wpt rookie opinion

[commoncents 0]

Does anyone else think the kid from WI made a mistake when he pushed all in with the nut straight? I think hes lucky that Chau called. He should of bet like $500k and let Chau raise with his AJ 2 pair......then pushed all in. How would you of played it?

[fryer98 30]

I questioned the call too. Ended up being the right move, obviously, but what if he would have folded to the all-in move??

[TFABOM 0]

Yeah Stolzman made a horrible play there. He bet twice the size of the pot, 1.9 million I believe, and lucked out in Chau calling. If Chau didn't have A-J there or something like 9-10, then Stolzman doesn't get paid off. He made a terrible overbet, whereas Chau made overbets to protect his hand, although one was questionable when he was out of position and didn't allow Stolzman to bet and then go for a check raise.

[Naismith 0]

I don't agree. Yes, it could've cost him money, but it depends what he put Chau on. If he thought Chau was calling down with a draw, then it was a bad move, obviously. But a draw was unlikely (if I'm not mistaken...I only saw it once) since the 9-10 would've already hit and he had the K-10, making K-10 the only real drawing hand.Since Chau called him twice, he probably assumed Chau had a piece of that and nothing screams "bluff! GO AWAY!" like an immediate all in after the river card. Anyhow, I'm not sure if that was his thinking, but it's a good play if you're sure your opponent has at least a decent hand.Peace,Jay

[commoncents 0]

I don't agree. Yes, it could've cost him money, but it depends what he put Chau on. If he thought Chau was calling down with a draw, then it was a bad move, obviously. But a draw was unlikely (if I'm not mistaken...I only saw it once) since the 9-10 would've already hit and he had the K-10, making K-10 the only real drawing hand.Since Chau called him twice, he probably assumed Chau had a piece of that and nothing screams "bluff! GO AWAY!" like an immediate all in after the river card.  Anyhow, I'm not sure if that was his thinking, but it's a good play if you're sure your opponent has at least a decent hand.Peace,Jay

But wouldnt it be better to trap you opponent with the nuts?

[Blackchipper 0]

I don't agree. Yes, it could've cost him money, but it depends what he put Chau on. If he thought Chau was calling down with a draw, then it was a bad move, obviously. But a draw was unlikely (if I'm not mistaken...I only saw it once) since the 9-10 would've already hit and he had the K-10, making K-10 the only real drawing hand.Since Chau called him twice, he probably assumed Chau had a piece of that and nothing screams "bluff! GO AWAY!" like an immediate all in after the river card.  Anyhow, I'm not sure if that was his thinking, but it's a good play if you're sure your opponent has at least a decent hand.Peace,Jay

But wouldnt it be better to trap you opponent with the nuts?

lol, you don't trap (check raise, or small bet, re-raise) on the river. It's not a smart thing to do in any situation really. He decided to get all his money in with the best hand. Also, maybe the fact that he made a big overbet was good, looked a bit suspicious and what not. but yea, "trapping" is never smart in this situation especially since he didnt make his hand till the river and unless hes more than 100% sure Chao will throw out a big bet, you might as well put a good amount of money in the pot.

[Naismith 0]

I think it depends on the texture of the hand, especially when playing a pro. But since this is such a psychological game, I think it's important to think of unconventional ways of getting as many chips in there.For instance, if he makes a small bet and Chau raises and then he goes all in, I'm pretty sure Chau could've got away from it. It would've been tough. But to get away from this all in, Chau had to put him on betting down with a gutshot straight draw. Yes, he risked Chau not having a good enough hand to call, but if he didn't have much, he probably wasn't going over the top of a small bet, anyway. So instead he represented a bluff and it worked.Just my opinion.Peace,Jay

[commoncents 0]

but with an unbeatable hand you want to get the most out of your opponent. He is very lucky Chau called.i think he should of made a teaser bet, or even checked.Let Chau bet or reraise then hammer him.the kid had nothing to fear, no matter what chau had the rookie had the nutz!

[Swift_Psycho 1]

but with an unbeatable hand you want to get the most out of your opponent.  He is very lucky Chau called.i think he should of made a teaser bet, or even checked.Let Chau bet or reraise then hammer him.the kid had nothing to fear, no matter what chau had the rookie had the nutz!

Checking would have been absolutely horrible, no question. If the ace doesn't hit Chau, chances are he checks right behind with his Q or J that he theoretically called the turn with and just shows it down.

[Blackchipper 0]

but with an unbeatable hand you want to get the most out of your opponent.  He is very lucky Chau called.i think he should of made a teaser bet, or even checked.Let Chau bet or reraise then hammer him.the kid had nothing to fear, no matter what chau had the rookie had the nutz!

did you not read what i wrote?

[garamond10pt 0]

I don't think it's a bad move. He said many times that he wanted to play big pots so he wouldn't get outplayed. What probably got edited out was him pushing pots as far as they would go, all-in or not, so I think any bet smaller than that would tip Chau off. That is assuming he had been pushing other pots. In a vacuum I agree it's not the best play.

[Naismith 0]

the kid had nothing to fear, no matter what chau had the rookie had the nutz!

