This makes me feel sick!!

I've just spent 3+hrs playing in a $3 MTT, i didn't need to re-buy and i didn't use an add-on and this is what happened to me...



I've got JJ in the SB, 1 guy calls the rest fold and when it gets round to me i raise it 3xBB. at this point no-one wants to finish 11th and miss out so everyone is playing real tight and i figure the BB and the caller are going to fold. The BB does as expected and gets out the way but the caller waits for a bit before going all in. I've got around 18,000 chips, the blinds are at 1500/3000 and are about to go up to 2000/4000. Half my stack is in the pot, the blinds will kill me if i fold so i go all in. the guy has AK and he catches KK on the flop . Beaten by a better hand, still feel sick though.

I'm looking on the bright side, i was only playing in that tourney because i finished 2nd in 2$ STT earlier winning 7.50$ and then winning around 25$ in a cash game.

nothing worse than going out at that point, but what else could you do? You've got jacks, at the most you want one caller, to give you the better odds, problem is whoever calls almost always has a King or an Ace in their hand, and manage to catch one. Lately I've been treating Jacks like a middle pair, ie limping into pot, then seeing what the flop brings, it's been a lot more effective for me. I'm trying to get out of the habit of going all-in PF, but sometimes you have to.

Pocket Jacks are evil. They will help you greatly one minute and take away a good chunk of your stack the next. Play Pocket Jakcs wisely and cautiously.

Ahhhh...the fish hooks! Called that because you can get caught hook, line, and sinker with them SO EASILY. They look good pre-flop, but de-value most of the time mid and post flop!

Jacks just look too good to be only the 5th or 6th best starting hand. Unfortunate that you went out on the bubble, but I would have played it the same way at that point. Myabe they'll hold up for ya next time.

they say that JJ is the hardest hand to play in holdem - they really are a very strong hand preflop, but postflop your actions completely depend on your read of the player (does he have a bigger PP? did he hit his overcard?). They get even worse when you're out of position because you don't get that info that you need. I realize this was a preflop all in hand, but just thought id ramble a bit

Since that hand, that is pretty much how i've played pockets jacks.

Before i made that raise there was a spell of around 15 hands in which the only people who picked up chips were those who raised or the BB when everyone folded around. I had picked up chips by raising in the SB when it folded around, once with nothing. The difference with this hand was the fact that there was 1 caller, at the time i thought this was insignificant but looking back i realise i was way off the mark.

The Caller, like the BB, was not short stacked but if he had got involved in a pot and lost it, he would have been. He had enough chips to hold on untill a cash finish was secure, the fact he was now getting involved should have set the alarm bells ringing. It was pretty much certain that his hand would be stronger than mine.

I dont feel so bad about it now as i feel i've learnt from it, the best option would have been to call and see the flop. I'd then be able to better judge on how to procede from there.

lol, from a person who has a thread stating he will raise with pocket pairs 7 or higher from any position.

You have to raise with JJ just like any other good starting hand to defend against the ominous big blind special. I resist going all-in with them unless I am short stacked. I like to play them but I will let them go easier than with a unfriendly flop.

You made the right poker play there, even if it turned your 3 1/2 hours into a coin flip.

i just finished 3rd in a $1000 freeroll and 3 times in the latter stages i again got pocket jacks when i was the SB. all 3 times i went all in and this is what happened...

1st time - this was the exact same situation as before, 1 caller and folded around to me in the SB. i went all in for around 20,000 chips. this time though it went to plan, the BB and the caller both folded and i picked up a few thousand chips.

2nd time - there were 2 callers this time, now i was chip leader for the entire tourney for this hand and the callers were pretty short stacked. i raised all in to put pressure on them, even if i lost the hand i was still chip leader. the BB folded as did 1 of the callers(he went out in the next hand), the final caller went all in with AQ off. i was worried for about a second, when the flop came out there was another J. the caller caught and A on the river but it wasn't enough.

3rd time - this hand was really satisfying, i wasn't chip leader anymore, in fact i had lost some of my stack but 2 all ins which weren't called in the previous 2 hands to this one saw me get back into a good position. there were a couple of callers before it came my turn to bet, i didn't hesitate, all in. the BB and a caller both folded but the 2nd caller, who was getting sick of me going all in every 2 seconds decided to call. he thought he had me with his AJ and he was certain when he flopped an A. we were about level on chips and i had that sick feeling, it didn't last long as a J appeared on the river. his 2 pair of AJ was no good and i went back into the chip lead.


it was a weird tournament, i have never gone all in so many times in my life. i was winning so many all in showdowns that people were afraid to call . no doubt i'll get pocket jacks tomorrow in another freeroll, go all in and get busted out in the 1st few hands.