Comfort me in my hour of need.. aka Did I do the right thing?

[Barbarrossa]

ACR freerolls are kind of a free for all. So I play tight.. but aggressive(thanks for the advice in other spots I have written) Half the time I am hitting replay and writing notes on people.. lol It does get kind of crazy.. I do throw bluffs and semi bluffs in there since I'm winning enough when it comes to showdown.(and they see my cards) I tend to shy away from all ins that put me all in with nothing left to work with if I catch a bad beat.. (I don't go all in unless I've got a good hand.

Situation: I'm in about 12th place with 40+ people left.. my butt is tightening up so much I think I gonna get a cramp in my left cheek.. 4 people limp in.. I'm on the button with pocket 5s.. since it's relatively cheap to set mine I put my 1000 in too.. Big Blind goes all in.. Now I know pretty much by the way he's been playing(seems to be a decent player) he has something.. not blow you away huge but something.. I'm thinking he's just collecting some easy money from limpers that don't have the cards to call... And they all fold..

So there I sit.. me with pocket 5s on the button and the dude using his pretty decent bankroll(I do have him by 12K) to chase everyone.. I went all in. He had A 10 offsuit... and hits the 10 on the river. Not a bad beat.. pretty much a tossup.(isn't it math peeps?)

I'm way down.. (3 hands later I go all in on J K suited and bust out).. but not mad. It would have put me into 2nd place in chips.. I'm just soliciting opinions.. right move? wrong move? A lot of times at this stage of the game I'm starting to bleed.. A lot of stacks at this stage of the game do go all in.. (smaller ones anyway)

thoughts? (takes a sip of sweet tea as he waits) edit:When I say I went all in.. I actually called his all in.

 

[sedlacekj]

I've done the same with suited broadway gappers with the same result. Called an all in while short near the end only to get beat by the draw. I'm thinking it might be best to see the flop cheaply (if the table will let you) if you still have 8-10 BB left, and then make that decision if you see either K or J, or 2 of the 3 correct cards for the draw. Even saving 2-3 BB back can still let you shove later on a pair to triple up. If you went all in first, I would say that is better, but to call an all-in is too risky. fold is better unless you are either already in last place on stack size, or likely to blind out in the next cycle, then calling all in is okay, since it didn't change anything. Also with ICM pressure, if you fold, and someone else calls his all-in, then you move up a place to 19th. I really dislike calling an all-in without an A or pair if I have close to 10 BB left. First to act is different, go all in. I don't know many times I have held in until I had 2-3 BB left and gone all in on a pair and tripled or quadrupled my stack.

 

[Erpherk]

Game can be brutal, if you won the hand you prob wouldn't even remember it.. we seem to only remember when we lose. It could go either way really on this 1. Could be a squeeze . If you put him on A10-AK not a bad call in my book.The best you could hope for in this spot is a coin flip. Just unlucky run out i suppose.

 

[gryphon3005]

I've been in a similar situation a few times myself. When I looked back on the way everything played out I realized my thinking had gone somewhat astray. In your case you decide to set mine and limp in with 4 players already in. You were comfortable with the play, I think, because you were in 12th position with a good stack and only gambling 1000 chips with a chance at lots more. If the flop was a bust and anyone bets you would have folded. Now the bad guy whacks the pot and they all fold to you. In the past I called like you but now realize my mistake. My little pair isn't going to be more than a tossup so why throw away chips and 12th place? My mistake was my thinking...I should have told myself that I would limp to set mine but would fold to a shove. I didn't fully think out my strategy.

My failure to plan properly led me down a bad path....with the other 4 players gone I most likely saw my little pair as more powerful than it really was against only one opponent. I saw the 4 folds as changing the dynamics in my favour which really wasn't true. My original plan to set mine was a gamble with minimal chips so if I fold I still have a good stack and a great position in then tournament and that's what I forgot.

 

[8bod8]

1) not too sure if it was smart to limp in.
2) up to you to play coin-flips. based on your comment I guess there was 50% chance of a flip and 50% that you were well behind (because BB had a better pair).

 

[puzzlefish]

If your plan was to set-mine with a pair of fives, stick to your plan of set-mining and not calling all-ins. Once you become disciplined enough to stick to your rational plans, your results will consistently improve.

 

[Barbarrossa]

My mistake was my thinking...I should have told myself that I would limp to set mine but would fold to a shove. I didn't fully think out my strategy.

My original plan to set mine was a gamble with minimal chips so if I fold I still have a good stack and a great position in then tournament and that's what I forgot.

Absolutely clarifies what I should have done. Appreciated.