Calling a short stacks allin with AK, final table MTT

[Dee Dee]

I was playing an MTT last night and I made the FT second in chips. With seven players left I had just under 1 million (blinds: 10000/20000/ante 2500) and the short stack had 380K and he pushes from UTG, it folds round to me in the BB and I have AKo - because villain has shown down strong holdings previously, I'm thinking he is shoving a decent ace or pocket pairs, so I see it as a pretty standard call. But, reflecting on it I started having doubts as to whether I should be calling for a third of my stack in this situation, with 2 other big stacks at the table and the rest of the table not much better off than the short stack, would it have been reasonable to fold here considering the pay jumps and the chances that the shorter stacks will bust before me if I just wait? Do I really have to call here?

 

[TexasBoy13]

I have played in MANY tournaments and it's my opinion that you should fold. You are in NO way obligated to throw your chips into the pot. Sometimes one may feel like they HAVE to make that call since they are getting good odds on their money and have a chance to take out an opponent as well, but THIS IS POKER my friends. And we all know that sometimes even crap hands hit. In a tournament, your chips are your life. You have to pick your spots, and folding that hand and waiting for another spot may be the boost you need to take the tourney down...

 

[cpgd176]

I think folding or calling here is fine. You can definitely fold if you feel you can find better spots and you feel you have an edge on the remain field. However, if you are looking to win the tournament, you have to win coinflips, if you call and win the pot, you are a contender to win and potentially make the top 3 (big payouts). Seems like you were worried about moving up too much. In the end, you would have to make the decision based the table dynamics. Personally, i would call, because still having 600k+ chips at 10/20k/2500 is enough to play with ( 30+ bbs). I would like to call and knock of the player, i think majority of the time here its a coinflip with him having 55+ and some of the time you have him crushed with a smaller Ace.

 

[HooDooKoo]

I was playing an MTT last night and I made the FT second in chips. With seven players left I had just under 1 million (blinds: 10000/20000/ante 2500) and the short stack had 380K and he pushes from UTG, it folds round to me in the BB and I have AKo - because villain has shown down strong holdings previously, I'm thinking he is shoving a decent ace or pocket pairs, so I see it as a pretty standard call. But, reflecting on it I started having doubts as to whether I should be calling for a third of my stack in this situation, with 2 other big stacks at the table and the rest of the table not much better off than the short stack, would it have been reasonable to fold here considering the pay jumps and the chances that the shorter stacks will bust before me if I just wait? Do I really have to call here?

No, you never have to call. You could fold every hand you're dealt at the FT and just blind out. That is your prerogative. It wouldn't be smart, certainly, but you could choose that course of action.

My question is this: if you're not going to call there with AKo, then what hand are you going to call with in that spot? Odds are you had your opponent dominated.

Furthermore, the payouts generally don't get "big" until the top couple spots --- and you needed chips to give yourself a chance to get there. I call in this spot every time. That doesn't mean it's the right play, but I insta-call every time.

Good luck.

-HooDooKoo

 

[JCgrind]

you dont have to, but folding is pretty terrible

 

[okeedokalee]

The short stack with only a few big blinds, usually has a wider range.if however he had been playing ultra tight and waiting for a premium hand then folding is a good option.You said he had shown down tight holdings previously so I would lean towards folding.
However a less tight player, with such huge blinds and antes, chances are he will be all-in with broadway big SCs Ax suited and small pairs and premium pairs and with a range that wide calling is a good option.

 

[Jacki Burkhart]

It depends on your goals. If you just want to move up in the prize payouts, then both calling and folding are fine.

If you want to take it down, you simply must call here. Nobody wins a tournament without taking some big risks and winning some flips. I'd rather take my flips with AK when I've got my opponent covered.

 

[supernuts25]

ya im callin hear hes probably pushin to pick up blinds. probably with a decent hand but your not out if uou lose and you gain alot if u win it would be diffrent if chip leader put you all in pre

 

[Jacki Burkhart]

By the way, I Have folded AK at the final table in a situation similar to what you described.

I had just doubled up through a lucky suckout exactly 1 hand earlier. Now I am on the button with an average stack. My M is finally 10 for the first time in hours.

UTG ships all in for M=4 so about 40% of my stack. It folds to me on the button and I just know that UTG player is holding something like 88+ or AQ,AJ. I probably should have called, but I REALLY didn't want to be short stacked again.

Looking back...I shoulda called with that AK because the blinds were so big I ended up going out 6th in a coinflip anyways.

