I have to admit it's getting better
... it really couldn't get much worse.
Well, yes, it could get a lot worse, but I love the Beatles, so I thought write that anyway.
A couple of weeks ago, I withdrew most of my money from online poker and gave it to my wife. Since then, my goal has been to enjoy playing poker again and to rebuild my bankroll. I have done a pretty good job with the first goal, perhaps not as good with the second goal. Part of my problem with the second goal... was the quality of my play. I suppose that I can beat the $25 NL game at Party, but very little else.
I used to be a very good limit hold'em player, so I have decided to work on that game by playing $0.50/$1.00 limit at Party. My problem right now is that I am too aggressive. I am raising with all sorts of hands and playing really aggressive post-flop; this is getting me killed. I realized yesterday that I need to have a reason for my bet, call, check, or fold. Duh!
Anyway, I played two hands yesterday that have me thinking about what is the correct or incorrect way to play.
Hand#1: I am to next to the cutoff seat. Four people limp before me and I raise with As 6s. I raised it, thinking that I would get all four limpers (plus maybe one of the blinds to call), which would be good pot odds. I admit to forgetting about the possibility of someone behind me 3-betting, but in hindsight... I think it was worth the risk. After my raise, the button called, the big blind called, and everyone else called too. The flop was good for my hand, jack-high with two spades. One of the limpers bet and I called with my flush draw -- I wanted to keep as many people in the pot as possible. The turn was a king (diamonds) and I called a $1 bet for a chance to win a pot that was already $10 (now heads-up). The river completed my flush and the action went bet-raise-call and I collected a pot worth 13 big bets.
I don't know if I like how I played this hand. Should I have raised pre-flop with A6s in this spot? I definitely think that it's worth a call... and thus, the raise makes sense because I was getting such good odds on my raise, right? I don't really know. I would appreciate some comments in either the forums or by private message.
Hand#2: I am dealt 87o in the small blind. There are two limpers, so I complete the bet and see the flop (4-way). The flop is Q 8 3 and it gets checked around. The turn in another 3 and it gets checked to the person in last position who bets. Now, I start thinking: does he have anything here? I bet he would fold to my check-raise! So, I raise it up, hoping to take down the pot but realizing that I likely have some outs. Curiously, the original better folded, but the big blind cold-called two bets. The river brought a nine. I bet out (mistake) and my opponent raised me and I called (another mistake, but at least it allows me to tell the story). My opponent flips over JTo, for the nut straight.
Here again, did I muck this hand up? I think the call of a half-bet preflop was fine with 87o. What about the check-raise on the turn? I think it was good in that I seriously doubted that the three could have helped anyone except the big blind. I think the mistake was that I did this with two other hands still live. Sure, cold-calling two big bets with merely an inside-straight draw is an awful play, so I got a little unlucky, but still... why not merely fold and give this hand up? Was it worth the risk? I think not, but I am not sure.
(It's not even worth discussing my bad play on the river)
Well, yes, it could get a lot worse, but I love the Beatles, so I thought write that anyway.
A couple of weeks ago, I withdrew most of my money from online poker and gave it to my wife. Since then, my goal has been to enjoy playing poker again and to rebuild my bankroll. I have done a pretty good job with the first goal, perhaps not as good with the second goal. Part of my problem with the second goal... was the quality of my play. I suppose that I can beat the $25 NL game at Party, but very little else.
I used to be a very good limit hold'em player, so I have decided to work on that game by playing $0.50/$1.00 limit at Party. My problem right now is that I am too aggressive. I am raising with all sorts of hands and playing really aggressive post-flop; this is getting me killed. I realized yesterday that I need to have a reason for my bet, call, check, or fold. Duh!
Anyway, I played two hands yesterday that have me thinking about what is the correct or incorrect way to play.
Hand#1: I am to next to the cutoff seat. Four people limp before me and I raise with As 6s. I raised it, thinking that I would get all four limpers (plus maybe one of the blinds to call), which would be good pot odds. I admit to forgetting about the possibility of someone behind me 3-betting, but in hindsight... I think it was worth the risk. After my raise, the button called, the big blind called, and everyone else called too. The flop was good for my hand, jack-high with two spades. One of the limpers bet and I called with my flush draw -- I wanted to keep as many people in the pot as possible. The turn was a king (diamonds) and I called a $1 bet for a chance to win a pot that was already $10 (now heads-up). The river completed my flush and the action went bet-raise-call and I collected a pot worth 13 big bets.
I don't know if I like how I played this hand. Should I have raised pre-flop with A6s in this spot? I definitely think that it's worth a call... and thus, the raise makes sense because I was getting such good odds on my raise, right? I don't really know. I would appreciate some comments in either the forums or by private message.
Hand#2: I am dealt 87o in the small blind. There are two limpers, so I complete the bet and see the flop (4-way). The flop is Q 8 3 and it gets checked around. The turn in another 3 and it gets checked to the person in last position who bets. Now, I start thinking: does he have anything here? I bet he would fold to my check-raise! So, I raise it up, hoping to take down the pot but realizing that I likely have some outs. Curiously, the original better folded, but the big blind cold-called two bets. The river brought a nine. I bet out (mistake) and my opponent raised me and I called (another mistake, but at least it allows me to tell the story). My opponent flips over JTo, for the nut straight.
Here again, did I muck this hand up? I think the call of a half-bet preflop was fine with 87o. What about the check-raise on the turn? I think it was good in that I seriously doubted that the three could have helped anyone except the big blind. I think the mistake was that I did this with two other hands still live. Sure, cold-calling two big bets with merely an inside-straight draw is an awful play, so I got a little unlucky, but still... why not merely fold and give this hand up? Was it worth the risk? I think not, but I am not sure.
(It's not even worth discussing my bad play on the river)
posted by frazwood at 10:21 AM
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