changing your image, or winning a big pot?

At last weeks home game ($5 buy in sng)an interesting hand came up.

To set up the situation, earlier on, when relativly shortstacked, i raised K2s on the button. with 2 callers, and 2 checks to me on a 567 flop, i move all in, hoping no straight draw will call me. 78 does call me, but a lucky K on the turn keeps me alive.

Later on, I raise AQo preflop, and the BB calls me, who is a thinking player. The flop is QQJ, and he bets half of the pot. Hoping he has a J, and that he saw my bluff earlier, i push. He folds and tells the table that if he had anything at all, hed call me. I want to show that im not always bluffing, and table my AQ.

Heres my question-should i have pushed all in to show i will sometimes push with a monster, or just raised to give him a chance to play back? given his read on me, he might have pushed if i had raised a lot.

So given the situation, would you try to win a big pot right there, or maintain the ability to steal some pots later?

jeff

[smoore]

Need to know stack/blind/pot sizes for the AQ hand. I wouldn't have tabled it and said something like, "I *KNEW* my TT was good, you didn't have a queen."

[Snarf]

All depends on the table, your chip stack, and your needs. If its a weaker table - you'd probably want the respect as a short stack. The tighties will fold some hands they shouldn't to your all-ins if they think you're only pushing really good hands.

[2+2 wannabe]

why would you EVER show your hand? you give away way too much information....

p.s. your first hand flop-push was pretty bad

[SamIAm]

[ QUOTE ]
why would you EVER show your hand? you give away way too much information....

p.s. your first hand flop-push was pretty bad

[/ QUOTE ]I agree on both counts. On the push, you really don't want to get called, and you're worried about getting called by a 4, 5, 6, 7, 8. (It's pretty obvious the flop didn't help you.)

Your play, brilliant in my opinion.
-Sam

I never show for the exact reason that you always want to keep people guessing. Everytime you show your hand, you are given away information that you dont have too. Some people love to show when they bluff off a huge pot, but for most people that just confirms their betting patterns and facial quirks, that make it easy to get a read on the player.

[Rick Diesel]

[ QUOTE ]
Heres my question-should i have pushed all in to show i will sometimes push with a monster, or just raised to give him a chance to play back? given his read on me, he might have pushed if i had raised a lot.

[/ QUOTE ]

This looks like a pretty good spot to slowplay here. Yes, you give a small PP a chance to hit a set, but there is a good chance that the opponent here does not have a PP and is almost drawing dead here. I would just call the flop and raise the turn, unless i nailed the full house, where i would continue the slow play.

I like ur play. Like he said if he had 22 he might have called. Given ur image and how that move looks to players, it screams bluff at the top of its lungs. That play has a good chance to get paid off by a jack or a pocket pair maybes kings or aces and u just got lucky, i like the play. Dont show just let everyone think it was a bluff and grab the pot. This way they think ur bluffing again next time u want them to think ur bluffing.

[ThinkQuick]

Given what you have said, it is likely that he would have called your push with much the same hand range that he would have called or raised a minraise by you.

you make a point that may be true in that he could have tried to reraise you out with absolute junk, but this isn't the play you were going for. You acted based on your table image, etc. to make your move - don't question it in a results oriented manner. In fact, I would classify this result as being positive anyways, as he said he would have called you if he did have the jack, or probably ace high or any PP.


And... Its been said.. don't show your darn hand. Especially when an opponent has announced a read on you; why prove them wrong?? Let them think they can always peg you.