5-10 full ring

Button is 19 - 6 - 1.45 over 235 hands


I have Ah-Kd in BB


Table folds to button who limps (hmm), SB folds, I check.


FLOP: [4h 7s 7c]

I check, button bets, I check-raise, button calls.


TURN: [4h 7s 7c][8s]

I bet, button calls.


RIVER: [4h 7s 7c][8s][9h]

I check, button bets, I fold...


I figure when he called the turn, he had to have had something and not just ace high with a weaker kicker (or if he had a draw made a hand on the riuver). I just changed my screen name so he wouldn't recognize me from the 200 or so hands we've plaed together.

And for those that don't know, I never not raise with A-K. Just switiching it up.

Standard advice I'm sure you know, and considered, is to raise PF. My question though is, why didn't you? I'm sure you had a reason...

- Zach

I don't raise preflop in this situation. Pot's smaller than tiny, it disguises our hand and it doesnt make us keep the lead fighting over nothing.

i´d raise pf. if he just calls he could have a lot of hands (obviously doesn´t raise all that many). if he three-bets i let it go on the flop.

Definitely have to raise.

SB could be calling with just about any hand. Raise to get an idea of what you're up against.

I'm guessing you misread the HH, it's the button who limped, the SB folded. Even if he limped though, you raising gets a guaranteed call from the button, giving the SB 5 to 1 and in good relative position for manipulating the pot size. he should call here every time so that doesnt really define anyone's hand.

I would instinctively raise preflop but i have no reasoning and tend to get into awkward situations with hands like this.

I like just checking much better.

If you raise preflop, button is going to put you on a tighter range, and is possibly (depending on the player) more likely to fold to a flop lead or a turn lead those times you miss the flop, fearing AA-88. You are often ahead after a paired flop, but villain could be drawing to six clean outs, so you want him to fold, and a preflop raise might help with that.

Of course, you have to mix up your play in these situations, but I prefer to mix up my postflop play. AK has a decent preflop expectation against even a single limper.

Why is everyone saying don't raise preflop? That's ridiculous. Disguise your hand? please. If he can narrow your range down to a premium hand here, you are doing something wrong.

The flop check/raise is ok. If I don't think he will bet the turn if I just call, I check/raise. If not, you make more money by simply check/calling in such a tiny pot.

Turn and river look fine.

Really? You think so? Just "decent"?

Good lord. There are so many hands you are auto-raising here from the BB against one player. It's obscene that people are even considering a check here. The reasons I've seen so far have just been absurd. You're crushing his range, and you improve post-flop FE from smaller pairs by raising preflop.

Good. Lord.

Thank you, Screech, for being the final bastion of reason, you loveable Irish Bug.

Wang

Well of course its an obvious equity raise. I think the mindset at the time of checking pf was "I'm going to check-raise him on ANY flop." Postflop this could seem stronger to him than raising pf HU then auto-leading if he flops bottom pair or something.

So it was a given that he was going to bet the flop?

Really good question.

Dimseven,

I understand your reasoning as I frequently call out of the BB with hands that most people would 3-bet, looking for that flop check/raise. That's because a pf raiser will autobet the flop nearly 100% of the time. Here, you don't have that gauruntee.

Wang, kindly reread my post. I am advocating a preflop raise. Sorry that I didn't feel the need to phrase it like "raise this, noobs!". To me, 'decent' = 'good' = 'giddyup'.

Sorry. It was just the way you phrased it. "Decent preflop expectation" and especially "against even a single limper."

While you might know what you're talking about, the way you phrase it is very important. Ambiguity sucks.

That being said, sorry. Didn't mean to misrepresent your point, man.

We coo'?

Wang

I'm almost always seeing a SD one way or the other with AK HU against a button limper.


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hmmm...

maybe fold is good ?

I must bet fold too much then because i always get attacked when i raise from the BB in small pots.

Oh ya, we coo'. I just don't want you thinking that I'm an idiot, based on this thread. Based on my play, that's fine.

pre-flop raise is a no brainer as most have said.

pot equity, fold equity, equity equity...