Raising to Induce
PokerStars No-Limit Hold’em, $6 BB (2 handed) Hand History converter Courtesy of PokerSavvyPlus.com
Hero ($1078.40)
BB ($2126.95)
Preflop: Hero is Button with 7s, 9c.
Hero raises to $18, BB calls $12.
Flop: ($36) 2c, 2d, 6h (2 players)
BB checks, Hero checks.
Turn: ($36) 7h (2 players)
BB bets $24, Hero raises to $80.6, BB raises to $185, Hero calls $104.40.
River: ($406) 4s (2 players)
BB bets $305, Hero calls $305.
Final Pot: $1016
Results in white below:
BB has Qd Js (one pair, twos).
Hero has 7s 9c (two pair, sevens and twos).
Outcome: Hero wins $1016.
There was a bit of history here, in that Villain had seen me check back the flop and then raise with a turned draw, and he was generally firing quite often when I didn’t continuation bet. Generally the hands I’d shown down after checking the flop were what you’d expect: medium-strength stuff like middle pair that I was playing for pot control/bluff catching. The problem with just calling with this hand is that it’s very vulnerable and at this point in the match, Villain is going to put me on essentially what I have. He can value bet virtually every hand better than mine and also bluff sometimes, generally making the river neutral-EV at best for me if I just call turn. Raising, however, protects my hand is is more likely to be misinterpreted by Villain.
Floating The Flop Check-Raise
I have no idea what to make of his flop min-check-raise as the pre-flop raiser, but I seriously doubt he can stand a turn raise. I just don’t see him doing this with either 2 pair+ or a good draw. My intention was to raise just about any card. Be sure to note the stack depth here; it’s significant.
PokerStars No-Limit Hold’em, $2 BB (6 handed) Hand History converter Courtesy of PokerZion.com
UTG ($858.20)
MP ($348.85)
CO ($465.60)
Button ($200)
SB ($534.95)
Hero ($463.10)
Preflop: Hero is BB with 5c, Kc.
4 folds, SB raises to $6, Hero calls $4.
Flop: ($13.60) 8c, 7d, 2d (2 players)
SB checks, Hero bets $6.25, SB raises to $12.5, Hero calls $6.25.
Turn: ($38.60) 4h (2 players)
SB bets $16, Hero raises to $64, SB folds.
Final Pot: $118.60
Results in white below:
No showdown. Hero wins $118.60.
Game Flow
’m posting three hands tonight, all of them against the same Villain. I’d just stacked him for the second time, and after that he bought in for just 30 BB’s, won a sizable pot, and then started donking a lot of flops. In the first two, I made some biggish folds on the river. Despite that, or in fact because of it, I think that I ought to have folded the third as well. I’ll talk about why when we get to it:
PokerStars No-Limit Hold’em, $10 BB (2 handed) Hand History converter Courtesy of PokerZion.com
Hero ($3484)
BB ($455.25)
Preflop: Hero is Button with 7s, Kh.
Hero raises to $20, BB calls $10.
Flop: ($40) 2d, 3d, Kd (2 players)
BB bets $30, Hero calls $30.
Turn: ($100) Qh (2 players)
BB bets $80, Hero calls $80.
River: ($260) Qc (2 players)
BB bets $325.25 (All-In), Hero folds.
Final Pot: $585.25
Results in white below:
BB doesn’t show.
Outcome: BB wins $585.25.
PokerStars No-Limit Hold’em, $10 BB (2 handed) Hand History converter Courtesy of PokerZion.com
Hero ($3373.50)
BB ($564.75)
Preflop: Hero is Button with Jh, 3d.
Hero raises to $20, BB calls $10.
Flop: ($40) 8s, Jc, 6s (2 players)
BB bets $30, Hero calls $30.
Turn: ($100) Td (2 players)
BB bets $80, Hero calls $80.
River: ($260) As (2 players)
BB bets $220, Hero folds.
Final Pot: $480
Results in white below:
BB doesn’t show.
Outcome: BB wins $480.
PokerStars No-Limit Hold’em, $10 BB (2 handed) Hand History converter Courtesy of PokerZion.com
Hero ($3273)
BB ($664.25)
Preflop: Hero is Button with 3d, As.
