A couple of ace/rag hands.

[CrisBrown]

Hi parappa,

I don't especially like the first hand. Yes, if he's going to raise, he needs to push (One-Third Rule). And this is a bubble play, taking advantage of other players' reluctance to get busted one spot out of the money. But I think it's a low $EV bubble play. He gains very little if he wins the pot (just the blinds), and he's in a small-favorite-or-big-dog situation, exactly the kind you want to avoid.

The second hand is an easy fold. The big stack is loose-aggressive, the small stack is facing elimination, and he has third place money guaranteed. The small stack will have to play a pot soon, and Ace-rag isn't the hand Hero wants to see a showdown with.

Cris

[parappa]

Thanks. I don't like the first hand either, but I wanted to post it because I knew it was a good player but was sure I'd fold there. I'm assuming there was a game context that I was missing, or maybe it was just a loose play.

Second hand does seem an easy fold.