This is certainly the type of situation that I am struggling with right now. It is also the reason I am not ready for ring games yet. I am doing much better with tournaments at the moment. So, I am going to state some observations. I am no where near your level of play, so I would love to hear your thoughts on how to combine these ideas into a better game plan.
So first off, I have read that $1/$2 live plays like micro stakes online. Because of the tendency of many microstakes players to get their entire stack in with any connection to the board, it is my understanding that using pot control techniques with top pair top kicker is not as profitable as getting the stack in when it comes to micro stakes. However, if you are playing with better caliber players that are capable of making harder folds, that completely changes EV. Top pair top kicker suddenly finds itself only up against better hands. The issue I am having is not having enough information on the players to identify the better caliber players interspersed with the average microstakes player. I am hoping that the winnings will balance the losses until I am better able to identify the caliber of players, but I do not have enough data yet.
So, as to the specifics of this hand. EP opens with $15. At those stakes, that is a 7.5 bb open from a tight player correct? I watched you do some amazing folds on that televised game. I am not sure what kind of other reads you had on this table. But I have to question how much the combination of trying to win back your losses, only 30 minutes left to play, and the stress from being down for a long time, had to do with the decision making. When both players call that 3bet, I am sure some alarms went off for you. I am not trying to say you did anything wrong here. I really would have expected that second caller to fold to your 3bet. So just out of curiosity, what range did you put each of them on? That was a fairly wet flop. I am guessing that you are hoping EP has tens, Jack's, or queens. But what in the world did the next guy have? Pocket nines? Broadway connected suited? That last one seems like a stretch. I am guessing that you felt hitting the ace on the flop would give you top hand. So firing a continuation bet is understandable. But having a three-way pot at this point certainly doesn't help your odds. I would hope the flush draw isn't a big factor here. So I really don't think making them pay for a draw is necessary here. If you are not already beaten, probably not going to lose on the river. So I think what your friend was trying to say is you have very little fold equity here with your continuation bet. Real question is would you fold on the turn after checking if one of them goes all in. If the answer is no, doesn't really matter.
in SB
