nlhe tourney hand analysis /advice please

[CoolHandLaw 0]

Hey FCPers. I’m relatively new to NLHE, mostly playing LHE. I’m wondering if you can give me some analysis of these hands below. Whether I made the right call or not, % success, etc. The table was mostly tight-passive so I loosened up my play a bit post-flop. Most of the hands below are when I was blind so that didn’t really show my loose-aggresiveness. I did go on to win this SNG but I did catch a few lucky breaks along the way. Any comments are welcome. Thanks.This first hand, I was trying to represent that I had flopped the flush, so bet the flop big, she called, and then I came out firing again, hoping to move her off whatever hand she had. She called my all-in and I didn’t like that of course. I caught runner-runner 2 pair and took the pot. I know I was lucky, but is this a long-term bad move on my part to keep firing away at a pot with flop like that? I figured she didn’t have the flush since she just cold called me. I think her cold-calling me with a pair of Aces on a board like that is worse than me pushing hard?***** Hand History for Game 1845227471 *****30/60 TourneyTexasHTGameTable (NL) (Tournament 11012321) - Mon Apr 04 19:56:04 EDT 2005Table Table 12401 (Real Money) -- Seat 5 is the buttonTotal number of players : 9Seat 1: Anne69 (680)Seat 2: talldrink13 (660)Seat 3: Chronowolf (1070)Seat 5: LokLac (1075)Seat 6: sparkyd09 (270)Seat 7: Rockstar_2 (1075)Seat 8: duke5041 (735)Seat 9: JackknifeLaw (635)Seat 10: GeorgeCarbo (1800)sparkyd09 posts small blind (15)Rockstar_2 posts big blind (30)** Dealing down cards **Dealt to JackknifeLaw [ Qd, Ts ] duke5041 folds.JackknifeLaw raises (75) to 75GeorgeCarbo folds.Anne69 calls (75)talldrink13 folds.Chronowolf folds.LokLac calls (75)sparkyd09 folds.Rockstar_2 folds.** Dealing Flop ** : [ Jc, 8c, Ac ] Chronowolf: george didJackknifeLaw bets (250)Anne69 calls (250)LokLac folds.** Dealing Turn ** : [ Qh ] JackknifeLaw bets (310)JackknifeLaw is all-In.LokLac: hehAnne69 calls (310)** Dealing River ** : [ Td ] Creating Main Pot with $1390 with JackknifeLaw** Summary **Main Pot: 1390 | Board: [ Jc 8c Ac Qh Td ]Anne69 balance 45, lost 635 [ Ad 7d ] [ a pair of aces -- Ad,Ac,Qh,Jc,Td ]talldrink13 balance 660, didn't bet (folded)Chronowolf balance 1070, didn't bet (folded)LokLac balance 1000, lost 75 (folded) sparkyd09 balance 255, lost 15 (folded) Rockstar_2 balance 1045, lost 30 (folded) duke5041 balance 735, didn't bet (folded)JackknifeLaw balance 1390, bet 635, collected 1390, net +755 [ Qd Ts ] [ two pairs, queens and tens -- Ac,Qd,Qh,Ts,Td ]GeorgeCarbo balance 1800, didn't bet (folded)With just top pair, good kicker, was this a stupid move on my part? GeorgeCarbo was playing horrible the entire sng, and was pushing hard with nothing. Turns out I had him outkicked. I debated this call for a while before finally comitting to it.***** Hand History for Game 1845275903 *****LokLac: lol50/100 TourneyTexasHTGameTable (NL) (Tournament 11012321) - Mon Apr 04 20:05:22 EDT 2005Table Table 12401 (Real Money) -- Seat 8 is the buttonTotal number of players : 8Seat 2: talldrink13 (20)Seat 3: Chronowolf (995)Seat 5: LokLac (1440)Seat 6: sparkyd09 (525)Seat 7: Rockstar_2 (2205)Seat 8: duke5041 (1555)Seat 9: JackknifeLaw (630)Seat 10: GeorgeCarbo (630)JackknifeLaw posts small blind (25)GeorgeCarbo posts big blind (50)** Dealing down cards **Dealt to JackknifeLaw [ 7s, Qs ] talldrink13 calls (20)talldrink13 is all-In.Chronowolf folds.LokLac folds.sparkyd09 folds.Rockstar_2 calls (50)duke5041 folds.JackknifeLaw calls (25)GeorgeCarbo checks.Creating Main Pot with $80 with talldrink13** Dealing Flop ** : [ 7d, 3h, 6s ] JackknifeLaw bets (50)GeorgeCarbo raises (580) to 580GeorgeCarbo is all-In.Chronowolf: George is waiting for another ace rag so he can go all in again. lolRockstar_2 folds.JackknifeLaw calls (530)JackknifeLaw is all-In.