Calling a bluff on the river

[joeg]

Hi everyone, In a short handed pot limit game of dealers choice last night i got

[A[img]/images/graemlins/heart.gif[/img]3[img]/images/graemlins/heart.gif[/img]]A[img]/images/graemlins/club.gif[/img]

I figure this is a reasonable hand so I raise, I get one caller, who is a calling station that I have a good read on, I bet the pot on fourth and 5 street and about 70% of the pot on 6th street, on the river I check and he bets the pot, I know ordinarily this is an easy fold. But I know this player well and I know this bet is a bluff, but do I have enough of a hand to call this bluff with, I folded but I really think I should have called as I think he would have milk-bet anything bigger than 2 pair, and checked 2-pair in the hopes it was good, should I have called?

[Al Mirpuri]

The psychology of your post is interesting. If what you say is correct then...

you know you should have called.

Beat yourself up as much as you want but you'll never get those chips back...

[Al_Capone_Junior]

If you're sure it was a bluff, what hands could he possibly bluff with that AA does not beat?

al

[patrick dicaprio]

this seems like an easy situation as long as it is not a tournament type structure where you cant get more money on the table. If, as you say, you know the bet is a bluff, well then the play is obvious and you dont need us to tell you what to do.

Pat

[joeg]

he could have been bluffing with a small 2 pair, he's the kind of player who if he thinks he is beat he will try to steal it, I still think I should have called though, I just got a bit scared as a pot sized bet on the river after its been bet on every street is a big bet and quite scary, and I know I dont know my arse from my elbow in stud so I tend towards caution in general.

Thanks for your replies and confirming what I thought, I allways find easier to trust my instincts when they say I'm beat than when they say call, he's bluffing, I guess I'm a coward [img]/images/graemlins/frown.gif[/img]

[Al Mirpuri]

If he would bluff with two pair then you should have raised him the pot and he would have thrown his hand away...

The reason you did not raise him the pot was that you were playing too big for your bankroll. Not having enough money means you have to make suboptimal plays...

[joeg]

there wasnt enough money left for a raise big enough to knock him off any kind of hand, also the game is well within my bankroll, it was actually quite a lot less than what I usually play. the reason for the uncertainty is that this dealers choice game is the only time I play stud and even then it only seems to get dealt about 5% of hands, so I'm not as confident as I would be in other forms of poker. the purpose of the original post was honestly to ask if a pair of aces is enough to call a bluff with in 7 stud, since id heard 2 pair was the average finnishing hand.

[Al Mirpuri]

A pair of Aces is a very interesting hand on the end.

Sometimes a player can bet it for value if he thinks his opponent will call with a smaller pair. Sometimes a player should check and call especially against a bluffer. Against a player who would never bluff or value bet less than two pair then you should check and fold. If it is checked down on the end and it is heads up then it will stand up often enough.

[Al_Capone_Junior]

A pair of aces is ALWAYS enough to call a bluff in stud. However, most of us aren't playing pot limit stud, and faced with calling a pot sized raise on the river. In that case, it's up to your judgement.

al

[studplaya]

Exactly I totally agree with Al's assessment about pot limit vs. fixed limit stud; beyond that it comes down to feel in terms of how well you know your opponent(no more valuable info than that) and what kind of odds you are getting from the pot; good bluffing and snapping off bluffs being a solid and necessary part of game theory make it crucial that you determine if that say one time you call it and are correct more than pays for the times in which your call with a naked big pair may be incorrect...good luck in your further assessments..because in a fixed limit you stand to lose at least a bet and maybe even a decent sized pot where as in PL or NL you could be go home crying broke...

studplaya