High Stakes

SCENARIO 1

	Basically, top pair, top kicker is very strong. I would need to get three-bet before I slowed down on any street

You are playing five-handed in a $100/$200 limit hold’em game online. You raise to $200 with A♦-K♣. You’ve been playing for about two hours and your table image is tight aggressive. The button, who is a loose player, calls. The big blind re-raises to $300. His table image is also tight aggressive. You call and the button folds. The flop is A♥-7♠-3♠ and then the big blind bets $100. You call. The turn comes J♣. The big blind checks. You check. The river is 3♣. He checks. It seems like an easy bet, but for the fact that about an hour ago, the big blind re-raised the same amount pre-flop, bet on a flop of 10-7-2, checked on a blank turn and then check-raised on a blank river, revealing 10-10. Should you play it safe and just check and should your play have been any different in the lead up to this point?

DAVID BENYAMINE
I would bet for sure. With an Ace on the board and an Ace with a great kicker in your hand, the bet’s automatic. As for the strategy on the rest of the hand I would either have raised on the flop or the turn. You have the nuts on the A♥-7♠-3♠ or at least a 99% chance you have the best hand. On the turn, when the Jack comes, unless he has three Jacks you still have the nuts, you should have bet.

TED FORREST
I’m assuming my hand is good and would just bet. To just check on the turn and then check on the river, you’re just giving up too much. That’s two big bets that you’re going to win if you have the best hand. I wouldn’t be afraid until he actually check-raised me – then I’d make a decision. Usually in limit, the pot is big enough to make that last bet anyway.

HOWARD LEDERER
You should definitely bet. I would have played it quite differently. I’d have re-re-raised pre-flop. I’d have raised on the flop. I would not have given a free card on the turn. Basically, top pair, top kicker is very strong. I would need to get three-bet before I slowed down on any street.

SCENARIO 2

Two hands into a six-handed $20/$40 NLH live cash game. You have yet to play a hand. You have $3,000. It’s folded to you. You have 4♣-4♠ in the cut-off and raise to $100. The big blind calls; he has about the same chipstack as you. The flop comes 2♥-5♦-6♠. The big blind checks. You bet $200. The big blind thinks for about seven seconds and then re-raises to $600. So early into the game, you don’t want particularly want to fold and risk the big blind thinking you can easily be bluffed. Do you just smooth-call?

DAVID BENYAMINE
Small pairs are really tough to play in no limit. The crucial factor is that you must have a good read on the other player. In this case, the game has only just started so you don’t know the player, which means I would just lay it down. The problem with smooth calling is what are you going to do on the next card? He’s acting first, which means he’s probably going to bet, and there’s no card apart from the trey which gives me a clear move. If there’s a 4, it gives me my set, but it also puts a straight draw on the board. What am I going to do if he bets $600? If it’s not a 3 or a 4, I’m dead. I could end up losing all my money with a pair of 4s – and that’s not going to happen.

TED FORREST
To me, it doesn’t actually look like a bluff. It looks as if your 4s are definitely beaten. If he has 7-8, it’s still even money. You’ve only risked $300 in the pot, so folding is definitely your best bet. If you call $600, what are you going to do when he bets $1,200 next time? A $100 pre-flop raise is fine. You got a somewhat favourable flop but with a re-raise, it’s just a little too much heat to take. As for not wanting to come across as a push-over, in a game like this, you could fold every hand for three rounds, raise and still get four callers. I wouldn’t be too concerned about setting up a table image like that. I would just try and make the correct play – fold – and find a much better spot in the future.

HOWARD LEDERER
Yes, I probably call. You are getting 3/1, plus good implied odds if you hit. I would not have bet so much on the flop. I think $125 would have been plenty. You might have been able to get away from the raise if you bet that much. I like small probe bets, both with marginal hands like this one and big hands. I would probably check back if he checked to me on the turn.

SCENARIO 3

You’re in a ten-handed $50/$100 NLH online cash game. You have 10♦-J♦ under the gun and raise to $300. Your image is tight aggressive. The player to your left is loose passive and calls after a few seconds. You have around $30k and have him covered – just. On the button is a solid player, who’s been ultra-aggressive for the last few hands, coming over the top and stealing several large hands. He thinks for a few seconds and just calls. He has you well covered with around $37k. The flop is 10♣-J♠-2♥. You bet $1,000. The loose player folds instantly. Button calls. The turn is 3♣. You wait for about 30 seconds and then lead out with $3,000. The button goes into the tank and then calls. The river is the Q♥. You bet $10,000 and the button puts you all-in. Now what?

DAVID BENYAMINE
It’s very close but I’d pass because it looks to me as though he has Q-10. This hand is about whether you’ve picked up tells on the guy. He’s not going to raise you all-in with A-Q. So he either has nothing or he has a hand. How often does someone call $1,000 on the flop with no flush draw, call $3,000 on the turn and raise you all-in on the river? Ask yourself, ‘What kind of hand can he raise me all-in with when I raise under the gun?’ The mistake that got you into this situation was the bet on the river. You could’ve checked.

TED FORREST
You have to make a judgement call here and I would lean towards folding. I might not have bet the $10,000 on the end, though. I mean, what are the hands you’re going to get called with? Is he really going to call you with A-Q for $10,000? If you’re going to bet, bet an amount that he can call you with, with a hand that you’re going to beat. If you made it $4,500, then he might call you with A-Q or even A-J. He’s either playing a legit hand or he’s bluffing, but it takes balls to bluff like that. Personally, with J-10 suited under the gun, I don’t like to raise it. There’s an aggressive player who likes to come over the top. If he does, that then you’re going to have to fold. Why not just limp in and see if you can hit the flop?

HOWARD LEDERER
It looks like you’re beat on the river. You have to fold. It doesn’t look like he is bluffing and if he isn’t, you are beat. I’d have folded pre-flop, anyway. I like to have better if I’m going to play up front.