** Dealing Turn ** : [ 4c ] ** Dealing River ** : [ Kd ] Creating Side Pot 1 with $1250 with JackknifeLaw,GeorgeCarbo** Summary **Main Pot: 80 | Side Pot 1: 1250Board: [ 7d 3h 6s 4c Kd ]talldrink13 balance 0, lost 20 [ 2c Ac ] [ high card ace -- Ac,Kd,7d,6s,4c ]Chronowolf balance 995, didn't bet (folded)LokLac balance 1440, didn't bet (folded)sparkyd09 balance 525, didn't bet (folded)Rockstar_2 balance 2155, lost 50 (folded) duke5041 balance 1555, didn't bet (folded)JackknifeLaw balance 1330, bet 630, collected 1330, net +700 [ 7s Qs ] [ a pair of sevens with queen kicker -- Kd,Qs,7s,7d,6sQs(kicker card) ]GeorgeCarbo balance 0, lost 630 [ 7c Jh ] [ a pair of sevens -- Kd,Jh,7c,7d,6s ]Just an all-round bad play here? ***** Hand History for Game 1845308395 *****100/200 TourneyTexasHTGameTable (NL) (Tournament 11012321) - Mon Apr 04 20:11:28 EDT 2005Table Table 12401 (Real Money) -- Seat 8 is the buttonTotal number of players : 6Seat 3: Chronowolf (845)Seat 5: LokLac (1090)Seat 6: sparkyd09 (725)Seat 7: Rockstar_2 (2405)Seat 8: duke5041 (1005)Seat 9: JackknifeLaw (1930)JackknifeLaw posts small blind (50)Chronowolf posts big blind (100)** Dealing down cards **Dealt to JackknifeLaw [ Js, Ks ] LokLac folds.duke5041: whatd u havesparkyd09 raises (400) to 400Rockstar_2 folds.duke5041 folds.Rockstar_2: not enoughJackknifeLaw raises (650) to 700Chronowolf folds.duke5041: lolsparkyd09 raises (325) to 725sparkyd09 is all-In.JackknifeLaw calls (25)Creating Main Pot with $1550 with sparkyd09** Dealing Flop ** : [ Ac, 9s, 2c ] duke5041: nice** Dealing Turn ** : [ 5s ] ** Dealing River ** : [ 4h ] Rockstar_2: just had more chips to lose** Summary **Main Pot: 1550 | Board: [ Ac 9s 2c 5s 4h ]Chronowolf balance 745, lost 100 (folded) LokLac balance 1090, didn't bet (folded)sparkyd09 balance 1550, bet 725, collected 1550, net +825 [ Jd Jc ] [ a pair of jacks -- Ac,Jd,Jc,9s,5s ]Rockstar_2 balance 2405, didn't bet (folded)duke5041 balance 1005, didn't bet (folded)JackknifeLaw balance 1205, lost 725 [ Js Ks ] [ high card ace -- Ac,Ks,Js,9s,5s ]I’m betting the OESD after the turn here and I had put him on a Kx so didn’t think he would call. I rivered him with my J. Bad idea pushing so hard?***** Hand History for Game 1845322682 *****200/400 TourneyTexasHTGameTable (NL) (Tournament 11012321) - Mon Apr 04 20:14:11 EDT 2005Table Table 12401 (Real Money) -- Seat 9 is the buttonTotal number of players : 5Seat 3: Chronowolf (645)Seat 5: LokLac (1090)Seat 6: sparkyd09 (2555)Seat 7: Rockstar_2 (2405)Seat 9: JackknifeLaw (1305)Chronowolf posts small blind (100)LokLac posts big blind (200)** Dealing down cards **Dealt to JackknifeLaw [ Jh, Qd ] sparkyd09 raises (400) to 400Rockstar_2 folds.JackknifeLaw calls (400)Chronowolf folds.LokLac folds.** Dealing Flop ** : [ Th, 5d, 2s ] sparkyd09 checks.JackknifeLaw bets (250)sparkyd09 calls (250)** Dealing Turn ** : [ 9h ] sparkyd09 checks.JackknifeLaw bets (655)JackknifeLaw is all-In.sparkyd09 calls (655)** Dealing River ** : [ Jc ] Creating Main Pot with $2910 with JackknifeLaw** Summary **Main Pot: 2910 | Board: [ Th 5d 2s 9h Jc ]Chronowolf balance 545, lost 100 (folded) LokLac balance 890, lost 200 (folded) sparkyd09 balance 1250, lost 1305 [ As Kc ] [ high card ace -- As,Kc,Jc,Th,9h ]Rockstar_2 balance 2405, didn't bet (folded)JackknifeLaw balance 2910, bet 1305, collected 2910, net +1605 [ Jh Qd ] [ a pair of jacks -- Qd,Jh,Jc,Th,9h ][/i]

