Generic questions AK AQ

[mrsnake3695]

OK, this isn't a specific hand but I would like to get everyones opinion on how to play these hands. These are hands that get alot of people in trouble including me.

You are in a $30 MTT with about 500 players to start. Top 50 paid. It's middlish part of the tourney with 250 players left. You are around 100 in chips, so top half. Blinds are 200/400 and you have about 25,000 chips. Villan has 30,000. You just recently moved to this table and have seen 3 hands none of which you or villan participated in. The play overall at this stage of the tourney has been fairly tight.

You are in middle position and pick up AK or AQ. It's been folded around to you and you bet 1200 (this bet has usually picked up the blinds with sometimes one caller, rarely more than that). Villan calls. Flop comes 10-6-2 rainbow.

Scenerio #1: There is 3000 in the pot. You are first to act, Villan was on the button, do you:

A) Check
B) Bet half the pot or so
C) Bet the pot
D) Push all-in

Scenerio #2: There is 2600 in the pot villan was the BB, Villan checks, do you:

A) Check
B) Bet about half the pot or so
C) bet the pot
D) Push all-in

Scenerio #3: There is 2600 in the pot, villan was the BB, Villan bets 1500, do you:

A) Fold
B) Call
C) Reraise about 3-4 thousand more
D) Reraise All-in

Scenerio #4: There is 3000 in the pot, you checked the flop and villan also checked, turn card is a jack not suited with any other cards up. You are first to act, do you:

A) Check
B) Bet about half the pot
C) Bet the pot
D) Push all-in

Scenerio #4: There is 6000 in the pot. On the flop you bet 1500 and villan called. Again the turn is an unsuited jack. Do you:

A) Check/call
B) Check/fold
C) Check/raise
D) Bet half the pot
E) Bet the pot
F) Push all in


I would be interested to see how you all would play this. Please say why you would take the actions you did, don't just pick a letter.

 

[Dorkus Malorkus]

Generally speaking, of course...

1) Bet 3/4 pot. Flop missed us but it's a ragged flop that is likely to have missed villain too, so make a c-bet.

2) See above.

3) Fold. We have Ace high and villain is saying the flop helped him in some way - why should we get involved with 6 outs (and the reasonable possibility at least 3 of them are no good)? Don't get over-attached to AK here. Calling in position and seeing what villain does on the turn is also fair enough here if we think we can outplay him.

4) Lead for 3/4 pot or so as per #1.

5) Give up and check/fold. Flop is ragged with no draws, so we have to assume villain has some sort of made hand, which we would probably be unwise to try and get him away from. On a more co-ordinated board with a ragged turn we can fire a second barrel more often.

 

[stormswa]

yep

no reason to re-type exactly what dorkus said, nh dorkus.

 

[mrsnake3695]

Wow, nice hijack B, lol.

So, there is only one way to play all 4 scenerios? I didn't realize poker was so easy.

 

[Dorkus Malorkus]

I did say "generally speaking".

(I made a separate thread for the hijack )

 

[ChuckTs]

I have pretty much the same responses as Dorkus.

I just fire out a c-bet (~1/2-3/4 pot) if villain is checking to me, and with #4 he's not showing much strength by checking behind me, and we can possibly take it down with a bet.

As for #5 you have no piece of the flop aside from a gutshot and unclean overs. No reason to bet again here; check and hope villain checks behind you with >99 or whatever.

For #3, there's no reason to get involved. Villain could be making a bluff or block bet, but we know that his bet is supposed to mean we're beat. We have nothing but overs here, so I dump it %100 with no reads.

EDIT: of course there's no 'set' way of playing these situations, but without any reads that's how I play it. If I'm new at a table, I want to advertise a tight image, and if he calls us down with a hand that beats us and everyone sees that I'm bluffing with AK/AQ down to the river then I've tarnished that image. That's why I play fairly conservative unless I've hit the flop pretty hard (TPTK+).