Flopping The Nuts

So, I've got a good size stack (10 of 50) midway through a 90 player SnG on FTP. I'm in the SB when they give me 5s6s. One early position limper and the guy on the button calls. With two limpers, I decide to call & see the cheap flop. To my joyous suprise, 4d, 7c, 8s hits the board. I don't want to scare off the action, so I bet half the pot. BB and early limp fold, but button calls. OK, the hook is set, now to reel him in. Turn brings 8h. I'm a little concerned about the board pairing and the flush beigh out there, so I raise the pot this time. I don't want him to chase and hit the boat, but kinda hope he has the set of 8's and I get paid. Well he called. He must have that set or two pair. When the flop brings the 8c, I figure the odds that he is really holding that other 8 is low. His stack was smaller than mine and he was just about pot committed, so when I raised 1/2 the pot, he pushed back all in & I had to call. He sure as hell was playing 8d10c in position! He hit top pair and I guess I priced him in by only betting half the pot on the flop.

My question is how should I have played that? With top pair then turning to trips, no way I could have gotten him off the hand after the turn. Had I gone all in or drastically overbet the pot postflop from the SB, I may have gotten no action. I know the 400 chips would have been better than losing half my stack, but what would be the correct play after flopping the nuts when first to act?

All I can say is, dont be scared to bid when you have the nuts. If you start playing "tricky" you usally end up winning smaller than you want.

huh? let me get this right so the board reads

478 8 8 ???

if the board read like that, then betting out and calling all in isnt too good, unlikely that he has the 8, but any pair has you crushed..

On the river you could shove, forcing the villain to make a difficult decision holding A7, A4 or small pair or fold with a busted draw; or check fold to any reasonably sized bet. It very much depends on how you rate their play, eg calling station, TAG etc.

The turn bet is fine - it gets rid of a lot of drawing hands and you get paid by hands such as the one they've got.

The flop I would consider a check-raise - it'll get chips from steals with overcards, and A7, 9T, 8T etc etc. and if you get a call you are ahead and they have made a mistake. The real benefit of the C-R is that it'll do wonders for your image; at this stage in a tourney stealing is an essential part of the game and if you draw a line in the sand that says you will not be stolen from and you are not afraid to get your chips in, then you can exert more influence on the table.

The problem you've got with this type of hand is that with 4 limpers seeing a low flop there is a fair chance that one or two have a piece of it or a draw that will keep them in if they like the price. Having hit the nuts on the flop I am more inclined to take the pot there and then than run the risk of the kind of thing that happened to you. You only have the flop nuts - any 4,5,6,7,8,9,T or J and you haven't the nuts anymore and a show of strength from the villain would make things very difficult for you.

Board a rainbow, therefore on flop it would dump only on all-in because thought that you wish it to squeeze out.... And on a turn he would answer on all-in without reflecting and I think would go on risk. Therefore you did all correctly even if you would go all-in on flop sometimes there will be a fish which will answer with the senior pair)))))
Therefore I almost always do bet 1 pot in such situation to clean towards answering machines and not to get on casual Nuts a combination... And if to you will answer, almost always will go up to the end and will give you all stack))))
Don,t worry, So happens - for it we and we love poker

Thanks for all of the advice. I know once the third * fell, I could be beaten by several hands, but my goal would be to get him to fold before getting to that. I dont know that it would have been possibe without anALL IT on the flop. Not a play I like to make. Thanks again everyone!

i think that after the turn ur odds have decreased and after the river, as the villian went allin, its obvious he hit a boat. I think u should have folded there instead of calling and losing the chips...
And right, u should have atleast bet the pot(not half pot} post flop....

At the point you are faced with the allin bet, lets face it your beat and both of you know it. The question is..... why call?

My question is how should I have played that? With top pair then turning to trips, no way I could have gotten him off the hand after the turn. Had I gone all in or drastically overbet the pot postflop from the SB, I may have gotten no action. I know the 400 chips would have been better than losing half my stack, but what would be the correct play after flopping the nuts when first to act?

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I'm liking the flop bet. 1/2 pot is on the lower side, but I understand your concern to not scare them away. I think it was fine. The turn was actually pretty good for you, since it was unlikely he had a full house and as you said he probably won't fold. By the river you're toast though, you can only beat a bluff. There's virtually no way you can win by calling a river bet.

He doesn't need an 8 to beat you. Any 4 or 7 would do it, you could only beat a bluff.

I thnk you have to make your move on the turn and force the villain to fold at that point. In any case, once the river comes the 8 you have to admit that pot is not going to be yours

You played it right all the way even the river call was correct IMO. If you play it that way 100 times you gonna make alot of chips the other 99 times.

It depends on the read I have on the other players.... because there's no flush draw present on the flop, I'm most likely going to check-raise here on the flop instead of leading out.
I probably grudgingly c/f the river. What hand can I beat??

If villain had a bigger stack, I might lead out with a defensive bet on the river and when raised I'm folding.

I think you should have checked the river. You have a straight, and you are beat by any pocket pair, and any card that hit on the flop. Assuming the player isn't ridiculous, he probably had one of those hands to call you all the way, so you have to figure you're behind.

Even if you're wrong, you're not likely to get called on a value bet on the river if you're beat. Even if he bet all-in, or even just for value, I would probably fold your hand. This is very similar to a hand on "High Stakes Poker" where Negreaneu (sp?) flopped the nut straight on a rainbow board against the blonde guy with the square jaw who flopped bottom set with 8s. I believe it was the turn card that came another 8, and then the blonde guy with the square jaw put up a big raise on the river. Negreaneu (sp again) thought about it for a while, but ultimately decided he had to pay the guy off. They were talkin' about how Daniel should fold because there's not a lot of hands he could beat here, but then again they could see the whole cards.

If the guy had A8 and put Danny on top 2 or top pair, he might make that same raise.

Granted that was a cash game. In a tournament I feel betting the river on this hand was an error. And calling a value-sized bet would also be an error, however very likely as well.