QQ scared of AA
 

1/2 NL, $200 max. Villain and I both have $200.
I get black QQ on the button. Folds to me, and I raise to $7. SB folds, and Villain raises to $12 from the BB. I think about it for a little and call. Obviously I won't fold, but this might be a raising situation. I decided raising wouldn't tell me anything because AA and KK might just call, so if I raise and get called, I can't rule out those hands.

Flop is all undercards with 2 hearts. BB checks. The pot is $25, and I bet $25, hoping to fold out AK. BB calls.

Turn is another undercard, not a heart. By now I'm pretty sure villian has a bigger overpair. He checks, and I check behind.

River is the K[img]/images/graemlins/diamond.gif[/img]. Villian bets $75. Pretty easy fold? It's hard to think of a hand he would play that way that I would beat. I put him on AA, KK, AK. JJ and TT would be unlikely to reraise preflop, and in any case would probably put me on some kind of overpair or AK, so couldn't expect to be ahead or fold me out.

Anybody bet the turn? If the river were a blank, would you be more likely to call a pot-sized bet?

Re: QQ scared of AA
 

It's quite possible he does have an overpair.
What I strongly question is the 7$ raise with 200 stacks.
I think that's just asking to get reraised by many hands.

Re: QQ scared of AA
 

unless you have a specific read on villain, i think your range for his hands is way too narrow. you think he wouldn't play back against a button raise with TT/JJ? if not, you should be raising all kinds of garbage on the button cause he'll let you take a look at the flop, and cause a reraise will completely define his hand.

as for what he should be putting you on, it should be a very wide range. you opened from the button and called a min 3-bet, and then bet the flop when checked to. this should quite common (well, if he's min 3-betting a lot).

here are some hands i might play as villain did that you're ahead (except that i would've made a real 3-bet preflop):

A [img]/images/graemlins/heart.gif[/img]Q [img]/images/graemlins/heart.gif[/img] - A [img]/images/graemlins/heart.gif[/img]9 [img]/images/graemlins/heart.gif[/img]
AQ (if i thought i could take the pot off you if you checked the turn)
possible straight draws (would help to know the board cards)

all told, i'd probably fold, but i guess the long post was just to say that your range for him is too narrow.

Re: QQ scared of AA
 

That's my standard raise if it's folded to me on the button. I don't want to vary my raise size based on my hand, because that's a pretty obvious tell. If my standard raise is more than that, I either just win the blinds, or, worse, create really big pots only when I'm behind.

Yes, I'm giving any pocket pair odds to hit a set, but I'm reasonably confident that I will avoid going broke in most of those situations. If I want to price out set draws preflop, I have to raise to more than 10x BB.

At higher levels, players realize that the button frequently steals in this situation. Thus my preflop raise means only that I have 2 cards, and his reraise means only that he has 2 cards. At this level, that knowledge is not uniform. Thus I'm inclined to consider the reraise genuine and not a resteal. In any case, it's pretty bad play by BB to call my flop bet with nothing, so that strengthens my thinking that he's got me beat.

Re: QQ scared of AA
 

I would have bet something on the turn. dont give him a chance to take the pot away from you easily. bet on the turn something thats decent but something you can get away from. if he calls again and then leads the river, its a clear fold. if he calls and then checks the river you just check behind him.

Re: QQ scared of AA
 

[ QUOTE ]
here are some hands i might play as villain did that you're ahead (except that i would've made a real 3-bet preflop):

A[img]/images/graemlins/heart.gif[/img]Q[img]/images/graemlins/heart.gif[/img] - A[img]/images/graemlins/heart.gif[/img]9[img]/images/graemlins/heart.gif[/img]


[/ QUOTE ]
You'd really reraise with A9s out of position? I guess it's not impossible, but unless you know the button is stealing with trash, it's probably -EV. I agree a heart draw is one possible hand I was ahead of, but probably half of those hands also have a king.

Also, the fact that it was a min raise and not a real raise does play some role in putting him on a hand. A real raise says, "You're just stealing, give me the pot now." A min raise says, "It's not that much more, go ahead and call."

[ QUOTE ]
you think he wouldn't play back against a button raise with TT/JJ?

[/ QUOTE ]
It's certainly possible preflop, and that's consistent with his flop call and turn check, but my line (bet preflop, bet the flop, check the turn) is classic unpaired overcards. Surely TT/JJ would think on the river what I was thinking, right? "If I wasn't behind him before, I am now. There aren't many hands that I beat that would play that way," and would check/fold.

Re: QQ scared of AA
 

I think betting the turn was in order. Couldn't see him calling another $50 without a piece of it yet. Checking on the turn possibly let him bluff on the river, but I don't think you can call it either way at that point.

Note: I have made no money at poker.