Hero raises to $20, BB calls $10.
Flop: ($40) 7s, 6s, 8h (2 players)
BB bets $30, Hero calls $30.
Turn: ($100) Ah (2 players)
BB bets $80, Hero calls $80.
River: ($260) Ad (2 players)
BB bets $220, Hero calls $220.
Final Pot: $700
Results in white below:
BB has 9c Th (straight, ten high).
Hero has 3d As (three of a kind, aces).
Outcome: BB wins $700.
Of the three hands, this is the spot where it is by far the hardest for Villain to represent a legitimate hand. Only a really big hand like a flopped straight or set or a really unlikely hand like rivered trips could go three barrels for value here. Any two pair he flopped is now counterfeited. Plus it’s pretty obvious I have at least a pair, and every draw missed. In theory, he ought to bluff in “obviously” bad spots so that I can’t make hero folds like this. In practice, after I’ve folded twice in similar spots very recently, I think it’s unlikely he bluffs here. And despite having trips, I don’t beat anything he’s value betting. I told myself I’d fold if he shoved, but when he didn’t shove, I tilt-called him. Pwned.
It’s cool, though. A few hands later, I got it in with middle pair and a flush draw on the turn against his top pair and spiked to bust him for the third and final time.
Nice Little Value Bet
Villain was pretty disbelieving of me and wasn’t making a lot of what I call “disciplined folds”, meaning that in small- to medium-sized pots he usually called any time his hand was defined as medium-strength rather than trying to figure out my value bet vs. bluffing frequency. I also think he bets most of his Q’s on the flop, so while he could easily have a 6, I wouldn’t be shocked to get looked up by A-high either.
PokerStars No-Limit Hold’em, $4 BB (2 handed) Hand History converter
Hero ($799.50)
Button ($648.20)
Preflop: Hero is BB with Jc, Jh.
Button raises to $8, Hero raises to $32, Button calls $24.
Flop: ($64) Qh, 6h, 2c (2 players)
Hero checks, Button checks.
Turn: ($64) 5s (2 players)
Hero bets $47.6, Button calls $47.60.
River: ($159.20) 6s (2 players)
Hero bets $119, Button calls $119.
Final Pot: $397.20
Results below:
Hero has Jc Jh (two pair, jacks and sixes).
Button has 7h 7s (two pair, sevens and sixes).
Outcome: Hero wins $397.20.
You’re Invited to the Thinking Poker Home Game!
Edit: The buy-in for the tournament will be $5+$.50.
Second edit: The invite code is “foucault”, I’m told you need that join. Sorry for the confusion.
Third edit: Invite code is all lowercase.
I’m pleased to announce that I’m starting a Thinking Poker League on the new PokerStars Home Game feature. We’ll have a tournament every Sunday at 16:30 ET, coinciding with the start of the Sunday Million. Whomever is at the top of the leaderboard after 10 tournaments (unless it’s I, in which case we’ll go to the second place finisher) will receive a three-month subscription to Poker Savvy Plus and a free, hand-by-hand “leakfinder” analysis of a NLHE tournament or cash game session of his/her choosing recorded by me and posted on Poker Savvy Plus.
The first event will be this Sunday, February 28, at 16:30 ET. The format for this week is 6-handed NLHE with deep stacks and a slow structure. I’m very open to feedback on this, though, so if you join the league, you’ll have an opportunity to offer your thoughts and suggest alternative formats for future weeks. I’m also open to scheduling separate set of tournaments at another time if a number of people tell me they are interested in playing but can’t make the Sunday time. So please leave me a comment if you have any requests or suggestions about the Thinking Poker League, and hopefully I can accommodate everyone who’s interested in playing.
I’ll also be hosting a Thinking Poker cash game through this league on weeknights, with the first game taking place at 20:00 ET on Tuesday March 1. The format for that is also open to discussion but for the first game will be full-ring NLHE with $.10/$.25 blinds and a 100-250BB buyin. The cash games won’t have any affect on the league standings but should be a lot of fun!
To sign up for the League, please find the Thinking Poker League in the PokerStars Home Game tab and request to join. The Club ID is 312467. And again, if you have any suggestions, please leave a comment.