What Should GameFrog Do?
I was semi-famous once. I played the card game Magic The Gathering and got hooked. I started out like any player, learned the advanced strategies and started taking the game seriously. Then came that time that I was qualifying into the National Championships and competing internationally for huge money. In 2002 I became the Philippine Number 1 player and held that position for a year before I quit the game.
A friend of mine who was also a magic player and was then the editor-in-chief of a big gaming magazine created a column online that was entitled "What would Richie do?" Lol it was pretty funny and he set out very complex Magic related problems that required analysis of the cards on the board and the correct move to win the game.
That got me thinking... Poker is very much like Magic. Very strategic and requires thorough analysis of the situation at hand to make the correct decision. I also attribute this line of thinking to Phil Gordon who emphasized that every move, every decision must have a reason. The ultimate goal is to maximize your opponent's mistakes and minimize yours.
Winning Poker is not about making money or winning tournaments. Any lucky schmuck can do that. Winning Poker is about making the correct decision every single day on every single hand.
In line with this, I am posting some interesting hands that I have played over the course of my short poker life. The actions I took is meaningless, but the action that I should have taken is what matters. Help me make the perfect decision.
Poker Hand #1
Level 5 with blinds of 50/100 and average stacks were at 5,000.
GameFrog had been playing extremely tight. He has played only 2 hands the entire tournament (50 minutes running online tournament) and showing down AKs and KK at the end of those 2 hands. GameFrog raised 5X BB both times. He is currently at 6,000 stack
In Middle Position (BB +4) GameFrog gets QQ. Several limpers in front of him and frog raises to 500. Folded around to a very very good player (Villain) and villain raises me to 1,500 on the button. Villain has 1,900 left.
SB, BB and all limpers fold and it comes back to GameFrog. Total pot is currently at 2,450
What does GameFrog do?
Place a comment and explain why GameFrog should do what you suggested.
Cya people
A friend of mine who was also a magic player and was then the editor-in-chief of a big gaming magazine created a column online that was entitled "What would Richie do?" Lol it was pretty funny and he set out very complex Magic related problems that required analysis of the cards on the board and the correct move to win the game.
That got me thinking... Poker is very much like Magic. Very strategic and requires thorough analysis of the situation at hand to make the correct decision. I also attribute this line of thinking to Phil Gordon who emphasized that every move, every decision must have a reason. The ultimate goal is to maximize your opponent's mistakes and minimize yours.
Winning Poker is not about making money or winning tournaments. Any lucky schmuck can do that. Winning Poker is about making the correct decision every single day on every single hand.
In line with this, I am posting some interesting hands that I have played over the course of my short poker life. The actions I took is meaningless, but the action that I should have taken is what matters. Help me make the perfect decision.
Poker Hand #1
Level 5 with blinds of 50/100 and average stacks were at 5,000.
GameFrog had been playing extremely tight. He has played only 2 hands the entire tournament (50 minutes running online tournament) and showing down AKs and KK at the end of those 2 hands. GameFrog raised 5X BB both times. He is currently at 6,000 stack
In Middle Position (BB +4) GameFrog gets QQ. Several limpers in front of him and frog raises to 500. Folded around to a very very good player (Villain) and villain raises me to 1,500 on the button. Villain has 1,900 left.
SB, BB and all limpers fold and it comes back to GameFrog. Total pot is currently at 2,450
What does GameFrog do?
Place a comment and explain why GameFrog should do what you suggested.
Cya people
posted by GameFrog at 7:39 AM
12 Comments:
bro,
rephrase the situation put positions and stack sizes if possible. It's hard to understand who the he and the players are and what positions they are. Start the action from UTG then go all the way to the BB.
But I already have an answer in mind... let you know after the edit :p
Amp Demanding!
Fine fine edited. Hehehe you are hampering my creativity! lol
Hmmm...
I'd call, but the minute I see overcards on the flop, I fold. But if I were in super tight mode, I might just throw the Queens away. If I don't see overcards on the flop, I bet hard, probably pot size. If he still reraises representing a monster hand, I'd fold. But if I was feeling nasty, I'd go all in on him just to see what he's got. LOL. As Doyle said, he never liked being pushed around by a bully on the table. Be the bully.
Well first of all online it's hard to tell whether people are paying attention to how you're playing since a lot of them play multiple tables (then there are those who use software to analyze their opponents)...
