fish bets again and i raise, 3rd and fourth players fold....


Anyway.... Here is my question would you also call the turn if you knew your raise would drive out the players behind you. I thought about calling but then realized about the straight draw possibility and so raised to make it expensive....

What do you guys think???


Thankyou very much for all responses.

Jessy

Raising is the right turn play. It's unfortunate that the pot isn't very big (5 big bets when you raise) but slowplaying isn't a good idea. You can only hope that all three players have an Ace and they'll all call you down. When you get a chance to win a pot, seize it.

Jessy-


I would have played the hand exactly the same way and I don't think there's much question about it. Anyone in that game with an ace or a T8 open end straight would have called all the way to the river. Slow playing only keeps in someone with a pocket pair hoping you don't have the ace.


Unless you are extremely tight passive I would have called you in that hand if I held an Ace with a kicker T or better. With anything better than AT I probably would have raised pre-flop and you would have folded.


In my opinion, some of us low limit players who take the game seriously overthink some of these hands. I would describe this hand as the guy with very good cards bet, the guys with bad cards folded, the guy with pretty good cards called and lost.


Fish or not it would have played about the same.

Raising the flop is a possibility that I would consider, especially if the pot is big with a lot of players.


Dropping the hammer on the turn is also correct if you're quite sure the lead better will bet again, if the pot is big. Or, if a flush card comes I would also raise the turn, even if the pot is small.


I think in your case a smooth-call on the turn might be best, because the pot is tiny. It's hard to imagine that the two callers behind you don't have an Ace or 7. Whatever they have, they are not getting drawing odds so you don't mind them calling at all (this theory breaks down if the number of callers is really high, Morton's Theorum, but in this case there are not enough players).


The other thing I like about smooth-calling the turn here is that it might get raised behind you by a weaker 7 or even a good Ace (if the player is too aggressive). Then you can reraise.


Also, the lead better may be on a stone cold bluff, in which case you might lose a bet from him.


However poker is a fast game and it's tough to make difficult decisions on the fly. Raising here is not that bad at all, I might have done this too (as a rule I generally don't slowplay in the lower limits except in extreme cases, I might not recognize when a case is extreme enough to warrant a slowplay).


Nice hand and keep on thinking like that, it will shape you into a great player.


Jim Roy

jimroy@powersurfr.com

I usually won't slowplay a set like this out of the blinds but in this situation I would probably call until the river. I don't think you have much to worry about at this point with a straight. I would probably put the other players on Ax or 78/76, either way you almost certainely have them beat unless they get a miracle ace - there are most likely 0-2 aces in the deck. Raising on the turn will almost definetely get out the other aces and maybe a weak 7 that you can outkick if they call your river raise. Then again if this was a typical LL game and you've been outdrawn repeatedly I'd probably just go for the kill on the turn.

When I'm in early position like this, I like to raise on the flop. People never respect a flop raise, so they'll probably put you on an Ace at most, figuring you'd wait to raise a 7 on the turn. Plus, you'll allow yourself to get called down by another Ace, or you might get action from an Ace if they hit their kicker. If you were in last position, waiting until the turn to raise is clearly the correct play.


Then again, what do I know.


Rube

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