Pocket Kings with action

Genso Hikki

Genso Hikki

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From a live cash game I played last night. Although I took notes immediately after the hand was over the stack sizes are approximate.

I am the big blind.

Blinds are $.50/$1.00

Player in early position (approximate stack $100) raises to $4.00
Everyone folds, except the small blind (approximate stack $40), he calls.
I am dealt pocket Kings and raise to $12 (my approximate stack size is $80)
Original raiser calls, small blind folds.
Pot is $28.00

Flop: Jd, 7c, 4s

Hero bets $28.00
Villain calls

Pot is $84.00

Turn: 6c

Hero checks
Villain checks

River: 9h

Hero goes all-in
Villain calls

Villain turns over pocket 4s, showing a set and taking down the pot.

The reason I am posting this is because I am wondering if it was really necessary for me to go broke in this hand. I think my pre-flop raise was okay (I’ve been trying to take Tenbob’s advice about min-raising to heart). I also think the pot sized bet was okay. I think where the hand went wrong for me was when the villain checked the turn. It turned out to be a brilliant play on his part, because for some reason I totally dismissed the possibility of a set after that check. I figured him to be on two big cards, like A/K or possibly A/Q after that check. He set me up wonderfully I guess. I've only played with this guy a couple of times and he's very loose/aggressive.

After the hand was over, there was a lot of discussion at the table about the way that hand played out. Some of the players thought the all-in shove was the right thing to do. Most of them felt I should have checked there. One player pointed out I should have considered the possibility the villain had pocket jacks because of the pre-flop action. I also took a lot of flack from one particular player for the size of my bets, his words being "there's never any reason to have a pot this big in a .50/1.00 game."

What do you guys think? Were my bets too big? Should I have checked the river?

I know I have some holes in my game and I'm posting this hand hoping I can get some advice to help me plug a few of them.
 
tosborn

tosborn

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The flop bet is a little on the large side, because there isn't really much to worry about. A 1/2 to 3/4 size bet would have probably been adequate.

The thing I don't understand is how neither of you pushed the turn. I probably push this turn about 80% of the time given your stack size.
 
Genso Hikki

Genso Hikki

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The thing I don't understand is how neither of you pushed the turn. I probably push this turn about 80% of the time given your stack size.

Actually, I didn't push the turn because after he called the pot-sized bet on the flop, alarm bells started sounding in my head. At that moment, I really considered he'd managed to flop a set. Of course, I now understand that he checked there to sucker me in - and it worked.
 
tenbob

tenbob

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I like the nice 3 bet pre flop. Considering the amount you got in pre-flop villian made a mistake calling pre-flop, youve denied him correct implied odds to set mine (just about), well played and unlucky. Just out of curiousity what would you have done if villian checked the river.
 
Genso Hikki

Genso Hikki

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I like the nice pre-flop bet.

That made my day!

Well, I had to act first, so I guess if I'd checked and he'd checked I would have just been happy not to have lost more money.
 
NineLions

NineLions

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Yep, nice preflop raise.

I'm probably thinking like Tos; a little less on the flop, and then bet again on the turn to see if he's got something or not. Still probably end up losing my stack.

I don't know that you were unlucky; I think it's more a matter of he got lucky given his call of your preflop raise.
 
gamedemon

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I don't think you did anything really wrong here at all. You just ran into an unlucky flop.

I agree with other comments on the pot size bet after the flop. I probably make a $20 bet here; if $20 doesn't make him fold, $28 won't either.

You might have put him on A J, but once he calls the post-flop pot sized bet, alarm bells should go off and then it is a decision as to whether you want to risk your stack.
 
J

jeffred1111

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Is it just me or I raise more than this preflop ? Really, there is a raiser thnn a caller, 12$ doesn't seem like much to me and an overcard doesn't flop a lot, and if we get called, we can safely fold to the A if facing agression. I raise 16 or even 20 even if it semi-commits me to the hand and I push once I get a call on the flop if the board isn't scary (coordinated, A, etc.).

We are 80bb deep and raising more would've laid villain's REALLY wrong odds to set mine. Plus, after one caller, we are never shutting down both guys and still getting action: with KK, I feel we need to get a smuch in there as possible preflop.
 
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