I either played this hand brilliantly or like a moron.

[SpaceAce]

Sometime's it's tough to tell the difference.

PartyPoker $2/$4.

Me: I've got about $100 as I've been running in place for a couple of hours.
The big blind is on a short stack with only five or six big bets in front of him.
The button is not too far to one side of the other of me in stack size.

I get AQo in the small blind. This is the best hand I've seen in a while and anyone paying attention knows I've only shown down winners since I got to the table. The action is folded all the way around to the button who calls. I raise and I fully expect the big blind to reraise which he does. The button calls and I cap. Both call.

My reasoning so far:
The big blind is loose aggressive and he is on a short stack. Also, he has a bit of an ego problem.
The button probably tried to limp in with junk. If he is limping with a monster trying to keep us in the hand, I will find out about it on the flop but I really don't think that's the case.

The flop comes down three rags, two spades. I bet, the big blind predictably raises, the button calls and I reraise. The big blind caps and is all in.

My reasoning:
I still think I am ahead of both players due to the button's lack of raising and the big blind's attitude and stack. I am most inclined to put the button on two spades since I think he'd raise a big pocket pair. I can't see him having hit much on this crummy flop.
If I am behind one of them, I am probably ahead of the other.
I have been doing a great job of representing a big pair and I believe I can fold the button if he is on the flush draw as I suspect. I don't think he'll stick around just because he paired his seven or something.

The turn is an offsuit rag, I bet, the button calls.

The river is another offsuit low card. I bet.

Here's how I saw the hand overall from beginning to end:
I am 99% sure I have the best hand pre-flop. The button is limping in hoping to hit a big flop or catch a flush draw and the big blind's playing style tells me his raise means nothing more than two cards, possibly an Ace.

I believe I am ahead on the flop. I want to get the big blind all-in and hopefully either scare off the button or convince him I have a big pair so as to scare him off later.

I feel I am playing one pot against the other. If one of them has me beat, the other one probably doesn't and I will win at least some of my money back unless I lose to both players which I don't see as very likely.

Every raise I make puts three total bets into the pot and I think my hand is good enough that getting 2:1 on every bet is plenty.

It's tough to give a description that captures the feel of the hand but I very rarely play Ace-high as the best hand against more than one player and when I do I am usually right. Was I right this time? What do you think of my play and my reasoning?



Results:
<font color="white">
The button folded on the river and I dragged the side pot uncontested. The big blind didn't show but I won with a Queen kicker so he had some Ace weaker than my Queen.
</font>

SpaceAce

[Chaos_ult]

I think you played this hand well, given the circumstances.

You had some good reads on your opponents, and acted according to those reads. The button likely paired one of his cards, but he couldn't have liked it, given your actions.

Good hand, well played.

[SpaceAce]

[ QUOTE ]
I think you played this hand well, given the circumstances.

You had some good reads on your opponents, and acted according to those reads. The button likely paired one of his cards, but he couldn't have liked it, given your actions.

Good hand, well played.

[/ QUOTE ]

Thanks for the reply. I think you're right about the button. I was pretty sure he must have hit something but I believed he would fold if he missed the bigger draw I put him on. He took a long time to fold so I think he had some sort of pair.

SpaceAce

[DeucesUp]

It seems like you made a great read and played it appropriately. I rarely have this much confidence in my reads, especially of 2/4 players. I wish I did. I think your preflop play was fine, you do have the best hand. I also like the flop play, I will often jam on the flop with a player nearly all in as you did because they'll often do so with nothing while hoping to drive everybody else out. But after getting called down by the button on the flop, I'd be a lot less confident I've got the best hand. You've got 2 players who you feel started with weak hands preflop, now there's 4 cards on the board which could only have helped weak hands. I don't like where I'm at this point, the fact that the button hasn't shown any aggression is only a small consolation. I think leading out on the turn is OK, as you don't want to give a free card to a draw and you may face a bet if you check anyway. There are certain players who will call all bets on the flop with nearly nothing, only to fold the turn. I'm hoping he's one of those at this point.

The river bet is the one I have the biggest problem with. First, not many 2/4 players are going to lay down a pair on the river in this type of hand unless a big card hits on the river. They've already decided you might have AK or AQ and they're going to call you down. Second, even if button will lay down a pair, the value of your bet as a bluff is greatly reduced because you still have to beat all-in to win most of the pot. Even if you had him on the flop (questionable), he may have caught something on the turn or river.

My guess is that button did have just a flush draw (or some weird straight draw) and if he'd caught any pair he would've called you, so the river bet didn't have any value. You just managed to find 5 cards on the board which didn't help any of the 3 hands and yours was best.

[SpaceAce]

Hi, thanks for the reply.

[ QUOTE ]
It seems like you made a great read and played it appropriately. I rarely have this much confidence in my reads, especially of 2/4 players.


[/ QUOTE ]

I usually don't, either, but I had the big blind down pretty well and I had a strong suspicion about the button.


[ QUOTE ]

But after getting called down by the button on the flop, I'd be a lot less confident I've got the best hand.


[/ QUOTE ]

I think my read on him was reasonable, here. Most times I will get played back at even when I do have a big pair because people want to put me on AK when I put in raises pre-flop. Your opponents don't like to believe you have a big pair until you prove it which I tried to do on the flop and turn.