[RyanGabriel 0]

Hey, Cool, welcome to No-Limit. Here's my tak on your plays-Hand1: Preflop- UTG+1 at a tight table, raising QTo is just asking for trouble IMO. First ask- what are you going to get called with? Generally, only hands that you are a dog to. Then ask- what are you going to get reraised with? You only raised 2.5x the BB, indicating a marginal holding for your position, and if I'm sitting after you with AK, AQ, AA, KK, QQ, JJ, I'm coming after you again and hard. And there goes the hand, you just gave away 75 of your chips. You're not in any kind of position to steal here, so throw the hand away preflop. Flop- I like this semi-bluff representing the baby flush in a lot of situations, not here however. First, you're commiting nearly 50% of your stack here drawing to 6 outs against 2 people. 6 outs? Well two of your straight cards are going to be clubs and with a four flush on the board and no club in your hand, I don't see how you can hold up to any kind of pressure when one of them falls. And there's no guarantee that an Ace will even fold here, as you found out. Turn- I'm done with this hand, I don't care that I hit my Q, someone's still got either the ace or a flush, and I save my chips while the blinds are still reasonable, looking to double up over the next two orbits. Besides, given the passive nature of this table, there's a good chance you get a free card here by checking, and you may hit one of your outs. Hand 2: Well, obviously it's a tough call, but you had a good read on your opponent, and that plays a very large part of No-Limit. Jokers like this are all over the SnGs I play at Empire. Great call against someone who will push hard with any 7 or a naked Ace. Hand 3: I'm always going to be suspicious of preflop min. raises by people who are commiting over half their stack by doing so. It screams strength to me, begging for someone to reraise them all-in (as you did). Still, in reality with the blinds comprising so much of his stack, he probably makes this move with a whole bunch of hands, many which you will dominate and some which will be a coin flip. Only hands you need be really scared of here are AA, KK, QQ, JJ, AK, AQ, AJ, KQ. It's a lot of hands, but those are a small precentage of the hands I believe he goes in with here. It's very hard not to push here. Hand 4: Preflop- At this level of the SnG, you stand to last about 3 more orbits, or ~ 15 hands. You will have a decent stack to make a move with for the next 8 or so hands. I'm either pushing here or folding, depending on the opponent. We've seen Sparky do this exact sma ehitng before- what did he have? A very strong hand, JJ. So I'm probably folding here, fearing a high PP or AK. I don't like the call here. Flop- I put him on AK here, as he'd probably bet a high PP, so a bet's not a bad idea in my mind, but I think you need to make it more in order to make it really expensive for him to call with Ace high. Consider going all in here. Most people will fold AK to a pot sized bet here, fearing a pocket pair or AT, KT, QT, JT. Such a small bet like 250 tells me that you are on a weak bluff, and calling with AK most of the time. Turn- To AK, you're a little worse than 2-1 here, and your bet of 655 gives him about 3.5-1 to call, so you're almost never bluffing him off a hand that he'd call with on the flop. OTOH, you've only got a few hands left to make your move now, so calculate your risk. I think you could have avoided this situation in the first place, but you may just want to commit your chips now and hope to get lucky.

[Rocketwadster 0]

is there any way you can re-post with the bison converted hands? It would be so much easier to read (I started but when I went cross-eyed I had to bang my head against my desk to get my eyes to go back to normal)... :wink:

[CoolHandLaw 0]

is there any way you can re-post with the bison converted hands? It would be so much easier to read (I started but when I went cross-eyed I had to bang my head against my desk to get my eyes to go back to normal)... :wink:

lol, yeah sure. sorry about that. Thanks for the the insight as well Ryan

[CoolHandLaw 0]