He did have something to fear...he had to fear not getting every chip he could out of Chau.What does a CR tell Chau? It tells him that his two pair most likely isn't good. Any kind of trap does. Instead, he represented a desperate bluff after trying twice to get Chau off his hand and it worked. None of the clues were there for Chau that he had K-10. There was no pre-flop raise. He bet on a flop of Q85, which he could've hit any combination of from the BB. The turn brought a jack and he bets again. If he had 9-10 on the flop, Chau was drawing dead. It's possible, but Chau didn't think so since he called. The river brought the ace and the straight.Now, if you dissect the hand from Chau's point of view: no raise PF and a bet on the flop. He could've hit any combination of cards and hit in any way. The turn comes a jack, giving Chau a pair. He gets bet at again and calls. The river hits the ace, giving Chau two pair and the kid immediately goes all in. Reasonably, what hands can he put the kid on that he was betting at and would go all in on the river with? He had no clues towards the hand...but a trap or a CR would've given him one.Jay

[Swift_Psycho 1]

the kid had nothing to fear, no matter what chau had the rookie had the nutz!

He did have something to fear...he had to fear not getting every chip he could out of Chau.What does a CR tell Chau? It tells him that his two pair most likely isn't good. Any kind of trap does. Instead, he represented a desperate bluff after trying twice to get Chau off his hand and it worked. None of the clues were there for Chau that he had K-10. There was no pre-flop raise. He bet on a flop of Q85, which he could've hit any combination of from the BB. The turn brought a jack and he bets again. If he had 9-10 on the flop, Chau was drawing dead. It's possible, but Chau didn't think so since he called. The river brought the ace and the straight.Now, if you dissect the hand from Chau's point of view: no raise PF and a bet on the flop. He could've hit any combination of cards and hit in any way. The turn comes a jack, giving Chau a pair. He gets bet at again and calls. The river hits the ace, giving Chau two pair and the kid immediately goes all in. Reasonably, what hands can he put the kid on that he was betting at and would go all in on the river with? He had no clues towards the hand...but a trap or a CR would've given him one.Jay

flop was checked by both

[711Buddha 0]

He played it just fine.

[Vade 0]

I agree, I thought it was fine. Yes, it was lucky that he got called, but since he showed aggression the whole way, going all in when the ace hit was fine.He rightly figured that Chau had an ace

[wisky_VI 0]

yep, putting Chau on a Ace the way Chau played the hand made alot of sense.

[Ebonwoulfe 0]

Both Chau and Stozman made a lot of questionable all-in plays, the only difference is that Stolzman got away from his hand when it was second best.K6 vs. QT, board KQx... Stolzman got away from Chau's all-in.KT vs AJ QxxJA board... Chau didn't get away...Y'all realize this guy was shortstacked the whole time and played a helluva game of poker, right? I think if DN comes across this thread he would have to agree, unless he saw something we didn't...

[Swift_Psycho 1]

Both Chau and Stozman made a lot of questionable all-in plays, the only difference is that Stolzman got away from his hand when it was second best.K6 vs. QT, board KQx... Stolzman got away from Chau's all-in.KT vs AJ QxxJA board... Chau didn't get away...

To be fair, Chau's situation was way tougher though.

[Ebonwoulfe 0]

Very true... but what does that mean? Stolzman pushed all-in when his opponent had a hand that was worth a big call, Chau pushed all-in when his opponent could easily get away. Or... Stolzman pushed all in when he was likely to get called, Chau pushed all-in when he was unlikely to get called...

[koa 0]

I don't either of their plays was that bad. If you want to talk about bad play. lets talk about Scotty Ngyuen. Bluffing I guy whos commited to the pot, taking 45 min to lay down Ace high commithing himself on a flush draw with a scary flop and that all four players showing betting and calling. I know he is much better player than he shows at these final table he makes but wow I really can't believe some of the bad plays he constantly makes when he gets to the final table.

[hoof31 0]

It was obviously a horrible play since he went on to win the tourney. Like any of you know what was going through his head or you had a better read on Chua through TV than he had live.

[UNCpoker 0]

but with an unbeatable hand you want to get the most out of your opponent. He is very lucky Chau called.i think he should of made a teaser bet, or even checked.Let Chau bet or reraise then hammer him.the kid had nothing to fear, no matter what chau had the rookie had the nutz!

You have to know the player, Chau doesn't run big bluffs as much as other players. I feel sure he knew Chau had a good hand although not strong considering what he ran into.You check here and I think Chau checks because he knows he doesn't have the nuts. A small bet screams please call me or make a move over me to the pros. The allin screams I am weak and get out a lot of times. Now as to what he was thinking on all if this I don't know. I think it was the best play considering the player he was playing against.

[SabaAba 0]

I think that was the best play he could have made.If he checks, Chau can check behind and he gets nothing.If he checks and Chau bets and then he goes all in, Chau could suspect the slow play and maybe get away.If he makes a small bet (500K as suggested was way too big considering he only had less than 1.1 left) but let's say 300K, then Chau might just call with a two way str8 on board (KT or 9T). If he goes all in, it looks like either a bluff or that he hit the A, either way, this play is the hardest way for Chau to get away from the hand. Why would anyone bet all in with the nuts? exactly, I'll call and he shows the nuts.I think John played a great game too. He's reraise with 96 with nothing against Mizrachi was an awesome play. His call with Kc8c was the correct play, and many other well played hands.