A first time...

[bdypdx]

Good live 4/8 game. I'd gone through several hands that just didn't work out, so now I'm short stacked, but decide to play my button before heading to the cage.

I look down to see AcAs. 5 limpers to me, I decide to limp just because it'll be so easy to wind up all-in, SB folds, BB checks.

Flop: 37T rainbow. BB bets, the 5 limpers call, I raise. BB folds and all 5 limpers call.

Turn: Ad. Checked to MP who bets, 2 callers, I raise. Folded to MP who calls, as do the other 2 callers.

River: 4, no flush possible. Checked to me. I bet all-in, MP calls and the other 2 fold.

This is the first time in 2 years that I have not raised AA preflop. Clever or on tilt?

bdy

[Stu Pidasso]

My thoughts about AA are:

1)It makes most of its money before the flop.

2)Its a multiway monster hand.

When I play this hand preflop, I try to play in such a way that I get as much money as possible into the pot pre-flop. To that end, I will limp with it if limping is going to build the biggest pot.

I think you erred by just limping in with it on the button with 5 others before you.

[bisonbison]

with 5 limpers ahead of you, the BB will likely call regardless, and the SB may too. I'd raise this preflop and hope someone liked the flop enough to bet into me. It worked out well for you, but I think I'd raise this roughly 100% of the time.

[ShortStack]

Good question. Your query can be restated as " Should I play differently after losing?" I don't believe so. Many disagree. Some think that when you are losing, other players will run over you. I may be a lone dissenter.

I feel that the previous cards/outcomes have no bearing on me and that others that go over-aggressive on me are wrong to do so. There are some new losses I would not incur (had I been winning) as I might fold to raisers that previously were callers but I still have the same set of cards (that have no memory) and some of those raisers would rather wish to be folders if I am acting rationally (and thus my outome is net positive.)

As I see it, you should decide if AAs are worth raising here, not to mention trip Aces on the turn. If they are, who cares what you have lost or won until this point? Play correctly and let the outcome happen.

Raise. Raise. Re-raise.

After all, if you lose with trip Aces, will it stop you from raising in the future? If not, what does the past losing session have to do with it? Play poker, don't play history.

This seems so obvious to me yet so many disagree, if not in theory, than in the heat of battle. I consider this type of thinking so inferior on their part as to be hugely profitable in my part.

I'm very interested in your thoughts about this. You did say the game was "good," afterall.

[LetsRock]

[ QUOTE ]
Clever or on tilt?

[/ QUOTE ]

If you did this because game conditions dictated that you would maximize your winnings by limping it was clever.

If you did this because you were afraid of "going all-in", it was tilt.

You played your hand different than you normally would based on your emotions.

Tilt.

[bdypdx]

Thanks guys. I know you all are right, but in this hand, I actually won more by limping preflop, than I would have by a preflop raise. Like I mentioned this was the first time in 2+ years that I have not raised/reraised AA preflop...this one was unusual so I had to ask...

How long does a typical poker hand last? 2 minutes maybe? In those few seconds preflop, when I looked at my short stack, I decided that I wanted ammunition for later streets. I wasn't afraid of going all in, I just wanted to do so on the turn or river.

Anyway, MP showed down A7o. And my next visit to the cage was to cash out and not rebuy. FWIW... I found AA in my hand 3 more times in the session and dutifully raised or reraised preflop, lost once and won twice unimproved.

Cheers