How good is TT?

[Buz]

So I walk into this home NL cash game and am player six. It hasn't been playing long and the chip stacks are about even. All I really know is that last time I played with these folks, they didnt have any problem going all-in if they could beat top pair and the button will see a flop with any two cards if the pot is not raised. Blinds are $.25 and $.50 with a max buy-in of $40. After we play several small pots I am UTG+1 looking at TT. UTG raises to $2.
It's probably either a small favorite or a big underdog plus the rest of the table has yet to act.

[img]/images/graemlins/confused.gif[/img] In this situation, is TT a hand with positive expectation? I think you could make an argument for raising, folding or calling. Which is optimal?

[yvesaint]

call

[NickPoker]

Folding is horrible. Whether to call or raise is player dependent. If the original raiser is loose, raise, if he is tight just call. Without a read I would call, but I am sure you can make a good case for a raise as well. .

[elus2]

i'd fold if you think someone is likely to raise it after you but a call would be standard here. play it for set value in a multiway pot or act accordingly in a heads-up situation.

[Buz]

[ QUOTE ]
Folding is horrible.

[/ QUOTE ] Why?
[ QUOTE ]
Without a read I would call

[/ QUOTE ] Why?

I'm really more interested in the thinking process.

What's your strategy to, at this somewhat loosey table, win enough big pots to make up for all the times that the flop has a big card or two and he puts in a pot sized bet? Should we be worried at all about the four other players yet to act?

[Buz]

[ QUOTE ]
act accordingly in a heads-up situation.

[/ QUOTE ]
I find the middle pairs (99, TT, JJ) the most difficult to "Act accordingly" heads up. Anybody can play the sets but more often than not, the flop contains an overcard or two. Multiway, you can toss 'em but heads up is a different story. How to handle it?

[orange]

Folding here is not good. Unlike limit hold'em, NL differs in the hands of TPTK(top-pair top kicker) and PPs(pocket pairs). In NL, TPTK wins small pots and loses big ones, while PPs have the potential to win an entire stack.

$2 is a rather cheap way to see a flop- although you are 8-1 to hit a set on the flop, we can be a bit more lenient in these odds if we know the potential of your PP.

You say your game will go all-in with TPTK. So when your 10 flops, you can crush them and take their stack.

[NickPoker]

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
Folding is horrible.

[/ QUOTE ] Why?
[ QUOTE ]
Without a read I would call

[/ QUOTE ] Why?

I'm really more interested in the thinking process.

What's your strategy to, at this somewhat loosey table, win enough big pots to make up for all the times that the flop has a big card or two and he puts in a pot sized bet? Should we be worried at all about the four other players yet to act?

[/ QUOTE ]

Why not to fold- At the very least play for set value, folding middle PP to standard raise is not sound NL strategy.

Without a read is same reasoning as above, I am at least playing for set value. I would choose to call vs raise because it is little safer and your position. Some may choose to raise because 10/10 is beating a good percentage of random hands people open raise with, so against an unknown it may be right to raise. Another reason to raise is that you can take the lead in hand or get out of the way if someone comes back over the top (signaling they have AA or KK). By having the lead you may be able to out play JJ or QQ if undercards hit the flop. With that being said, I just call and play for set value (or if low cards hit and the original raiser shows weakness) because your position is mediocre.

[subzero]

Even if I peeked at his cards and saw AA, I'm calling here. You're only calling 5% of your stack and you know he'll pay you off if you hit your set (i.e. 5/10 rule, implied odds). I'm not folding unless I'm sure someone will re-raise behind me. I don't like raising here since I want to see the flop cheaply. If I don't hit my set, I can easily fold on the flop without losing much money. Besides, he's raising UTG. That usually means a strong hand. If I raise and he pushes, I'm in a bad spot with my tens.

[squallA964]

You definately gotta call and see the flop here. You're getting tons of implied odds with this hand if you hit it. If he's raised with AK or AQ, or an even an overpair, but if you hit your set, you can take his whole stack, based on the limited information you gave. But if it's 6-handed, are we certain he has an overpair? Unless you know he's a tight player that's only raising UTG with a premium hand, I don't think you can automatically put him on a hand better than 10-10. Even 10 handed, I've sat at lots of tables with people who raise with worse than 10-10.

On the flop, he'll be first to act and he'll probably lead out regardless of what the flop is. If the flop is overcards and he makes a decent bet, just give him credit and fold, no shame there. If it's undercards and he bets more than half the pot, then you can fold without shame. If he bets less than half, I'd raise to find out where I am immediately, cause AK or AQ probably folds here. If he doesn't fold, whether he just calls or reraises you right away, you're probably beat.