[ QUOTE ]

You've got 2 players who you feel started with weak hands preflop, now there's 4 cards on the board which could only have helped weak hands. I don't like where I'm at this point, the fact that the button hasn't shown any aggression is only a small consolation.


[/ QUOTE ]

Let me be more specific: when the turn came down and the button still wouldn't go away, I believed there was a chance he had made one pair but no better. I also believed he was still drawing to the hand he really wanted.

[ QUOTE ]

The river bet is the one I have the biggest problem with. First, not many 2/4 players are going to lay down a pair on the river in this type of hand unless a big card hits on the river. They've already decided you might have AK or AQ and they're going to call you down. Second, even if button will lay down a pair, the value of your bet as a bluff is greatly reduced because you still have to beat all-in to win most of the pot. Even if you had him on the flop (questionable), he may have caught something on the turn or river.


[/ QUOTE ]

I didn't think he would still have me on AK by the river. I was pretty sure he would believe I had at least a biggish pair. When the flush draw missed, I figured the bet was my best chance at the pot. His call, call, call play made me think he really wanted something more than what he had.

[ QUOTE ]

My guess is that button did have just a flush draw (or some weird straight draw) and if he'd caught any pair he would've called you, so the river bet didn't have any value. You just managed to find 5 cards on the board which didn't help any of the 3 hands and yours was best.


[/ QUOTE ]

You may be right but I still think he made some sort of crummy pair and just decided it was worthless without having hit his draw. He took way too long to call the river bet for me to believe he was pondering Ace- or King-high.

SpaceAce

[NLSoldier]

I love taking advantage of these short stacks that you know are just trying to go all-in and maybe get lucky. Nice play!

[DeucesUp]

[ QUOTE ]

Let me be more specific: when the turn came down and the button still wouldn't go away, I believed there was a chance he had made one pair but no better. I also believed he was still drawing to the hand he really wanted.


I didn't think he would still have me on AK by the river. I was pretty sure he would believe I had at least a biggish pair. When the flush draw missed, I figured the bet was my best chance at the pot. His call, call, call play made me think he really wanted something more than what he had.



[/ QUOTE ]

Yes, I'd agree here that the button clearly isn't confident in hand and is still drawing to something better. But it's a pretty rare 2/4'er that'll lay down a pair on the river without a scare card instead of looking you up.

Now getting ~14:1 a bluff would be almost mandatory heads up. But you have to have all of the following:

a.) to still be ahead of a player which could have a lot of different hands but was willing to cap both pre-flop and the flop (admittedly somewhat special circumstances).

b. the button to have a better hand

c. the button willing to lay down a better hand in a big pot on a board which really shouldn't scare him too much.

-or- instead of b &amp; c you can get a little value if the button is willing to call with a worse hand.


I'm curious, since you had to show down, I think many 2/4'ers would also make some comment if they folded a better hand. Did he say anything?


Anyway, I think a good case can be made for the way you played it. I guess the biggest difference is the mentality: I would feel as though the turn and especailly river bets were desperation bets and I would fully expect to lose this hand. Your description made it sound as though you were fairly confident all the way through.

[SpaceAce]

[ QUOTE ]
I love taking advantage of these short stacks that you know are just trying to go all-in and maybe get lucky. Nice play!

[/ QUOTE ]

Thnks for the compliment. You described exactly what I was thinking about the big blind. I figured he was so short that he's be forced to push anything. I was hoping to use that to knock out the button but I ended up having to fall back on plain ol' faking it.

SpaceAce

[SpaceAce]

[ QUOTE ]

a.) to still be ahead of a player which could have a lot of different hands but was willing to cap both pre-flop and the flop (admittedly somewhat special circumstances).

b. the button to have a better hand

c. the button willing to lay down a better hand in a big pot on a board which really shouldn't scare him too much.

-or- instead of b &amp; c you can get a little value if the button is willing to call with a worse hand.


[/ QUOTE ]

I thought both B &amp; C were likely enough to make it worth betting. I really thought he had at least a small pair and so I knew checking would be suicide. Thanks to the constant raising from the big blind, I felt I was able to represent a big pair pretty well.

[ QUOTE ]

I'm curious, since you had to show down, I think many 2/4'ers would also make some comment if they folded a better hand. Did he say anything?


[/ QUOTE ]

Surprisingly, no, no comment was made. Usually someone will say something after such a wild run of raises, especially when Ace-high wins the pot. I didn't get so much as a "lucky fish" from the button.

[ QUOTE ]
Anyway, I think a good case can be made for the way you played it. I guess the biggest difference is the mentality: I would feel as though the turn and especailly river bets were desperation bets and I would fully expect to lose this hand. Your description made it sound as though you were fairly confident all the way through.

[/ QUOTE ]

You're right, I was pretty confident all the way. The only time my confidence wavered was when he almost ran out his clock on the river. Like I said in the original post, it's tough to describe the feeling of a game or hand. I felt that my Ace was good on the flop and I thought I might be behind to a pair on the turn but above all else, I felt the button would fold if he didn't make something stronger than a small pair.

This is why I post hands, though. I want to hear from people who see it differently than I do. I don't learn anything if the only opinion I ever hear is my own /images/graemlins/smile.gif The summation of the whole hand comes down to this: I thought checking the river would be my doom so I bet.

SpaceAce