Pocket Kings

[Sean Norris]

I was playing in the PartyPoker $5,000 freeroll. It was the third round with blinds at 15/30. The table was full with 10 players. Everyone folded around to 7th position, who called. The button, an aggressive and loose player who had been involved in nearly every pot and held the big stack with 1,300 to 1,400 chips, also called. I was the SB and on the short stack with 770 chips. My hole cards were KsKc, so I raised to 90 chips. The BB and 7th position called, but the button reraised to 150 chips. I, the BB, and 7th position called. The flop came Qh2h2d. I bet 300 chips (half the pot), and the BB and 7th position folded. The button reraised me all-in. I called, figuring he had AQ or 2 big hearts for a flush draw. He showed QQ, and his Q over 2 full house held up to win the pot, knocking me out of the tournament.

Should I have raised the button's reraise before the flop? Should I have been able to put the button on pocket QQ when he reraised me all-in after the flop? Is there anything else I should have done differently?

[La Brujita]

I think you could have raised preflop originally to about 150 chips. 90 was certainly too low, that would be the correct amount to raise to if nobody else had entered, but now that you have limpers you need to bet more to both sweeten the pot and give them incorrect implied odds.

After the button raised you should have reraised all in (you rate to have the best hand and you don't want to let ax draw cheaply). His raise was of course very very odd. But the fact that he is loose and aggressive means you hope to get him to call you with funky holdings.

After the flop you would have had to been Houdini to escape with your chips.

[Che]

I would make my first raise to 150. If the button minraises, either calling or pushing is fine IMHO.

I'm dead on that flop regardless of how the preflop action went, though.

Later,
Che

[Potowame]

Push preflop to get heads up with the LAGGY...


Other than that its a very good flop for KK, the only hand you are reasonable behind is QQ, but A loose player would bet AQ KQ possible QJ in the same manner.

[nath]

With the button min reraising and you knowing you more active players behind you it would have been a good spot to reraise or even push. You don't want to play the KK 4 ways.

That flop, well, that's just bad luck.

[Phil2]

Push preflop. Isolate the button. QQ most likely won't go away. Get your money in with the best hand. You were in a great spot preflop but were going to loose probably no matter how you played it.

[JC_Saves]

I don't believe any raise by you would have changed the situation at all. Most people that have QQ are going to call you in that situation, plus given the fact that he had you covered 2 to 1 he was going to call your all in. Just an unfortunate flop, because obviously you would want to get all your money in against QQ every chance you could.

You were destined to lose a lot of money on this hand.