NLHE 2 AA hands

[AJo Go All In]

5-handed NLHE, .50/1 blinds. i'm currently shortstacked at about 150 and the player involved has me covered at about 400.

i had been raising pretty often preflop, and pick up red aces UTG. i raise to $4, one caller, and then the BB makes it $20 to go. earlier in the night he did this and then folded when i came over the top of him with KK (i suspect he had something like AQ), but we both know that i remember that. immediately i put him on AKo, AKs, KK, QQ, JJ, or maybe TT. i smooth-call the extra $16 and hope to trap him.

flop comes down Q J 9 with two clubs. he bets $20 and i call.
turn is a blank, he bets $20 and i call.
river is the Jc, he checks, i bet $50, he calls.

later i pick up AA again UTG and raise to $4, only the button calls.
flop is JJ9, i bet $10, he calls.
turn is a blank, i check, he bets $10, i call.
river is a blank, i bet $10, he makes it $30, i muck.

results later, did i play these too passively? comments?

[Guy McSucker]

On the first hand, what would you have done if he bet the pot on fourth street, or on the river? I think you are setting yourself up to get bluffed out if scarecards fall. On the other hand, if you have a good read on him and can get these decisions right, then you're playing fine: getting a lot of money out of a hand which has very few outs against you.

For the second hand, I don't understand your thinking. You bet the flop, which is a good plan since it's a scary looking flop but one which likely leaves you with the best hand. What do you put him on when he calls? You then check-call, and finally bet out on the river, and fold to a raise... why? His $10 bet on fourth street looks like a milk bet, but you call it so presumably you think you're in front. His raise on the river seems to suggest you're not in front, but on the other hand, you have done nothing to indicate that you have a big pair here, so he might well think he's ahead with any pair, even AK.

Guy.

[AJo Go All In]

in the second hand, the player was fairly straightforward. it was pretty clear he had either a J or a 9. i bet the river because against this player if he raises me i know i'm beat, but he will call me down with a 9 (or even something like pocket 7s) after i show weakness by checking the turn. my plan was to get a bet in on every street in case he has a 9, but lose the minimum if he has a jack.

"His raise on the river seems to suggest you're not in front, but on the other hand, you have done nothing to indicate that you have a big pair here, so he might well think he's ahead with any pair, even AK."

why would he raise the river without a J? i agree that he could think he's ahead with any pair, but in that case, he'll call, and that's why i bet out. assuming he has a pair, when he raises the river there are no worse hands i can call with. so it only makes sense for him to call, right? not raise. the situation is actually the opposite as you say; the only reason he would raise on the river without a J is because i have indicated that i have a big pair, not that i haven't (if he thought i could lay it down).

[Guy McSucker]

I'll buy that as reasoning. Thanks for filling me in!

I still think that even a straightforward player is going to get suspicious of a check-call on 4th street followed by a tiny bet on the river. That's exactly the way many players on-line play busted draws, so you might get raised by no hand. But if he's a move-free player, as you say, you're not in that kind of danger.

Guy.

[limon]

well...you could have played both hands better heres how:

#1-re-raise pre flop. you said you made him lay down earlier and he remembers it. you gotta use psychology ESPECIALLY IN HOME GAMES. i re raise the same way i did when he folded the first time. now he is odds on to get suspiciuos and call you with a dominated hand. if hes the froggy sort he will re-raise and now you can really jack it up.

#2- you are a huge fav or huge dog on the flop with no fear of overcards. just check and call. youll bleed him with his [censored] hands and limit your losses when he has the jack.

btw, do you live in Los Angeles. I know of a good 1-2 game if you want to trade invites.

[JMarks]

on the first hand I think you should move in again. If he folds again fine, but he may remember the hand earlier as you said and think you are trying to bully him.

On the second hand I think there are several ways to play it, and it depends on the opponent. Vs most opponents I would just bet the turn and be willing to release it if i was raised, but if your opponent is overagressive then check calling him twice may be correct.

[Wardfish]

I think the key considerations here are playing styles and stack sizes.

On hand #1 - I would reraise to maybe $65-75 and hope he thinks I am "pushing him off the hand again". Because he's got you outchipped he may decide to try and push you off the hand - is that his style? If he calls you are pretty much committed to going all-in on the flop unless it comes down real bad and / or you have a read on him.

On hand #2 - I would respect his position: you are going after a $9.50 pot. On this flop its a lot easier for him to win your stack than vice versa. Position is king. You need a good flop here IMO. Play a small pot, its difficult to win a big one here.

[matt_d]

I agree with Limon. On the first hand, you are being given big action with AA preflop, and you have position. His reraise indicates a good hand, so jam him back and hope for KK or QQ - people find it hard to lay these down, and after your earlier move with KK, you have a good chance of getting called.

As for after the flop - because he reraised preflop, his flop bet doesn't necessarily mean he has anything. I would therefore raise his flop bet to see where he's at. You most likely have the strongest hand, so get the money in and hope he calls with top pair or KK. You haven't indicated AA, so he may be betting top pair or KK and assuming he is best. It doesn't make sense to "trap" with AA, then not exploit that trap on the flop!

With the JJ9 hand, you don't really fear free cards, so I would advocate a check and call on the flop, rather than betting out. You will achieve exactly the same result as betting and being called, with the possibility of more winnings if he bluffs or bets an inferior hand (e.g. 88) that he wouldn't have called with. There is also a case for calling the turn if he doesn't bet too big.