This first hand, I was trying to represent that I had flopped the flush, so bet the flop big, she called, and then I came out firing again, hoping to move her off whatever hand she had. She called my all-in and I didn’t like that of course. I caught runner-runner 2 pair and took the pot. I know I was lucky, but is this a long-term bad move on my part to keep firing away at a pot with flop like that? I figured she didn’t have the flush since she just cold called me. I think her cold-calling me with a pair of Aces on a board like that is worse than me pushing hardParty Poker No-Limit Hold'em Tourney, Big Blind is t30 (9 handed) converterMP2 (t680)MP3 (t660)CO (t1070)Button (t1075)SB (t270)BB (t1075)UTG (t735)Hero (t635)MP1 (t1800)Preflop: Hero is UTG+1 with Qd, Ts. 1 fold, Hero raises to t75, 1 fold, MP2 calls t75, 2 folds, Button calls t75, 2 folds.Flop: (t270) Jc, 8c, Ac (3 players)Hero bets t250, MP2 calls t250, Button folds.Turn: (t770) Qh (2 players)Hero bets t310 (All-In), MP2 calls t310.River: (t1390) Td (2 players, 1 all-in)Final Pot: t1390Main Pot: t1390 (t1390), between MP2 and Hero. > Pot won by Hero (t1390).Results below: Hero has Qd Ts (two pair, queens and tens). MP2 has Ad 7d (one pair, aces). Outcome: Hero wins t1390.With just top pair, good kicker, was this a stupid move on my part? GeorgeCarbo was playing horrible the entire sng, and was pushing hard with nothing. Turns out I had him outkicked. I debated this call for a while before finally comitting to it. Party Poker No-Limit Hold'em Tourney, Big Blind is t50 (8 handed) converterUTG (t20)UTG+1 (t995)MP1 (t1440)MP2 (t525)CO (t2205)Button (t1555)Hero (t630)BB (t630)Preflop: Hero is SB with 7s, Qs. UTG calls t20 (All-In), 3 folds, CO calls t50, 1 fold, Hero completes, BB checks.Flop: (t170) 7d, 3h, 6s (4 players, 1 all-in)Hero bets t50, BB raises to t580 (All-In), CO folds, Hero calls t530 (All-In).Turn: (t1330) 4c (3 players, 3 all-in)River: (t1330) Kd (3 players, 3 all-in)Final Pot: t1330Main Pot: t80 (t80), between UTG, Hero and BB. > Pot won by Hero (t80).Pot 2: t1250 (t1250), between Hero and BB. > Pot won by Hero (t1250).Results below: UTG has 2c Ac (high card, ace). Hero has 7s Qs (one pair, sevens). BB has 7c Jh (one pair, sevens). Outcome: Hero wins t1330. Just an all-round bad play here?Party Poker No-Limit Hold'em Tourney, Big Blind is t100 (6 handed) converterBB (t845)UTG (t1090)MP (t725)CO (t2405)Button (t1005)Hero (t1930)Preflop: Hero is SB with Js, Ks. 1 fold, MP raises to t400, 2 folds, Hero raises to t700, 1 fold, MP raises to t725 (All-In), Hero calls t25.Flop: (t1550) Ac, 9s, 2c (2 players, 1 all-in)Turn: (t1550) 5s (2 players, 1 all-in)River: (t1550) 4h (2 players, 1 all-in)Final Pot: t1550Main Pot: t1550 (t1550), between MP and Hero. > Pot won by MP (t1550).Results below: MP has Jd Jc (one pair, jacks). Hero has Js Ks (high card, ace). Outcome: MP wins t1550. I’m betting the OESD after the turn here and I had put him on a Kx so didn’t think he would call. I rivered him with my J. Bad idea pushing so hard? Party Poker No-Limit Hold'em Tourney, Big Blind is t200 (5 handed) converterSB (t645)BB (t1090)UTG (t2555)MP (t2405)Hero (t1305)Preflop: Hero is Button with Jh, Qd. UTG raises to t400, 1 fold, Hero calls t400, 2 folds.Flop: (t1100) Th, 5d, 2s (2 players)UTG checks, Hero bets t250, UTG calls t250.Turn: (t1600) 9h (2 players)UTG checks, Hero bets t655 (All-In), UTG calls t655.River: (t2910) Jc (2 players, 1 all-in)Final Pot: t2910Main Pot: t2910 (t2910), between UTG and Hero. > Pot won by Hero (t2910).Results below: UTG has As Kc (high card, ace). Hero has Jh Qd (one pair, jacks). Outcome: Hero wins t2910.

[Rocketwadster 0]

