Greetings,Players! 6th Str. Dilemma..Hmmm

[SittingBull]

My heads-up opponent is about 75,serious looking,but unknown to me.
He is a loose 3rd and 4th Str. player.
On 5th,the Gentleman fires away with live rainbow T J K respectively.
I 2-bet with my completed flush.
On 6th,the Senior pairs his doorcard and I obtain another one of my suit.
The dealer announces: POSSIBLE FLUSH!
The Gentleman glances at my hand and fires away. Hmmm.

Assuming pot size is 6BB, what would U advise Sitting Bull to do in this spot??

Just wondering.
[img]/forums/images/icons/laugh.gif[/img] Happy pokering

[Andy B]

I'd go into a huddle and probably muck. If he were 25 I'd call him down. He bet into you when you were showing three suited cards, so he probably has a hand. You raised, representing a flush. Now you might not have a flush. Being the crafty player you are, you could have made that raise with a four-flush and a small pair or something like that. Even if that's what you had, it looks like you got there on sixth street. He has taken notice of your mildly terrifying board and bet into you anyway. Why he doesn't check-raise I can't say, but I think it's highly likely that he has a full house. I fold a completed hand once every few months. This would be one of the times I'd dump. You're getting 4:1 if you call it down (two bets to call, six in the pot plus the two that he's going to bet). I just don't think that you're going to win 20% of the time here.

[JTG51]

I don't have much of an answer, you wouldn't want my stud advice anyway.

I have a question though. Is it common for a Stud dealer to announce something like, "Possible Flush"? I'd think that would be a big no-no.

[Andy B]

It is common in low-limit games for dealers to announce possible straights and flushes. In my local room, there seems to be some kind of a gray area about when they do and don't announce them. They are always supposed to be announced in $2/4 games. They are usually announced in $3/6 games, and sometimes in $4/8 games. I haven't gotten a definitive answer as to where the cutoff is, and since I don't play those games much anymore, I don't care. They are never announced in games $6/12 and higher (unless someone forgets, because higher stud games are an infrequent occurrence), and never in stud/8 games. They only announce possibles when there is four to a straight or flush on board on sixth street.

[JTG51]

Thanks for the response Andy.

That really surprises me. I can't imagine a hold'em dealer ever saying, "Possible full house" when a guy with a flush bets and I raise on a paired board. I know thats not a great comparison, but in both cases the dealer is helping one player or the other ever so slightly. I don't like that.

[Andy B]

You have to remember that most folks who play low-limit stud are recreational players out to have a good time. A good many of them are older, and a lot of them don't see so well. Hell, I'm 34, and I don't see so well. This practice helps out people who need helping out, and I think it contributes to a friendlier, and hence more profitable, atmosphere.

And it's not like dealers always remain silent when a fifth club shows in hold'em. They should, of course, but they don't.

[JTG51]

Jeez, everywhere I turn I've got Andy B replying to my posts. I think that's a good thing. [img]/forums/images/icons/smile.gif[/img]

You are right that dealers in hold'em don't always keep quiet.

I know I shouldn't be making such a big deal about this, it just seems so odd to me. It sounds like the kind of thing that would happen at a kitchen table game, but not in a 'real' game. Then again, I guess those low limit stud games are more like kitchen table games than anything else.

[Tom D]

SB,

I like Andy B’s answer, with one tiny additional consideration. If your opponent has trips on sixth-street and believes you won’t raise his paired door-card board, even if you have the flush, it doesn’t cost him anything to bet. If he doesn’t fill on the river, he can bet again, or check-call and the hand hasn’t cost him any more than if he just check-called the last two bets. He gains, though, those times when you were raising for a free card with a pair and a scary board. If he fills, he can go for the check-raise, hoping you do have the flush.

The bottom line, I believe, is that if you read your opponent as a strong player, you should call him down. If you didn’t, I think you should fold. Since you said, in your post, that you didn’t know him, maybe you have to call him down just to get some information. Maybe the guy is blind and deaf.

I guess I disagree with Andy B after all, which is usually not wise.

Tom D

i think you definitely dont fold here. at 1-5 he might just assume for no reason that you dont have a flush, and if he has a straight he will just bet.i dont think i would ever fold here and i would be prepared to raise the river if he bet again.

pat

A smart poster wrote that it costs your opponent nothing to bet his trips (if he has trips). You will either call or fold; if he checks, you will bet. You likely will not fold to a check-raise, as now the pot is giving better odds.
Betting out looks strong, and if you muck it, wins the pot.
If you call, trips can still fill.
One thing you didn't mention was: how coordinated are your cards? if you have a chance at a str. flush, then you have a little more reason to call, though it is best to keep in mind that: 1) you may be beat by a house; 2) your opponent might hit the house on the river.
But, folding a flush here seems wrong. A lot of people will bet trips as a matter of course, regardless of your board. Calling your opponent down here might be worth the investment, win or lose, in future hands.