Hummer
01-10-2004, 04:33 PM
I was not able to get the hand transcript, so I will describe it verbally. Before I start, here's some background:
NL Hold'em tournament
$30 + 3 buy-in
589 players
I got to the final table with a slightly below than average chip stack. After watching the players for a few dozen hands, I felt it was a fairly conservative table. Very few flops with mostly stolen blinds. The only two showdowns knocked the low stacks out. When it got to 8 players, I was somewhat below average chip stack (2 were lower). I started to pick spots to steal some additional blinds. It made it to a flop a couple times, one where a big bet stole the pot, another where i folded to a bet.
So now I have double my chips (3rd most) and decided to mix it up. I played 78 off to a pre-flop raiser. Got an 8 on flop and turn to eliminate him with two overs. Then played 45s and eliminated the next player with a flopped straight. At that point I was the table captain and bullied the table for the next few hands eventually eliminating a 3rd player.
Player 2 knocked out 3 leading to the heads-up play. I had 450K, he had 150K; blinds 4k-8k. I was still the aggressor, eventually taking 50K from him before suffering a set back. We stood at 435K to 165K. Here's the hand I was hoping for advice:
Dealt two rags to me.
I raised the BB to 3x to 24K.
He simply called.
Flop is a rainbow AQx (x no help to either)
He bets 10K, I raise to 25K to see if he has the ace, he simply calls again.
(now in other hands, he has shown weakness like this and folded on the next round--more than once; and, all but one of my showdowns at the final table were winners)
Turn comes no help to either
He checks, I force him all-in.
He waits 29 of 30 seconds and calls me
I'm drawing dead, he doubles up with a pair of jacks, 5 kicker.
My analysis:
Scenario #1: He got committed to that hand for almost half his chips, that if he folded he would be at a 5 to 1 disadvantage. Figured, what the hell, I'll call with a pair, take second place and $2600. I put him on a pair of J or Q, and figured no one would call an all-in to a pre and post flop raiser, with only a pair and an ace on the board.
Scenario #2: He got a sense of my habits and knew I was bluffing. My only concern with this one is that I had not been explicity (eg - showdown) caught in a bluff at the final table. I had folded to reraises during play (not him) at both pre/post flop times, but very often (3 or 4). And, as I said above, I won all but one showdown at the final table. He did know I would play low hands, but the 3 showdowns with small cards (3 of them), I had
2 pair, a set and a straight. All three losers were playing an over pair.
I'm dying to know if I played this hand correctly, or if I pissed away a golden opportunity given that i had a 3 to 1 chip advantage going into heads up play. Also, I'd like some general advice about how I could have approached this heads-up play better. I know there was another thread on heads-up play, but it was not for the same kind of money.
By the way, after losing that hand I played like crap (no excuses about the cards) and took second. 1st paid $4,400 ($1,800 more than my take).
NL Hold'em tournament
$30 + 3 buy-in
589 players
I got to the final table with a slightly below than average chip stack. After watching the players for a few dozen hands, I felt it was a fairly conservative table. Very few flops with mostly stolen blinds. The only two showdowns knocked the low stacks out. When it got to 8 players, I was somewhat below average chip stack (2 were lower). I started to pick spots to steal some additional blinds. It made it to a flop a couple times, one where a big bet stole the pot, another where i folded to a bet.
So now I have double my chips (3rd most) and decided to mix it up. I played 78 off to a pre-flop raiser. Got an 8 on flop and turn to eliminate him with two overs. Then played 45s and eliminated the next player with a flopped straight. At that point I was the table captain and bullied the table for the next few hands eventually eliminating a 3rd player.
Player 2 knocked out 3 leading to the heads-up play. I had 450K, he had 150K; blinds 4k-8k. I was still the aggressor, eventually taking 50K from him before suffering a set back. We stood at 435K to 165K. Here's the hand I was hoping for advice:
Dealt two rags to me.
I raised the BB to 3x to 24K.
He simply called.
Flop is a rainbow AQx (x no help to either)
He bets 10K, I raise to 25K to see if he has the ace, he simply calls again.
(now in other hands, he has shown weakness like this and folded on the next round--more than once; and, all but one of my showdowns at the final table were winners)
Turn comes no help to either
He checks, I force him all-in.
He waits 29 of 30 seconds and calls me
I'm drawing dead, he doubles up with a pair of jacks, 5 kicker.
My analysis:
Scenario #1: He got committed to that hand for almost half his chips, that if he folded he would be at a 5 to 1 disadvantage. Figured, what the hell, I'll call with a pair, take second place and $2600. I put him on a pair of J or Q, and figured no one would call an all-in to a pre and post flop raiser, with only a pair and an ace on the board.
Scenario #2: He got a sense of my habits and knew I was bluffing. My only concern with this one is that I had not been explicity (eg - showdown) caught in a bluff at the final table. I had folded to reraises during play (not him) at both pre/post flop times, but very often (3 or 4). And, as I said above, I won all but one showdown at the final table. He did know I would play low hands, but the 3 showdowns with small cards (3 of them), I had
2 pair, a set and a straight. All three losers were playing an over pair.
I'm dying to know if I played this hand correctly, or if I pissed away a golden opportunity given that i had a 3 to 1 chip advantage going into heads up play. Also, I'd like some general advice about how I could have approached this heads-up play better. I know there was another thread on heads-up play, but it was not for the same kind of money.
By the way, after losing that hand I played like crap (no excuses about the cards) and took second. 1st paid $4,400 ($1,800 more than my take).