All-in preflop with AK?
 

Here's the situation:
Blinds 75/150, $25 multi table tournament with a pool of 159 (starting at 1500 chips).
hero's stack: 2300
villain's stack: 3700
hero is dealt AK
villain (UTG) calls 150
hero (UTG+1) raises all-in
folds all around back to villain...

Hero in this situation is my friend, and afterward we get into an argument on what the right move is. He says the table was loose and the villain was very loose and weak, hero even hoped for a call from him. He also says he built up a tight image. My friend says AK is an autopush when the blinds are big enough, table is loose enough, and he has a tight image.

Did he make the right move and is he right about AK?

Re: All-in preflop with AK?
 

lots of hands are autopushes, including AA..

typically 10bb is the threshold where people start pushing there hands PF.. but this looks fine as there is a limper, and i think you're likely to get called by worse hands.

Also fine would be raising to 500-600, ,but then anyn continuation bet on the flop will suck..

i like the push.

Re: All-in preflop with AK?
 

I like the push as well.

Read this if you've got the time

Re: All-in preflop with AK?
 

[ QUOTE ]
I like the push as well.

Read this if you've got the time

[/ QUOTE ]
Taken from the site:
If we move in (jam), I’m going to assume that the UTG player mucks his sevens, eights, nines, A-J suited, and A-Q offsuit, but calls us with A-Q suited, A-K, and pairs of tens or higher.

At the $25 level in a MTT, the calling range to an all-in seems to be any hand. Also, isn't the goal in a MTT to build up as many chips as possible rather than getting your chips in with a better hand? It seems like it would be very hard to make it to the final table when you're forcing yourself into coinflip situations. Why not see the flop and outplay your opponents from there?

Re: All-in preflop with AK?
 

Your frinds M (blinds plus antes) is a bit above 10. I think that it is at bit early to push since your callers will only be desperate shortstacks (who will often call with any ace or face card) or bigger stacks with large pairs QQ-AA and in this chase your frind will be either a small or a huge underdog.

I would bet 400-550.

-sunek

Re: All-in preflop with AK?
 

[ QUOTE ]
Also, isn't the goal in a MTT is to build up as many chips as possible rather than getting your chips in with a better hand? It seems like it would be very hard to make it to the final table when you're forcing yourself into coinflip situations. Why not see the flop and outplay your opponents from there?

[/ QUOTE ]

You build up as manyn chips as possbile, by getting all of your chips in the middle with the best hand... that's what you have here w/ AK, you want to get called, and it's not always going to be a coinflip situations, AQs calls, and worse sometimes, and if theres a shortstack they'll call with garbage sometimes.

Playing the flop would work if you had a deeper stack, but you don't.. so you dont have room to play the flop, you'll be able to bluff at it, and if it fails you're stack is in real danger mode, you're better of in this situation just getting ht money in preflop.

And you get to final tables, by winning your coinflips, and accumulating chips inbetween your allins.

If you get to the FT of a MTT you'll have been all in preflop (And called) atleast 2 times, and that's a really conservative guess.

Re: All-in preflop with AK?
 

[ QUOTE ]


I would bet 400-550.

-sunek

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Then what do you do on the flop of J-7-4r? Do you continuation? if so how much? If your preflop raise was to 500, you'll have 1800 left behind.. and you'll be betting another 700 of it here. It's definitely workable, and you could fold if you raised, you'd just be a hurry to double up afterwards.

If you just push now, you'll get shortstacks calls, and you overestimate big stacks only calling you with QQ-AA... especially sincee UTG limped, he's not going to want to toss out his AJs .. you get called here by worse hands, a lot.

Re: All-in preflop with AK?
 

How do you plan on outplaying your opponent with a 1200 pot and a 1800 stack?

I don't know your history and such, but in general MTT newbs tend to overestimate their edge, and pass up key +EV situations like this. That's not to say you shouldn't raise to 600 or so- I think thats fine, but don't expect to be able to pull any fancy moves on the flop.

Re: All-in preflop with AK?
 

I personally don't think that the blinds are big enough at this stage to warrant pushing in. I want to make hands like these pay me off and would be looking for a call to get some extra chips.

Chances are that the guy UTG will fold to your all-in and you'll miss out on valuable chips. Alternatively, someone behind you wakes up with a monster and sends you out. Finally imagine this scenario.....UTG + 3 calls all-in and then UTG calls after him. If you have raised up to 500 you can easily get away from the losing hand.

How to play on the flop depends very much on who and how many call your 500 re-raise. A lot if it comes down to feel for the table and how the first position guy plays out. At least you have options and a good chance of taking home some more chips!

To be honest, I wouldn't like a call from a loose player who flat calls UTG then calls an all-in.

Re: All-in preflop with AK?
 

Very nice article. However I do not think that it is a correct assumption that players would raise to 3xBB from UTG with hands like 77-99 and AJo. But his point is quite interesting.

Maybe this approach applys better to cash games than tournaments since you will be kicked out of the tournament each time your all in fail.

- sunek