This first hand, I was trying to represent that I had flopped the flush, so bet the flop big, she called, and then I came out firing again, hoping to move her off whatever hand she had. She called my all-in and I didn’t like that of course. I caught runner-runner 2 pair and took the pot. I know I was lucky, but is this a long-term bad move on my part to keep firing away at a pot with flop like that? I figured she didn’t have the flush since she just cold called me. I think her cold-calling me with a pair of Aces on a board like that is worse than me pushing hardParty Poker No-Limit Hold'em Tourney, Big Blind is t30 (9 handed) converterMP2 (t680)MP3 (t660)CO (t1070)Button (t1075)SB (t270)BB (t1075)UTG (t735)Hero (t635)MP1 (t1800)Preflop: Hero is UTG+1 with Qd, Ts. 1 fold, Hero raises to t75, 1 fold, MP2 calls t75, 2 folds, Button calls t75, 2 folds.Nothing wrong with this raise pre-flop.Flop: (t270) Jc, 8c, Ac (3 players)Hero bets t250, MP2 calls t250, Button folds.Basically a pot sized bet, which is good. Her call had to scare you though.Turn: (t770) Qh (2 players)Hero bets t310 (All-In), MP2 calls t310.Very scary bet you mad. You have more testicular fortitude than I do after she calle dyou last time.River: (t1390) Td (2 players, 1 all-in)Nice river card, but I would still be thinking you lost.Final Pot: t1390Main Pot: t1390 (t1390), between MP2 and Hero. > Pot won by Hero (t1390).Results below: Hero has Qd Ts (two pair, queens and tens). MP2 has Ad 7d (one pair, aces). Outcome: Hero wins t1390.MP2 is a bad, bad player...lucky for you.With just top pair, good kicker, was this a stupid move on my part? GeorgeCarbo was playing horrible the entire sng, and was pushing hard with nothing. Turns out I had him outkicked. I debated this call for a while before finally comitting to it. Party Poker No-Limit Hold'em Tourney, Big Blind is t50 (8 handed) converterUTG (t20)UTG+1 (t995)MP1 (t1440)MP2 (t525)CO (t2205)Button (t1555)Hero (t630)BB (t630)Preflop: Hero is SB with 7s, Qs. UTG calls t20 (All-In), 3 folds, CO calls t50, 1 fold, Hero completes, BB checks.Just a call to complete here is fine. Just like I would play it.Flop: (t170) 7d, 3h, 6s (4 players, 1 all-in)Hero bets t50, BB raises to t580 (All-In), CO folds, Hero calls t530 (All-In).Your bet wasnt big enough here (needs to be around pot sized or bigger in my mind with top pair and an outside flush draw). Again, a wild call tht I would not have made based on the number of chips you had. Regardless of how the BB was playing previous to this, still a wild call.Turn: (t1330) 4c (3 players, 3 all-in)River: (t1330) Kd (3 players, 3 all-in)Final Pot: t1330Main Pot: t80 (t80), between UTG, Hero and BB. > Pot won by Hero (t80).Pot 2: t1250 (t1250), between Hero and BB. > Pot won by Hero (t1250).Results below: UTG has 2c Ac (high card, ace). Hero has 7s Qs (one pair, sevens). BB has 7c Jh (one pair, sevens). Outcome: Hero wins t1330. Another lucky break. BB made a good bet to put you all-in with his top pair and a fairly good kicker. Notice the difference between his good bet and your wild call (as I have called them). Had you put in the big bet first, unlikely that he would have called, or if he did, same result with you winning.Just an all-round bad play here?Party Poker No-Limit Hold'em Tourney, Big Blind is t100 (6 handed) converterBB (t845)UTG (t1090)MP (t725)CO (t2405)Button (t1005)Hero (t1930)Preflop: Hero is SB with Js, Ks. 1 fold, MP raises to t400, 2 folds, Hero raises to t700, 1 fold, MP raises to t725 (All-In), Hero calls t25.I would be more prone to calling this raise in this position, as KJs is not that great a hand to basically be going all-in with.Flop: (t1550) Ac, 9s, 2c (2 players, 1 all-in)Turn: (t1550) 5s (2 players, 1 all-in)River: (t1550) 4h (2 players, 1 all-in)Final Pot: t1550Main Pot: t1550 (t1550), between MP and Hero. > Pot won by MP (t1550).Results below: MP has Jd Jc (one pair, jacks). Hero has Js Ks (high card, ace). Outcome: MP wins t1550. Result was exactly what it should have been. If you had called his raise only, then bet after the flop, he may have laid down the jacks with the ace scare card.I’m betting the OESD after the turn here and I had put him on a Kx so didn’t think he would call. I rivered him with my J. Bad idea pushing so hard? Party Poker No-Limit Hold'em Tourney, Big Blind is t200 (5 handed) converterSB (t645)BB (t1090)UTG (t2555)MP (t2405)Hero (t1305)Preflop: Hero is Button with Jh, Qd. UTG raises to t400, 1 fold, Hero calls t400, 2 folds.Even though you have position, he has you well covered in chips, and you have a slightly better than average hand only. This would have been an easy fold.Flop: (t1100) Th, 5d, 2s (2 players)UTG checks, Hero bets t250, UTG calls t250.Well, you've made you bed (by calling his pre-flop raise), so now you have to sleep in it. You have two overcards to the flop, which is okay, unless you opponent has hit the flop, or has an ace and/or king, in which case you are trailing. He checks, but doesn't necessarily mean he missed. If you are going to bet at this point, you have to go all-in (to show him that he better have something or he is going to lose). Easy call for him with that small a bet into that large a pot. Turn: (t1600) 9h (2 players)UTG checks, Hero bets t655 (All-In), UTG calls t655.Now, you've picked up the open-ended straight. I would have taken the free card though, as the pot odds tell him that he should call regardless of what you bet (at least I think they do). River: (t2910) Jc (2 players, 1 all-in)One of four different cards you could hope for.Final Pot: t2910Main Pot: t2910 (t2910), between UTG and Hero. > Pot won by Hero (t2910).Results below: UTG has As Kc (high card, ace). Hero has Jh Qd (one pair, jacks). Outcome: Hero wins t2910.

Another "lucky" winning hand, in my opinion. Based on the play of your opponents (and some of yours), I assume this was a $5 buy-in Sit-N-Go. Sorry if I seem harsh, but based on the plays that you made, I can't see you making a profit in the long run. You won this one (amazingly I might add), so kudos to you, but it just seems like you played a lot of it totally backwards to how "they" say to play it. Not sure that "they" are always right, but "they" are certainly better than me, and I do pretty good at these levels.

