...so I had A6o, and...

[OzExorcist]

From a live three-table tournament I was in earlier tonight - $15 buy-in, winner-take-all $200 first place prize. Structure could be better, I know, but anywho...

It's about two hours into the game, blinds are at 3000-6000. My stack is around 95000 - I've been fairly effectively running over my table, busted a few players, but the third table has just broken and two stacks about equal to mine have just joined the table.

So here goes:

Hero (BB, )

UTG (a LAG... but not an especially good one) limps in
Folds around to:
Button (a decent-quality TAG player) shoves for 13000
SB (one of the two big stacks that's just joined the table... a generally sensible TAG player) calls

Pot's at 38000.

Hero calls
UTG shoves the rest of his 40000 stack
SB calls the extra 27000

Pot's now at 92000, 27000 to call.

I don't have much of a hand at this point, but there's just too much money out there to fold. The button's shove doesn't worry me all that much, and I know from experience that UTG could be making this shove with just about anything as well. SB worries me a bit... but I figure there's just too much money out there. So I call.

Question 1: pot odds be damned, how many people think I should have just thrown ace-rag away at this point?

Flop:



SB checks
Hero checks (figure I'm not betting into a dry side pot when I can draw for free at a 100K+ pot)

Turn:



SB bets 20000 (he's got about 30000 left behind)
Hero figures that's a good price for drawing and calls (I've got about 35000 left behind at this point)

Question 2: is calling the right move here? Anyone in favour of just shoving at this point

I'll leave it there for now, appreciate any feedback on those two points. Or any others anyone might care to point out

 

[tenbob]

Fold pre-flop, no annoying decisions with marginal hands then.

 

[robwhufc]

Question 1: pot odds be damned, how many people think I should have just thrown ace-rag away at this point?

Not me. As per ^^^^^ you've already had 2 decent chances to do the right thing and fold this pre-flop. I'm not even going to bother thinking about the rest of the hand.

 

[Ronaldadio]

I`m in agreement with the guys here - I would not have got past a preflop fold!!!

 

[OzExorcist]

Thought I might be hearing that - I obviously let myself get too carried away with "It's a huge pot, relatively cheap to call and who knows what the flop brings" every time the action got back to me.

Without the small blind calling each time I would've found it an easy fold, but the odds must've got the better of me

For what it's worth, I honestly didn't interpret either of the shoves as particularly meaningful shows of strength - in particular against the UTG shove for the bigger pot, I didn't think even A6 would have been a big enough dog to fold at that price. I've played with the guy a fair bit, he could be showing down literally any two cards here.

Anywho, guess I know what to do next time .

 

[mrsnake3695]

What are the chances that you are ahead right now. Any Q, any PP or any 2 clubs has you beat. You can't even be sure your ace is live since almost any other ace has you beat also. That's the problem with ace rag, you find yourself nver knowing where you stand in the hand even if you hit.

You have 3 others in the pot that aren't going anywhere, I doubt if you are ahead of more than one of them at this point.

I agree with everyone else, fold pre-flop then fold again pre-flop, especially since you weren't capping the pot. That was the danger or the first call, you had others yet to act behind you. The odds may have been ok to make the call but you failed to consider the actions of those behind that made it more expensive to play your hand. Ask yourself this, would I call for almost half my stack with A-6 knowing I would be facing 3 players. I would hope the answer would be no. If so, then fold pre-flop is the only reasonable choice.

Now considering where we are now, If we call villan will almost certainly push the river which we can't call unless a club or 4 hits. If we shove villan has to call with anything but air which leaves us pretty much all in next hand from the SB if we lose and we are only about 25% to hit. If we fold we still have 45K and can still play. Shoving only puts almost all out chips at risk with what is probably the worst hand.