$200 NLHE Full Ring: 77 vs AK: Pot Steal against TAG

Hero: $400-450
Villain: $550-650

Villain: AK UTG1
Hero: 77 Hi-Jack

Pre-flop action

Villain opens for 15. MP, Hero, SB or BB call.

Pot $60

Flop K66 rainbow

Villain opens with $40
Hero calls $40

Pot $140

Turn 9

Villain checks
Hero bets $40
Villain calls $40

Pot $220

River 3

Villain checks
Hero bets $110
Villain calls


***Thoughts during and after the hand***

I put this player on AK here. I did see this player make a big call earlier in the game. I thought? given the flop texture, I could out play him.

My thoughts were a float on flop will get him to check the turn. I'll bet out and he'll likely call. Hell check the river, playing cautious of the double 6s, considering the dry flop. I figured he'd check the river and I'd win with a strong bet.

Pot going to Flop: $60
Pot going to Turn: $140

Now taking into account the $140 pot going into the turn, I only bet about 1/3, now seeing I was giving Villain more than 4 to 1 to call.

Pot going into the River: $220

I now bet $110 giving villain 3 to 1 odds to call.

Questions..

What do you all think about the decision on the flop to make a play at this pot? Bad spot/good spot?

What do you think of my betting pattern/sizing? Too big/small/or in good range?

Looking for good critiques here. I just started studying flop textures and different types of playing styles and thought I could make a play against this solid player and take it down.. :Hmmm:

Fold the flop, he lead into like 800 players, he's showing a lot of strength.

Don't try to get 1/2 players (or really anyone for that matter) to fold TPTK. Great way to lose $.

I did figure he was strong. I thought I could outplay him. Cost me $200. I was up about $250 in the first hour playing TAG then donked off half my stack. Not sure why I do this so often. Ego maybe?

What type of game is this? $1/$2? or $2/$5? $1/$2 I assume $15 open UTG projects strength. The question is, "What does Villain think your range is to call?" I'd assume you don't have AA, KK, QQ, or AKs, since you didn't re-raise. Let's assume a generous 10% range 65s+, 55+ A5s+ KJs+ +AJo. The only 6 combos you have are 2-A6s, 2-76s, 2-65s and 1-66. If you have one of the 2-Ks, Villain has to assume his A kicker is good. Villain looks to be an 85%/15% favorite on the flop.

There is absolutely no way you can get a knowledgeable LAG to fold to an imaginary 6. If you show up with BOTH missing kings or one of the 6s I'd consider it a cooler.

Freeroll88 said:

I did figure he was strong. I thought I could outplay him. Cost me $200. I was up about $250 in the first hour playing TAG then donked off half my stack. Not sure why I do this so often. Ego maybe?

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Yeah, you started drinking your own Koolaid.

Poker can be pretty boring 9-handed. You're hanging out, looking for weakness to attack or to be dealt a big fat starting hand.

Don't go on winner's tilt and get ****y. And I try to take a break once every 2-3 hours. Change tables or games, get some food. Does wonders for your head. Live poker is a marathon, not a sprint.

I like the mention of changing up tables. I don't play any other games other than poker and not sure how to spot a "good game". Any advice on what people mean/how they determine it would be cool.

I can become very anti social off the poker table due to some mental issues I'm having trouble working out, combine that with some anxiety and I'm usually stationed to the table. Poker tables are for some reason my safe / anxiety free zone.

I'm going to consider changing up tables if I'm getting bored. I've done that a couple times and thinking back, it did have a positive result. I often play 8+ hour sessions so getting my mind off the game a bit should help me re-focus, think about hands.. rather than only spending the drive home thinking of them..

The thing is that he's at the top of his range and just shouldn't be folding in this spot to very much especially being given a good price to get to the river. You have 44 combos of reasonable hands you can flat out of the blinds that include a 6 and somewhere around 300~400 ish you can flat with reasonable playability/profitability which means you're going to be bluffing/behind around 85~90% here

You said yourself you gave him 4 to 1 then 3 to 1 on a call making his calls more than fair. Your betting probably looked look like K10-KQ or a weaker suited king from his perspective, which are again hands you have flatting out of the blinds, meaning he beats even some of your value range you could be representing

I think the problem lies that for the price you are giving him he will be right about his call down enough % of the time as to make it profitable to do all the time. Understand? Which is something you want to do when you actually have the 6, but something to avoid when you don't

which is also why I think your play would have worked on a more thoughtful player.

In the future if you are going to try and out play him consider calling the flop and betting much bigger on the turn and river as to not make his call down profitable, apply pressure to his single pair hands, and commit to representing the hand. These big bets on later streets after calling the flop look uber strong as well, not to mention showing the bluff can get you equally paid off in the future when you actually have a strong hand

Hope this was helpful hit me back with your thoughts

Well, if you put him on AK why bother about the hand at all, it's a bad spot.
If you go for bluff, bet size is too small
And you have a good note there, it's our ego that put us down so often even when we know sometimes deep inside it's time to fold...You had a good read there,why you got involved in first place?

c9h13no3 said:

Fold the flop, he lead into like 800 players, he's showing a lot of strength.

Don't try to get 1/2 players (or really anyone for that matter) to fold TPTK. Great way to lose $.

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Umm, this.

I think if you want to turn your 77 into a bluff, a small flop checkraise would have sold the story to him. Play it as you would 6/7 suited. Min checkraise the flop for value while keeping him in, then trap. check the turn trying to get him to bet into you. then bomb the river if he checks again.

mikeisthebestever said:

I think if you want to turn your 77 into a bluff, a small flop checkraise would have sold the story to him. Play it as you would 6/7 suited. Min checkraise the flop for value while keeping him in, then trap. check the turn trying to get him to bet into you. then bomb the river if he checks again.

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We can't check raise, we are in position.

Even if he tries to sell this as 6x..... No live fish is EVER folding TP. This is how you make money at live poker, by betting hard with value hands. People don't fold. That's why the game is so easy to beat, at the $1/$2 level anyways. Everyone sucks and they call too much.


If you're going to bluff, have more equity than 2 outs. The entire hand (after the flop) is a punt. Just lighting money on fire.


Flop call is questionable. Turn bet is way too small, and we probably should just check back turn anyways. We could fold out hands like QQ or less, maybe, but it's not worth it IMO to even try. We should just check back river as played.


How hand should go.....


We call pre. We fold flop. Next hand. EZ game. This guy isn't betting $40 into $60 with air.


$1/$2 players don't bluff that often. If V cbet bluffs here, it would be some fishy size like $15-$25 probably. Quite honestly, many live players just give up post if they miss. Him betting $40 in my experience tells us he has a king. He is checking turn because he is scared of 6x, but that doesn't mean he will fold to a bet, and $40 certainly isn't going to work.


Hero got owned in this hand. V got three streets of value from a hand he shouldn't have got any value from.