Idiot hand #5

Player to my right raises (rather decent standards) after some players have already folded. I fold TT, thinking "If he´s got AA, KK, QQ, or JJ he is way ahead, with overcards he can also flop a better hand, and players have already discarded, meaning that my implied odds for flopping trips are not so good". What would you have done here?

Against a tight raiser, TT is a very tricky hand to play.


My normal response is to 3-bet with it so that the hand becomes heads-up while I've got position on my opponent.


If this opponent only raises with big pocket pairs, it's an easy fold.


If he also raises with AK, then you are still behind 60% of the time.


If he raises with both AK and AQ, then you are ahead 57% of the time.


So, it's a tough decision. I have foled TT pre-flop when facing a raise. More often, I 3-bet.

folding wasn´t such a terrible play I think, but I felt that I didn´t play very well in that session, that´s why I did the verbal self-flaggelation.

This fold shows that even if you are disappointed with the way you have been playing, you keep thinking in situations and act upon your reasoning.


Way to go.


lars

For those of you who don't play in these tight ass Vegas games, here is something to consider when at a tight table.


In Vegas, many players will raise pocket pairs UTG down to 66 or so because the games are so tight. They will also open raise with hands like A9s. When the initial raisers standards drop to those levels, it is even more important to 3-bet because there is a chance that you have him drawing to 2 outs.


Note that this scenario also makes it a large mistake to muck AQo.

I'm still routinely mucking AQo against almost all raises and I've found it to be correct a significant majority of the time when I see the cards at the showdown. Against loose raisers, I've 3-bet it. I can't remember the last time I cold-called with it.

Its a 3-bet, as with TT. Other than AKs I can't think of a single hand that I would cold-call and not 3-bet if everyone between me and the preflop raiser has folded. And I would 3-bet AKs a decent amount of the time as well.


There are a few players whom I muck AQ against when they open raise in EP (first 3 seats when 10 handed). But I've found that most players, even the tight vegas ones, have a significantly higher range of opening hands than AA-JJ, AK AQ. In my experience almost all go down to AJo, ATs, 66, KQ-KJs. If their hand range will indeed stretch that far, then mucking AQo is giving up alot.


Once they are opening past the first 3 seats, there isn't anyone I'm mucking it against, including you. Players are simply too aggressive and have too wide a range of openers.


Lets do a theoretical scenario. Tightish 10-20 Vegas game. 3 folders to you. You are 4 to the right of the button. What are you open raising with? 88? ATs? KQo? KJs? I would suspect that you would open raise with all of these, and be correct to do so.


How much am I giving up by mucking my AQo on your immediate left after you open raise?