Anyway, options are:
1. Fold - not bad, you still have 55BB left and even at the next level (60/120 right?) you'll have 40+BB. The only hands you probably have dominated are JJ and a resteal (in case Villain is thinking you are stealing). All the rest (AA, AK, KK, QQ) are either tie, coinflip or dominated.
2. Call - not a good decision, you will be first to act after the flop and will have no idea where you stand. What if an Ace flops ? or a King ? The only time you can be sure of your hand is if a Q flops. If you check the flop Villain is almost sure to bet as his pre-flop bet indicates he is most likely pot committed.
3. Reraise him all in - As I mentioned at the top the only hands you have dominated are a resteal and JJ (maaaybe 10's or AQ)... I don't think you will have much in terms of folding equity as Villain looks like he's pot committed. You still have a healthy stack, you can find better spots to put more than 50% of your chips in play.
Conclusion ? Unless Villain is the type who makes a lot of moves (steals, resteals) I'd fold and find a better spot later on...
Addendum: If villain IS the type who makes a lot of moves I'd put him all in...
So i'm guessing you pushed all in and lost the hand? hehe.
Folding is an option but a tough one for me. Ultimately, i know he's gonna go all-in on ANY flop that i check, with overcards or none, since he is a very very good player right? so if im first to act after the flop, it's gonna be tricky. If i play it for set value, well, risking 1000 more for a 2450 pot, 500 of which is mine, is not a good idea too.
Im putting him on a monster, Kings or Aces. Why would he raise that much knowing he is almost pot committed if he doesnt want a call? At worst, ill be on the winning side of a coinflip if he has AKs.
It's fold or All-in, calling is not an option.
If i really wanted to get deep in the tournament that bad, i'd fold. If i'm feeling like "Big Stack or Bust!" i'm all-in. QQ isnt exactly a marginal hand hehe.
Tough decision.
I would have to fold dude. If villain is a very good player, QQ will not hold up if anything but a Q shows up on the flop, and considering the number of opponents still on the table, the odds that one does appear is pretty slim. As the other comments suggest, any card that villain has with an A or K would have you dominated should any of them show up, even with a weak kicker. If villain is a good player as you say, he knows that you only play medium-strong to strong hands only and reraised you because he thinks he either has you dominated, or at the very least, 50-50. Plus, this early in the tournament is not the time to gamble a significant portion of your stack. I use the word gamble because he is almost pot-committed, having put in almost 40% of his chips in the pot. Not to mention you are first to act.
Let me know what you actually did. Peace!
Nice nice great comments!
Here are mine:
1. Frog has only played 2 hands the entire tournament showing AK and KK. Very powerful hands and anything else he mucks. he has shown an ultra tight image. Any good player would notice that and would put him on a good hand.
2. Villain raised to 1,500 committing 40% of his stack. If it was a resteal he would simply go all-in. This is NOT a resteal since he is looking for action!
3. Based on the first 2 points, good player knows that he MUST be able to beat AK or KK as those were the hands that frog showed down at 5X BB before. He was not in danger of being blinded out soon so making a stand with medium strength hands would make no sense.
4. As for frog, there is small consolation of being able to see the flop because the chances of flopping trips are slim. Even if there are NO overcards, Villain will push after flop and you are still uncertain if he has overs.
Good guess Mav - I made the wrong move and raised all-in. It took me all .4 seconds to do so and I was looking at AA.
If I had taken 5 seconds to think things through I am sure I would have been able to make the right decision. Instacalling with QQ was a major mistake.
If there is a lesson here, its that take your time on every big decision. Clues are everywhere but if you don't give yourself time time to see them then you won't make the right decisions.
I am not saying my anaysis is fully correct. Please continue to analyze even each others comments and fix each other's leaks.
Thanks all
Another good point Eric. But I already had a rock image. Losing 50% of my stack to reinforce an image I already had would be a losing proposition.
Do you mean the insta all-in? i think calling is not an option as you are hoping for a trips and would have to fold if you do not hit.
Waaaaaah both you and 11finger now has seats to the big events!
Waaaah I need to pay for them.
Erick,
Also got a seat to this week's Pokerstars Million tourney. Kita tayo sa final table, chop tayo ha hehehe... BTW what satellites do you think are the best in terms of getting a seat...
Medyo alangan ako sa turbo's, too much of a crapshoot...
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