[CoolHandLaw 0]

Yeah, I know that I got lucky, but like I said, I'm just starting out in NLHE. The responses are good though, definitely something that I need to learn more about. So now that you know my PP handle, I'll be you'll be hunting for me

[Absolute 0]

I will try to only read what is on the board and skip over what looks to be like "your defense" (aka your comments on the hand) as well as the results.PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE don't post results in the Strategy forum.Hand #1Raising with Q10o UTG+1 is absolutely horrible. Please don't do it if you wish to be successful at poker. Easy laydown in your position.It is generally a good idea to follow up aggression on the flop when you have raised PF, but you are not getting anyone away from an ace here, and 4 times out of 5, you are going to run in to one. Bad semi-bluff. You just got very lucky and sucked out on someone who had you dominated.Hand #2Your complete in the SB is fine. Fold them if they arent suited.As far as calling the all-in on the flop. I wouldn't. How do you believe Q7 is good here? You really think that someone normally moves in here without A7, K7, 33, 66, 77, or 45? If its a bluff, fold and say nice bluff and go to the next hand. Keep calling this move and its -EV in the long run.Hand #3I thought the first two hands were bad! Re-raising a 4x raise with KJo! Were you on crack for this tournament?! What kind of hand do you think you are ahead of here? Think hes raising with Q10 offsuit? Most people on the poker world realize that would be a bad play. Hand #4I'm beginning to think all the face cards look the same to you. QJs, yeah thats KK!Lots of work to do buddy. Keep posting here and hopefully well tighten those loose screws.

[RyanGabriel 0]

This first hand, I was trying to represent that I had flopped the flush, so bet the flop big, she called, and then I came out firing again, hoping to move her off whatever hand she had. She called my all-in and I didn’t like that of course. I caught runner-runner 2 pair and took the pot. I know I was lucky, but is this a long-term bad move on my part to keep firing away at a pot with flop like that? I figured she didn’t have the flush since she just cold called me. I think her cold-calling me with a pair of Aces on a board like that is worse than me pushing hardParty Poker No-Limit Hold'em Tourney, Big Blind is t30 (9 handed) converterMP2 (t680)MP3 (t660)CO (t1070)Button (t1075)SB (t270)BB (t1075)UTG (t735)Hero (t635)MP1 (t1800)Preflop: Hero is UTG+1 with Qd, Ts. 1 fold, Hero raises to t75, 1 fold, MP2 calls t75, 2 folds, Button calls t75, 2 folds.Nothing wrong with this raise pre-flop.<Are you serious, rocket? You're raising QTo UTG+1 here? What are you gaining by this? He says he's playing a tight table, so you're not going to get called by any hand that you've got odds on. Big mistake, IMO.>Flop: (t270) Jc, 8c, Ac (3 players)Hero bets t250, MP2 calls t250, Button folds.Basically a pot sized bet, which is good. Her call had to scare you though.<But you fail to recognize how early it is in the tournament. Blinds are at 15/30, and he has 21 BB. Why bluff away nearly half your stack here into three opponents for only 270 chips? I'd rather wait for a better oppurtunity which I'm pretty much assured with how early it is in the tourny>Turn: (t770) Qh (2 players)Hero bets t310 (All-In), MP2 calls t310.Very scary bet you mad. You have more testicular fortitude than I do after she calle dyou last time.River: (t1390) Td (2 players, 1 all-in)Nice river card, but I would still be thinking you lost.Final Pot: t1390Main Pot: t1390 (t1390), between MP2 and Hero. > Pot won by Hero (t1390).Results below: Hero has Qd Ts (two pair, queens and tens). MP2 has Ad 7d (one pair, aces). Outcome: Hero wins t1390.MP2 is a bad, bad player...lucky for you.With just top pair, good kicker, was this a stupid move on my part? GeorgeCarbo was playing horrible the entire sng, and was pushing hard with nothing. Turns out I had him outkicked. I debated this call for a while before finally comitting to it. Party Poker No-Limit Hold'em Tourney, Big Blind is t50 (8 handed) converterUTG (t20)UTG+1 (t995)MP1 (t1440)MP2 (t525)CO (t2205)Button (t1555)Hero (t630)BB (t630)Preflop: Hero is SB with 7s, Qs. UTG calls t20 (All-In), 3 folds, CO calls t50, 1 fold, Hero completes, BB checks.Just a call to complete here is fine. Just like I would play it.Flop: (t170) 7d, 3h, 6s (4 players, 1 all-in)Hero bets t50, BB raises to t580 (All-In), CO folds, Hero calls t530 (All-In).Your bet wasnt big enough here (needs to be around pot sized or bigger in my mind with top pair and an outside flush draw). Again, a wild call tht I would not have made based on the number of chips you had. Regardless of how the BB was playing previous to this, still a wild call.Turn: (t1330) 4c (3 players, 3 all-in)River: (t1330) Kd (3 players, 3 all-in)Final Pot: t1330Main Pot: t80 (t80), between UTG, Hero and BB. > Pot won by Hero (t80).Pot 2: t1250 (t1250), between Hero and BB. > Pot won by Hero (t1250).Results below: UTG has 2c Ac (high card, ace). Hero has 7s Qs (one pair, sevens). BB has 7c Jh (one pair, sevens). Outcome: Hero wins t1330. Another lucky break. BB made a good bet to put you all-in with his top pair and a fairly good kicker. Notice the difference between his good bet and your wild call (as I have called them). Had you put in the big bet first, unlikely that he would have called, or if he did, same result with you winning.Just an all-round bad play here?Party Poker No-Limit Hold'em Tourney, Big Blind is t100 (6 handed) converterBB (t845)UTG (t1090)MP (t725)CO (t2405)Button (t1005)Hero (t1930)Preflop: Hero is SB with Js, Ks. 1 fold, MP raises to t400, 2 folds, Hero raises to t700, 1 fold, MP raises to t725 (All-In), Hero calls t25.I would be more prone to calling this raise in this position, as KJs is not that great a hand to basically be going all-in with.<Ok, I have a huge problem with this play, calling right here- after his raise, MP now has 325 chips left. Guess what's gonna happen on the flop? That's right, you guessed it! All his chips are going in the middle. So if you're playing this hand, you need to play it heads-up- agasint someone this short stacked, I think it's obvious that KJs is a favorite over the hands that most players do this with. By just calling the bet, you invite the big blind (who already has 100 of his chips in the pot) to play too. KJs may be a favorite over one, but not two short stacks. The only reason calling is a different play in this case from raising is you allow the BB to get in too, which is a bad thing for you. Raise here almost always.>Flop: (t1550) Ac, 9s, 2c (2 players, 1 all-in)Turn: (t1550) 5s (2 players, 1 all-in)River: (t1550) 4h (2 players, 1 all-in)Final Pot: t1550Main Pot: t1550 (t1550), between MP and Hero. > Pot won by MP (t1550).Results below: MP has Jd Jc (one pair, jacks). Hero has Js Ks (high card, ace). Outcome: MP wins t1550. Result was exactly what it should have been. If you had called his raise only, then bet after the flop, he may have laid down the jacks with the ace scare card.It's rather absurd to believe that he's going to lay down jacks just because an ace is on the board when he'll be left with 3 BB if he does. He'd be getting 4-1 odds on a call there. No way in hell he's laying that down to a bet on the flop. Sorry.>I’m betting the OESD after the turn here and I had put him on a Kx so didn’t think he would call. I rivered him with my J. Bad idea pushing so hard? Party Poker No-Limit Hold'em Tourney, Big Blind is t200 (5 handed) converterSB (t645)BB (t1090)UTG (t2555)MP (t2405)Hero (t1305)Preflop: Hero is Button with Jh, Qd. UTG raises to t400, 1 fold, Hero calls t400, 2 folds.Even though you have position, he has you well covered in chips, and you have a slightly better than average hand only. This would have been an easy fold.Flop: (t1100) Th, 5d, 2s (2 players)UTG checks, Hero bets t250, UTG calls t250.Well, you've made you bed (by calling his pre-flop raise), so now you have to sleep in it. You have two overcards to the flop, which is okay, unless you opponent has hit the flop, or has an ace and/or king, in which case you are trailing. He checks, but doesn't necessarily mean he missed. If you are going to bet at this point, you have to go all-in (to show him that he better have something or he is going to lose). Easy call for him with that small a bet into that large a pot. Turn: (t1600) 9h (2 players)UTG checks, Hero bets t655 (All-In), UTG calls t655.Now, you've picked up the open-ended straight. I would have taken the free card though, as the pot odds tell him that he should call regardless of what you bet (at least I think they do). River: (t2910) Jc (2 players, 1 all-in)One of four different cards you could hope for.Final Pot: t2910Main Pot: t2910 (t2910), between UTG and Hero. > Pot won by Hero (t2910).Results below: UTG has As Kc (high card, ace). Hero has Jh Qd (one pair, jacks). Outcome: Hero wins t2910.

