99

[RcrdBoy]

Party Poker 1/2 Hold 'Em (10 handed) converter

Preflop: Hero is UTG+2 with 9[img]/images/graemlins/club.gif[/img], 9[img]/images/graemlins/diamond.gif[/img].
UTG calls, UTG+1 calls, Hero raises, MP1 folds, MP2 folds, MP3 folds, CO folds, Button folds, SB folds, BB folds, UTG calls, UTG+1 calls.

I raised here in hopes of thining the field (worked) to give myself a chance of winning this unimproved. Bad idea? Am I better off limping here to get more people in the pot to get paid off when I spike the set?

Flop: (7.50 SB) 4[img]/images/graemlins/spade.gif[/img], 2[img]/images/graemlins/diamond.gif[/img], T[img]/images/graemlins/club.gif[/img] <font color="blue">(3 players)</font>
UTG bets, UTG+1 calls, Hero raises, UTG calls, UTG+1 calls.

Flop about as good as I could have hoped for. Can't call here so it's either fold or bet and fold just seems too weak with this board. Fold to a 3-bet?

Turn: (6.75 BB) 7[img]/images/graemlins/heart.gif[/img] <font color="blue">(3 players)</font>
UTG checks, UTG+1 checks, Hero checks.

River: (6.75 BB) J[img]/images/graemlins/heart.gif[/img] <font color="blue">(3 players)</font>
UTG checks, UTG+1 checks, Hero checks.

Is there any reason to bet this? If no other over card falls I bet. Bad idea?


Final Pot: 6.75 BB
<font color="#990066">Main Pot: 6.75 BB, between UTG, UTG+1 and Hero.</font>

I almost feel lost playing medium PPs. Any comments much appreciated.

-Mike

[Henke]

I would be inclined to bet the turn here. You're in position and they checked to you. Also, they are probably the ones that gain most by getting the free card, since you're only having two outs to improve your hand, and they probably have 5 or 6.

[Emmitt]

My intuition would be that they would fold to a bet on the river.
Undecided about the raise pre-flop, I also play $1/$2 and people seem quite happy to cold call at this level, so not sure if it would acheive your intended objective (not that this makes it a mistake)

[Trix]

When you raise the flop and a blank comes on the turn, bet.

[MortalNuts]

Caveat: I'm never too confident in my play of medium PPs, either. They do make me money, though. Meh.

The way you played it, I'd probably bet the turn (and fold to a raise). You have indicated a lot of strength with your PF and flop action, so there's a decent chance you'll pick up the pot. Plus, of course, there's a decent chance you're ahead, plus you have few outs if you're behind, plus it would take a pretty serious hand for most players to raise you here. These things tell me to bet. On the other hand, my pattern mapper says UTG has QTo, but so it goes.

[StellarWind]

Practical advice: play within your limitations. If you are uncomfortable playing hands like this post-flop, just call preflop and play for the set.

I would call preflop anyway. Despite you success I don't think raising to thin the field works very well in microlimits. You wind up with about four opponents instead of six, which seems like a bad thing with a medium pocket pair.

Anyway, what's so great about playing 99 against two people?

Post-flop: make up your mind! Be in or be out. You decided at great risk to keep playing the hand with an overcard on the board after UTG bet into the preflop raiser. Then when it seems your risk is paying off, you suddenly go into checkdown mode on the river and turn.

You're winning! Bet the turn and make some money or chase them out before someone hits an overcard.

If you are still scared you are behind after they called the flop raise and checked the blank on the turn, what does that say about your flop play? Surely you didn't raise with the idea of folding to a reraise but expecting to lose if they merely called?

Plan ahead. A play is rarely good (for you at least) if you have no idea of how to follow it up. This seems to be a connecting theme of both your preflop raise and your flop raise. They might work for someone, but not for you unless you know what to do next.

Contrast that with calling preflop. I'm sure you know how to play a set and how to fold if you miss your set. Maybe it's not the expert way, but it's plenty good enough to make money at this level.

[ProfLupin]

[ QUOTE ]

Flop: (7.50 SB) 4[img]/images/graemlins/spade.gif[/img], 2[img]/images/graemlins/diamond.gif[/img], T[img]/images/graemlins/club.gif[/img] <font color="blue">(3 players)</font>
UTG bets, UTG+1 calls, Hero raises, UTG calls, UTG+1 calls.

Flop about as good as I could have hoped for. Can't call here so it's either fold or bet and fold just seems too weak with this board. Fold to a 3-bet?


[/ QUOTE ]

No way, you'd have to call the 3-bet because you could still catch a 9 on the turn. If you don't, then you fold.

[StellarWind]

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]

Flop: (7.50 SB) 4[img]/images/graemlins/spade.gif[/img], 2[img]/images/graemlins/diamond.gif[/img], T[img]/images/graemlins/club.gif[/img] <font color="blue">(3 players)</font>
UTG bets, UTG+1 calls, Hero raises, UTG calls, UTG+1 calls.

Flop about as good as I could have hoped for. Can't call here so it's either fold or bet and fold just seems too weak with this board. Fold to a 3-bet?


[/ QUOTE ]

No way, you'd have to call the 3-bet because you could still catch a 9 on the turn. If you don't, then you fold.

[/ QUOTE ]
You don't have odds to call for the sole purpose of drawing to two outs, even if you neglect the TT risk. Which is hard to do after he limps in and then 3-bets the flop against a preflop raiser.

Some other plan with a better chance is required if you want to call a 3-bet on the flop.

[RcrdBoy]

Thanks for the feedback.

I definitely half-assed the hand.

After thinking about it a bit more, limping is a lot better play. At micro people rarely see the set and if it would have hit it could have paid off big. Too many bullets to dodge trying to raise this from EP.

Thanks.

-Mike