 

[Dee Dee]

Thanks for the input guys.

 

[loafes]

I'm always calling here because I play to win and this is about as good a spot as you can hope to pick up a big pot. sometimes you'll be racing here but so what, a lot of the time you will have him dominated and he might even show up with broadways some of the time (though that's less likely). I'f you really want to play ladder then you can fold it might even be more valuable to fold here if you got in via a satellite nd it's above your normal buy in range, but generally I'd say calling is optimal. But again folding isn't terrible if you want to play ladder

 

[Dee Dee]

I did call btw and I always would without thinking, I was looking to try to falsify or affirm my belief that this is always the right play to make. The consensus affirms it so there is obviously no arcane ft knowledge I'm missing out on.

 

[loomis311]

I agree with calling is the best play. Of course, your opponent could have a big hand, but you often have him dominated. Even if you lose, you still have a healthy chip stack. If you do not call here I just do not feel like you are maximizing your chances of winning.

 

[sillymunchie]

i actually dunno about this xD
think of it like this, you have position on the short stack, and hes tight
so by calling here you can risk your 1/3rd of your stack, and im not saying you shouldnt do this
but ask yourself if he really is that tight, can you increase your stack from his blinds?
i also notice that when you say he is short hes short enough that if you had raised you would of been prety much obliged to call, but its not essential to call since you yourself already had a little invested.......
opponent isnt really going to be showing A A or K K, so you know its a flip at the min vs Q Q - 10 10
and reasoning for this summerize is, he has almost 20BB,
or if your going based on M, he has just under 10M, which is a shove or fold mode, but you would be shoving tighter at 10M then you would say 5M, especially when you think about it as being a final table, and opponents can get to 2M or 4BB before shoving any 2 broadway cards

 

[rock0001]

i think its an insta call, because it only cost you one third of your stack and also you have a very good hand. ak is only really dominated by aces. if he has kings it would be 30% of winning, so it isnt that terrible. maybe if he is a very nit player who almost never enters in a hand, then you can consider folding in that spot.

 

[DaveE]

i only fold AK if there's a raise and a reraise before I can act. You have to call there. Huge +EV situation.

 

[matiusaa]

Well in FT the payout jumps are huge, so the fold is ok here, considering he is utg and was pplaying strong hand. Good fold my friend

 

[credsfan03]

This is a very difficult spot. I would probably call here although I think fair amount of time he will have us dominated. A 20 bb shove utg is really fishy at a final table unless he has been making similar plays throughout the game. Even if you lose this hand you still have 30 bbs which is not a bad thing.

 

[locha2013]

I also would say it is a good fold because its risky to loose this amount of chips during the last period. I am used to check the hand before the call!

 

[vinylspiros]

No, you never have to call. You could fold every hand you're dealt at the FT and just blind out. That is your prerogative. It wouldn't be smart, certainly, but you could choose that course of action.

My question is this: if you're not going to call there with AKo, then what hand are you going to call with in that spot? Odds are you had your opponent dominated.

Furthermore, the payouts generally don't get "big" until the top couple spots --- and you needed chips to give yourself a chance to get there. I call in this spot every time. That doesn't mean it's the right play, but I insta-call every time.

Good luck.

-HooDooKoo

^^^^well said.

 

[Bowman26]

I would have tossed them myself. AKo only looks good pre-flop. I am never going to risk my stack or a large % of it against a all in at that stage of a tourney especially if I am the larger stack at the table. I have lost to many hands with AK to count giving it more credit than it deserves pre-flop and calling to many large bets with it. Sure if the flop hits you are in business but for me personally that is the exception with AK for some reason. I may win at showdown with it 1/5 times if I even make it that far and don't toss it after the flop misses which is my usual play with them unless I got a up/down str8 draw and can see the turn for cheap or free.

 

[locha2013]

For me is AK the 3d best hand, after aa kk but is it worth to call him out. First i thought it isnt but now i dont really know.

 

[newbie in training]

id probably call here saying its a coin fllip like others have said the pay jumps are huge and even though its a flip lets just say you win then your set up to atleast come in the top 3 as long as you dont do anything too stupid

 

[TheKAAHK]

In this spot I snap call fist-pump every time. Usually when (lol if) I'm one of the largest stacks at a ft and I see AK, I'm praying one of the short stacks shoves.

 

[rdm4k]

In this spot I snap call fist-pump every time. Usually when (lol if) I'm one of the largest stacks at a ft and I see AK, I'm praying one of the bully big stack shoves.

fyp