Playing AA in big multi-player pots

[tvdad]

Fairly early in a $2 NL tourney at Planet, blinds are T15/30. I have A[img]/images/graemlins/club.gif[/img]A[img]/images/graemlins/spade.gif[/img] UTG. I open for the minimum raise to T60. Two MP limpers, then short stack in LP pushes his last T65 all-in. Cutoff calls. SB goes over the top all-in for T985. BB folds. I call. I meant to push it all-in, but I hit the wrong button, leaving me with T65. Both MPs fold. Cutoff calls (???) Flop comes Q[img]/images/graemlins/diamond.gif[/img]6[img]/images/graemlins/club.gif[/img]Q[img]/images/graemlins/club.gif[/img]. Oh crap. Well, I push in my last T65 and pray. Cutoff calls. Turn and river are 7[img]/images/graemlins/diamond.gif[/img]6[img]/images/graemlins/spade.gif[/img]. Short stack flips over 9[img]/images/graemlins/club.gif[/img]Q[img]/images/graemlins/spade.gif[/img] to take the small main pot. Cutoff unbelievably turns over K[img]/images/graemlins/diamond.gif[/img]6[img]/images/graemlins/diamond.gif[/img] to take the huge side pot. BB showed 8[img]/images/graemlins/spade.gif[/img]8[img]/images/graemlins/diamond.gif[/img] to join me in the Loser's Lounge.

Nothing I could have done here. Oh was there? Maybe I'm just on a bad streak, but I have lost AA a lot over the past few years (close to 75%) on multi-player all-in situations like this. It's gotten so bad that I would now consider folding in this situation. With so many players in the hand, there are just too many things that can go wrong to bust me out. Am I just steaming from another bad beat, or can I really get away from AA in situations like this? I've folded it later in tourneys to preserve my stack when money is on the line, but I've always gone for it in the early rounds, figuring I've got the best of it with AA.

Obviously I'm talking about the preflop play, and the possibility of laying down AA preflop when faced with so many callers. If I still had a lot of chips after that flop and someone bet big into me, I'd probably fold.