Two hands I think I misplayed in AC Taj Mahal 50+15 multi

Marc Desjardins · #1 08-05-2005, 03:56 AM

A little before the first break, we started with 5k in chips, I have about 12k, blinds are 200-400 with ante of 75. I'm maybe in first or second position in chips at my table. A player who just sat at the table is UTG+1 or UTG+2, he says raise and then says he needs to decide how much. One player in middle position says something I didn't hear and the guy says "why not, I go all-in" and he goes all-in with about 4-5k in chips. It's folded to my one off the button and I see AK offsuit. I thought for a while, the guy was smiling, didn't seem to stressed out. I put him on a high pocket pair or at worst AK, but I didn't believe in AQ or AJ. So at best I felt it was a coin flip. So I folded.

Now at the Taj, the blinds go up very fast after the break, but I wasn't familiar with the structure, it was my first ever live tournament, so I didn't want to gamble. Good or bad?

Second hand came at the 8th level, there's about 75 players left out of 244. I have about 16k in chips which is close to average. I'm close to chip leader at my table. The blinds are 800-1600 with 200 in ante. I'm middle position, the player the my left has about 3k left, so I figure I need a hand that I'm willing to get to the river with since I can't get him out if he goes all-in. For the last few hands, I've been telling myself that if I get something worth raising, I should probably go all-in.

It's folded to me and I find A5 suited but I couldn't pull the trigger, I raised to 5k. The player to my left went all-in for 3k and the player to his left called my raise. The small stack just said he was bored and wanted to go play the slots, so he could have had anything, but he didn't matter. The other player was moved to our tables a few hands ago, I had no read on him. I think he had close to the same amount of chips as I had. The rest folded.

The flop came K82 or something very similar with 2 clubs (my suit was diamond). I checked, the other player moved all-in and I folded...

So, 3 questions:

1-first hand, do you call the all-in at that point with the AK?

2-second hand, what do you do with the A5 suited, open limp, open raise (if so how much?), move all-in?

3-second hand, what do you do after the flop, check, bet (if so how much?), go all-in?

Thanks in advance...

MHarris · #2 08-05-2005, 10:36 AM

1) With 12k relatively early in this tourney, there's no reason to take this gamble yet. If you'd seen him push frequently, that's a different story.

2. Push. The blinds/antes are eating you up, and you've got enough to survive 4 orbits at this level. Unfortunately, play at these levels tends to be a little slow, so you may get in less than 10 hands at this level. The blinds are also moving to 1k/2k/300 ante soon.

3. There's no good reason for you to bet here or call a bet.

sekrah · #3 08-05-2005, 10:40 AM

Your raise with A-5 was the worst possible decision you could have made.. Honestly..

Either push all in or fold. Raising to 5K is EXTREMELY bad here, just look at what happened.

RodBlizz42 · #4 08-05-2005, 11:15 AM

I like your laydown of Ace-King many view that hand as a powerhouse-but it is what it is two unpaired cards if you flop to it very nice but pre flop no need to gamble there when you have many chips-but on the other hand your move with ace-5 i did not like very much you are out of position so now the small stack who called us not that huge of a threat he could not even call our 5000 so the most you can lose to him is 3000 but with the other player calling and you have to act first on the flop not good unless you flop a monster (not likely)-and with that kind of flop i would check you have to give the cold caller credit for some thing and his something could be our friend ace-king-if you felt you needed to make a play although not optimal a move all in would be a better one-ace smalls are posion if you flopped an ace and not a king then what do you do? cold caller can still have ace-king-position is boss in NLH if same situation but cold caller had to act before you on the flop at least we get the power of acting last-if we feel he is weak a bluff might get him to lay it down but damn now our style of play is exposed be we are all in with short stack

betgo · #5 08-06-2005, 08:30 PM

On the first hand, I call with AKo. It is slightly EV+ with pot odds if villain has a pp. You are a 3-1 favorite against Ax or Kx, which villain may well have. Villain probably has AQ, AK or a pp to push from early position. He could have worse. It is unlikely villain would open push with AA or KK. I think folding AK here is pretty weak/tight. I can't believe everyone says that is correct.

I would fold A5s from middle position with 10xBB. It is an easily dominated hand that you don't have odds to raise with in that position with that stack. Your raise is worse than pushing. You might be able to limp depending on how the table is playing.

Hotrod0823 · #6 08-06-2005, 09:46 PM

I'd call with the AK. If he is all in for 4-5K he is down to just over 10BB and his range is larger than I think you put him on. It may be a flip but I'd take it.

The second hand either push or fold PF. I don't like the smallish raise to 5K.

On the flop I'd check fold.

Marc Desjardins · #7 08-08-2005, 02:34 PM

Thanks for the feedback, you pretty much all confirmed my thoughts on my A5s hand, but the opinions seems conflicted about the AK hand. I viewed calling with this hand as gambling and I figured I was a better poker player than most of them so I wanted to play after the flop.

Then again, with the way I misplayed my A5s and the structure of the blinds, maybe the gamble was the right thing to do at that point...

Looking forward to next time [img]/images/graemlins/smile.gif[/img]

joeboe2001 · #8 08-08-2005, 03:01 PM

There was nothing wrong with folding AK--for those who say you should have called, let them do so with their own money! Villain could have had a pair of 2s as far as you are concerned--this was live, not on the Internet, people are far less likely to go all-in with any two!

I agree with everyone else on the second hand--no need at all for that raise!

Hope you fared well in the end. I have only played in two live tournaments so far, but am looking to get back to it Thanksgiving week. Much more satisfying--in terms of entertainment as well as results-than the Internet.

betgo · #9 08-08-2005, 07:23 PM

[ QUOTE ]
There was nothing wrong with folding AK--for those who say you should have called, let them do so with their own money! Villain could have had a pair of 2s as far as you are concerned--this was live, not on the Internet, people are far less likely to go all-in with any two!

[/ QUOTE ]

I don't get what the problem is if villain has deuces. You are about even condiering pot odds.

It is very unlikely that villain is pushing for 10xBB from early position with AA or KK, so you are atleast even against any hand villain could possibly have.

I think it is unlikely villain has any two. If he knows what he is doing, he has a pp or AQ-AK. If the table is extremely tight, with people folding AK, he might have a suited connector or AJs.

Calling is a slightly favorable gamble, but taking slightly favorable gambles is generally accepted as being the best way to win.