Another "lucky" winning hand, in my opinion. Based on the play of your opponents (and some of yours), I assume this was a $5 buy-in Sit-N-Go. Sorry if I seem harsh, but based on the plays that you made, I can't see you making a profit in the long run. You won this one (amazingly I might add), so kudos to you, but it just seems like you played a lot of it totally backwards to how "they" say to play it. Not sure that "they" are always right, but "they" are certainly better than me, and I do pretty good at these levels.

I should note that I, too, am assuming that you're playing the $5 or similar SnGs. Some of these moves may be very unorthodox for other levels of play.

[CoolHandLaw 0]

Yep, thanks again for your advice. I'll take my lumps and criticisms like a man. No defense of the plays I made, just rookie mistakes which I know now will cost me in the long run.Overall though, with a tight-passive table, I did manage to move a lot of people off hands previously by playing loose aggressive. Obviously I dont know this to be fact but a few f-bombs dropped at the table hints to me that I did. Unfortunately, I don't have the hand histories to back that up, but believe what you will. Would you say in general that with a TP table, loosening up is a good idea? Not to the extent where I've loosened up so that I'm just flopping around perhaps, but you get the point. In my head, I was thinking, well, lets play the hand, and lets see about outplaying them after the flop. Not trying to defend my actions as I know I'm a rookie, but trying to get some consensus on the right moves to make.But now that you do know my handle, I'll have to keep playing the same way... or will I?

