How to handle TPTK

I have been slow played a few times lately and I am wondering how do you guys play TPTK? I have had hands like Ace Ten and get a flop like 7 2 10. I make my bet, and get a call. Turn and river bring nothing substantial to make me worry about a flush or a straight and no card above my ten yet on the river a few times I get raised. Only to be beat by pocket jacks, queens, kings, aces after I make the call. This is mostly in MTTs. Is it dumb to make a call if the raise is substantial? Or should you always make that call?

I am just wondering how some of you play hands like this? I know it depends on position among other things but I would just like a general run down on what you do with hands like this.

tough situation I never get too carried away with it, but you need to commit a certain amount to atleast find out where you are at, a lot of it depends on who you are playing against and the range of hands you think they play

With a hand like that I would want to try to get the showdown as cheaply as possible. I am not sure if I am ahead but I might not be behind. Against a large raise I would fold. There is a saying "Dont go broke with just a pair".

You must base your decisions on many factors. Table dynamics, villain tendencies, stack sizes, etc. That being said...

Generally people don't bluff that often. It is more frequent in MTTs however. So you ask yourself "is it possible villain is raising me here with less than what I hold?".

There is no right answer for your questions. Only good players will know what to do most times. Hopefully, you pay close attention to your opponents' behavior. This can help you to make the right decision when the time comes.

Sometimes people do things like this when they miss draws, or if they think they can run you over. Consider your perceived image as well when considering calling with TPTK.

Hope this helps. I wanted to contribute to the thread.

Obviously it depends on a number of factors since every situation is very different. however generally speaking, I would think that if you're called all the way to the river and then face a large reraise its usually pretty apparent that tptk is no good. This is obviously villain dependant though, you just need to make a judgement call about weather you are up against some sicko and what sort of range they can possibly be bluffing with here, I'd say very little in most cases. One way to avoid this situation is to consider taking a pot control line, this way you avoid having to make a call in a tough spot for a huge pot with just one pair, perhaps c/c the river? What stage of the tournament are you talking about where you play these spots and what sort of stack sizes are you talking about. It must be reasonably deep to get three bets in followed by a reraise on the river without being pot committed unless you are betting too small.

Overall I think my answer is that its going to be a decision based off a bunch of factors but one thing yo consider is taking a pot control route.

Yes this can be tough. As others have said, villain player type and stack sizes are a big "depends" factor in MTTs.

Further considerations are pre-flop and position - sure A10 is often worth a raise, but sometimes it's worth folding particularly in EP - it's one way to avoid TPTK situations where there are plenty of overpairs to your 10, 9 or 8 etc.

Lastly - pot control. If my flop c-bet is called here, I prob want to get to showdown as cheaply as possible, as has also been said. Check turn / river, properly consider folding or calling a large bet - again depending on stack sizes & villain.

I'm shoving in MTTS on the flop with TPTK... Especially if i'm controlling the action. I don't want to go to showdown I want to end the hand right then and there... Ofc I would've preraised substancial and minimized the competition.

You don't want to do this play if a calling station or an extreme tight player is in the hand giving you action... You'll run into JJ-QQ-KK ... dominated at best. You should get a feel for the hand with your pre raises though and pay attention and listen to your instincts especially if you play a lot of poker and pay close attention.

Generally it is a board texture issue which determines how fast I play a TPTK hand. If you cannot make a str8 or flush with the board, I'm more willing to go broke with a single pair, especially since a lot of lower tier players will pay off TPTK with TP and a lesser kicker.

loafes said:

Overall I think my answer is that its going to be a decision based off a bunch of factors but one thing yo consider is taking a pot control route.

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I agree with this, after considering other factors I have to understand that my opponent thinks I connected with the flop somehow if I show interest in it. Paying attention to the other players is vital for this situation because you'll be in it lots of times. After acknowledging that my opponent actually thinks, I would pay attention to his bet sizing and decide whether he's trying to get value with a better hand. check back a couple of streets if your in position to keep the pot small.