$4.40 NLHE MTT Bounty: AT versus 2 limpers and a big raise on river

pokerstars, $3.92 + $0.48 - Hold'em No Limit - 125/250 (38 ante) - 8 players
Replay this hand on Upswing Poker

Raptor2922 (UTG): 8,939 (36 bb)
ishibabii (UTG+1): 4,566 (18 bb)
songe (MP): 17,587 (70 bb)
kissadrian (MP+1): 2,861 (11 bb)
bad.fish866 (CO): 16,120 (64 bb)
assis_poker (BU): 19,681 (79 bb)
SvetV (SB): 26,070 (104 bb)
username812 (BB): 10,371 (41 bb)

Pre-Flop: (679) Hero (bad.fish866) is CO with A♣ T♥
1 fold, ishibabii (UTG+1) calls 250, songe (MP) calls 250, 1 fold, bad.fish866 (CO) raises to 500, 3 players fold, ishibabii (UTG+1) calls 250, songe (MP) calls 250

Flop: (2,179) 2♦ A♠ 7♠ (3 players)
ishibabii (UTG+1) checks, songe (MP) bets 250, bad.fish866 (CO) raises to 1,000, ishibabii (UTG+1) folds, songe (MP) calls 750

Turn: (4,179) 6♦ (2 players)
songe (MP) bets 500, bad.fish866 (CO) raises to 3,090, songe (MP) calls 2,590

River: (10,359) 2♥ (2 players)
songe (MP) bets 12,959 (all-in), bad.fish866 (CO) folds

Total pot: 10,359
songe (MP) wins 10,359



It looked pretty bluffy, but I can not imagine why anyone would try it in this situation. The table was very calm. Was this a bluff or not?

I have seen this like a million times. Villain limps or calls OOP, min bets flop, calls a raise. Then min bets turn, calls a raise, and then shoves the river.
I have seen people to this with bluffs (mostly missed draws) as much as with nut hands.
You have a good bluff catcher with A but it is very tough to determine whether to call here or not.
Personally, I like to raise flop like you did, but then just call the turn. I believe it gives me a bit of protection as I am not inflating the pot, therefore it would be an easier fold on the river in case V shoves or an easier call in case V bets small like he did on the flop and turn.

The question is: What is the ATo raise plan? Who is Songe?

A quick search below, it seems to be a player like you, without bank management, but with more than 35K of games.
http://www.playerscope.com/songe/pokerstars

With the amount of chips involved, it is difficult for this act to be winning on this board.

Viera56 said:

It looked pretty bluffy, but I can not imagine why anyone would try it in this situation. The table was very calm. Was this a bluff or not?

Click to expand...

Hero is asking wrong question. Hero should ask what should do on preflop. Hero should give more information about villains.

You should have raised to about 750 or 800 preflop imo, it'll protect you from the marginal EP hands that could be calling preflop. Also I'd just call the donk bets, if he has something you're just giving free money to villain by reraising because he's probably not folding to a reraise in that position.

This looks like a set to be honest, you should have raised to around 800 to avoid 2 others calling and to give worse odds of those earlier positions hitting their set. My guess is he had either pocket 2s 6s or 7s that decided to float, all of which would probably play exactly the same way. Those small bets on the flop/turn look like they are enticing a raise which you happily obliged. A2/6/7 also seem like a possibility but it makes more sense to have a set play this way.

Preflop you should have raised to 800-850. Raising to 500 doesn't make any sense, because he will call with everything.

Flop, you should have raised to 1300. When you raise to 1000 villain doesn't fold his flush draws and will just happily call.

Turn, is fine.

On the river, it's tough, folding is not a mistake, but there are a lot of missed draws. In your shoes I would fold Aces with a spade, because we block flush draw, and I would call with Ax without a spade. So in this particular situation it is a call.

Yeap previous posters are right about the preflop sizing. To be honest AT is not a good hand to 3bet but ok I won't insist about my opinion because I really don't know the dynamics of the previous plays.

No need to keep raising his bets , by doing this he is trying to induce further bets by you which he succeeded as it seems. You have some showdown value with the A and the mediocre kicker so keep the pot small because you are in position.

You could made this raises with a flush draw or a hidden set but here is pointless and you inflate the pot with no reason! I would fold the river too.

ok here's where I'm at with this hand in question, sorry in advance for being blunt!

If you want to raise this hand when there are limpers in the pot, you cannot just click the minimum raise button, it's silly, stupid and will most definitely cost you a lot of money in the long run whilst you continue to do it!!!

in this spot, if you really wish to raise in this spot, you really have to put your opponents marginal holdings in a really tough spot out of position to you by making it like 1500 pre flop, this hand will have played out much more differently by doing so, you probably would have ended up with the blinds + antes + those 2 limps for free preflop.

with that being said, if your opponent had then done that stupid min bet post flop, just jam it in and make them pay to fish!!!

For me this hand is a fold or limp along (with information provided)since hero range going strongly into villains range and most of the time happens to be weaker made hand vs 2 EP range. Hero only hope is to flop strong hand, which means hero have to hit straight or straight draw on flop and willing to continue with it.

And because of it (in general) i will limp/x along preflop IP or just muck the hand right now. I think any raise preflop is overplay vs villains range. Well hero has position but has to give some credit for EP openers range, think about it which cards they most often willing to limp on? How was the dynamics overall at that point (we do not have that information). No need to inflate the pot. imo.

But as played hero put himself into spot where hero is most likely strong underdog or drawing dead. imo