TP/TK vs 2-flush board, early in tourney

[gunbuster]

Playing a NLHE tourney, about 50 players starting, maybe 45 left. Structure seems to make for some pretty shallow money. We start with 1000 TC, blinds were 25-50. Play has been a bit wild, as many online tourneys.

2 MP call, cutoff calls, I wake up with AKo. I raise to 150. SB folds, BB calls, everyone else calls.

Flop comes: Kh 8s 3h
Checked around to the cutoff who opens for a micro-sized bet of 60TC.

Okay, I look at my stack. If I make a pot-sized raise, it'll be committing about 40% of my stack. So, do if you were me, would you:

1) Push all-in right here, try to take it down and knock out any draws.

2) Reraise the pot

3) Call the 60 bet, and move in if no flush card comes on the turn?

[Al_Capone_Junior]

To be honest, 3x the BB is a bit small of a raise after three limpers when you have AK. I'da raised it more. If they fold, great, then you're not in a quagmire on the flop.

As it is, I think a big raise here is in order. At least a pot size, if not move all-in. I suppose a pot size raise is OK, and if your opponent goes all-in over the top, you can lay it down, because he probably has a set. This assumes your opponent has a brain and is not one of those K4o go all-in type players. Of course if you're playing online... Actually, the pot is so big now that with a pot size raise you might as well just go all in anyway.

al

[ohkanada]

I would agree with Al all the way.

Pre-flop I like a 3xBB raise if no one has limped. After 2 limpers you need to raise a bit more.

Ken Poklitar

[Justaloser]

>>2 MP call, cutoff calls, I wake up with AKo. I raise to 150. SB folds, BB calls, everyone else calls.<<

That means 5 people see the flop, right? And it makes the pot 750. If you started with T1000, you've only got T850 left.

I think a all-in is better. You've got to figure that someone will bet either turn or river. Why not beat them to it and give them something to think about?

I think that a raise to T450 might be ok, but it's more likely to get callers.

[ripdog]

In my limited experience at no-limit, I've found that my biggest mistakes are calling big bets with top pair/top kicker and not raising high enough with big pairs/AK. I think you push all in here and put the draws to a decision. I don't think I'd have raised more than $150 pre-flop, but I definitely go all in on the flop and hope no more hearts show up. I raise here because I think I've got the best hand and I don't particularly care if I get callers or not.

[gunbuster]

I pushed all in on the flop. A pot raise didn't leave me with much anyway, so I pushed in. All folded to the cut-off who called with middle pair and a heart-flush draw. I think he had 7h 8h or something like that.

Anyway, mathematically, I think he made the right call, as he had a 44% chance to win, and only had to call a remaining 785 for a pot of over 1200.

Some other approaches I had thought about after the hand:
1) Call the micro-bet, and push in if no flush card hits.

This I think would be too results oriented. If I call the micro-bet, one of the other limpers may beat me with something like two-pair made on the turn. I think a raise was the only thing I could do here.

2) Bet the pot, and fold if he comes over the top, fearing a set? However, if he calls, I think the rest of the chips have to go in, because the pot is so large relative to the stacks.

3) Bigger re-raise pre-flop has been mentioned too.

However, with the depth of money, do you think more than 150 was warranted? What would be appropriate 200? 250? At 250, I might very well consider pushing in pre-flop and taking the pot right there.

Anyway, was an interesting hand.

[Al_Capone_Junior]

If you can go all-in with AK and that amount is 2-5 times the size of the pot, you're in good shape in all cases except where someone else has AA or KK. It's discussed in TPFAP. I can't remember the exact pot size and your stack right now, but it may have been a viable option.

al

[gunbuster]

75 TC from the blinds plus 3 other callers, so the pot was 225 by the time it got to me. My stack was about 975.