Monday, March 22, 2010

Try Try Again

I had a couple of live hands today that Yoda might deem worthy of posting, so we'll try one more time to satisfy his voracious appetite for soul crushing destruction. Hand 1, which is painfully standard to me but got me several eyebrow raises from around the table.

It folds to me on the button and I open with AK of spades. This is a great situation because your range is just SO WIDE that even good hand readers have a real hard time putting you on really anything. The aggressive small blind three bets, and I just call, basically planning to show down almost no matter what. Yes strictly speaking I could cap for value, but I don't really see the point. He's gonna lead the flop no matter what if I call, and check almost no matter what if I cap. By not capping and raising the flop I'll be in the same spot as if he'd checked after my cap, but with my range still a fair bit wider. Anyway....the flop is a gorgeous one:

943r

He bets and I just call. Again, I probably have the best hand, but there's no point to raising, sorta for the same reason I made about not capping the flop and also because at this point I'd like him to barrel off with jack high. The turn is another gem:

943-3

That puts up a flush draw. He bets again, and I call once more. The river:

943-3-8r

And he says "alright" and checks. I bet basically in rhythm and he calls instantly. I turn over my hand and a few players at the other end of the table crane their necks to confirm that I don't have a pair. My opponent says "that's good" and mucks his hand quickly, seemingly trying to get the ordeal over with as few people noticing what just happened as possible. I thought this hand was pretty standard, but I did feel good after it. On to hand 2:

It's getting towards evening and I've been playing for about 5.5 hours. I just checked my phone and traffic seems to be good for once, and I'd like to get home early and finish Peanut Collector 7, hit the gym, and put in a couple hundred hands online. So while I'm contemplating my exit strategy "guy with surgical mask" opens in early position and I 3 bet him with KK. As an aside, guy with surgical mask openly told us that he's under doctor's orders to wear the thing if he wants to play poker with us filthy degenerates. He does look awfully old and feeble, so I can't really argue with the medical community on this one, and besides, I'm all for anything and everything that prevents the spread of germs in casinos. Back to the hand I have the kings and everyone else folds and the flop again rains down beautifully:

T84ss

And he donks. I raise. He calls.

5c

And he donks. I raise. He calls.

Qd

Ouch. That's pretty terrible, because IMR what's this guy got here? Jacks or Queens, right? He doesn't have aces unless well I don't know that'd be super weird. TT we'd have heard more from on the turn, so really only jacks, queens, and I suppose like maybe AT make any sense. Blessedly he just check/calls and fast rolls his hand. I am distraught, as a fast roll like that from a guy like this is often some preposterous monster (and admittedly he did keep trying to put in action) that is resigned to having been coolered. But no, upon inspection just the pair of jacks I was expecting to see. I drag the pot, rack up my chips, and head home on google maps approved green highways.

1 comment:

Yodaman said...

Haha nice to steer this blog away from the doom and gloom of jesse's bankroll that seems to have been the most recent theme of your last few posts (and rightfully so, but cmon half glass full!)

I like hand 1. I don't think I get a chance to v-bet AK UI and get called very often if at all in live play. NH.