[RyanGabriel 0]

Yeah, Cool, your basic gameplan was spot on, there were just some plays that you could have tweaked. On a TP table, you should be more willing to bet, and less willing to call as a general rule. Reason being that people will fold to your bets more often, but seldom bluff so you can be more certain that they have a decent hand when they bet. The opposite is true for a LAG table. You want to tighten your play and punish their looseness with super aggressivness when you do hit a hand.edit: Let me just add that the adjustment to a TP table should have a larger emphasis on aggressivness, as opposed to looseness. Being significantly looser than the field does have advantages at a TP table, but you need good post flop play and you also need room to work with. It looks as if your post flop play needs some work, so I wouldn't rely on outmanuevering opponents after the flop just yet, and in these fast paced tournaments, you often don't have the room neccesary to make loose plays very profitable. In these situations, be more willing to bet TPGK, good draws like four flushs, OESDs, basically where you are no worse than ~2-1 underdog, and other somewhat "marginal" holdings.

[Rocketwadster 0]

This first hand, I was trying to represent that I had flopped the flush, so bet the flop big, she called, and then I came out firing again, hoping to move her off whatever hand she had. She called my all-in and I didn’t like that of course. I caught runner-runner 2 pair and took the pot. I know I was lucky, but is this a long-term bad move on my part to keep firing away at a pot with flop like that? I figured she didn’t have the flush since she just cold called me. I think her cold-calling me with a pair of Aces on a board like that is worse than me pushing hardParty Poker No-Limit Hold'em Tourney, Big Blind is t30 (9 handed) converterMP2 (t680)MP3 (t660)CO (t1070)Button (t1075)SB (t270)BB (t1075)UTG (t735)Hero (t635)MP1 (t1800)Preflop: Hero is UTG+1 with Qd, Ts.    1 fold, Hero raises to t75, 1 fold, MP2 calls t75, 2 folds, Button calls t75, 2 folds.Nothing wrong with this raise pre-flop.<Are you serious, rocket? You're raising QTo UTG+1 here? What are you gaining by this? He says he's playing a tight table, so you're not going to get called by any hand that you've got odds on. Big mistake, IMO.>Flop: (t270) Jc, 8c, Ac (3 players)Hero bets t250, MP2 calls t250, Button folds.Basically a pot sized bet, which is good.  Her call had to scare you though.<But you fail to recognize how early it is in the tournament. Blinds are at 15/30, and he has 21 BB. Why bluff away nearly half your stack here into three opponents for only 270 chips? I'd rather wait for a better oppurtunity which I'm pretty much assured with how early it is in the tourny>Turn: (t770) Qh (2 players)Hero bets t310 (All-In), MP2 calls t310.Very scary bet you mad.  You have more testicular fortitude than I do after she calle dyou last time.River: (t1390) Td (2 players, 1 all-in)Nice river card, but I would still be thinking you lost.Final Pot: t1390Main Pot: t1390 (t1390), between MP2 and Hero. > Pot won by Hero (t1390).Results below:  Hero has Qd Ts (two pair, queens and tens).  MP2 has Ad 7d (one pair, aces).  Outcome: Hero wins t1390.MP2 is a bad, bad player...lucky for you.With just top pair, good kicker, was this a stupid move on my part? GeorgeCarbo was playing horrible the entire sng, and was pushing hard with nothing. Turns out I had him outkicked. I debated this call for a while before finally comitting to it. Party Poker No-Limit Hold'em Tourney, Big Blind is t50 (8 handed) converterUTG (t20)UTG+1 (t995)MP1 (t1440)MP2 (t525)CO (t2205)Button (t1555)Hero (t630)BB (t630)Preflop: Hero is SB with 7s, Qs.    UTG calls t20 (All-In), 3 folds, CO calls t50, 1 fold, Hero completes, BB checks.Just a call to complete here is fine.  Just like I would play it.Flop: (t170) 7d, 3h, 6s (4 players, 1 all-in)Hero bets t50, BB raises to t580 (All-In), CO folds, Hero calls t530 (All-In).Your bet wasnt big enough here (needs to be around pot sized or bigger in my mind with top pair and an outside flush draw).  Again, a wild call tht I would not have made based on the number of chips you had.  Regardless of how the BB was playing previous to this, still a wild call.Turn: (t1330) 4c (3 players, 3 all-in)River: (t1330) Kd (3 players, 3 all-in)Final Pot: t1330Main Pot: t80 (t80), between UTG, Hero and BB. > Pot won by Hero (t80).Pot 2: t1250 (t1250), between Hero and BB. > Pot won by Hero (t1250).Results below:  UTG has 2c Ac (high card, ace).  Hero has 7s Qs (one pair, sevens).  BB has 7c Jh (one pair, sevens).  Outcome: Hero wins t1330.  Another lucky break.  BB made a good bet to put you all-in with his top pair and a fairly good kicker.  Notice the difference between his good bet and your wild call (as I have called them).  Had you put in the big bet first, unlikely that he would have called, or if he did, same result with you winning.Just an all-round bad play here?Party Poker No-Limit Hold'em Tourney, Big Blind is t100 (6 handed) converterBB (t845)UTG (t1090)MP (t725)CO (t2405)Button (t1005)Hero (t1930)Preflop: Hero is SB with Js, Ks.    1 fold, MP raises to t400, 2 folds, Hero raises to t700, 1 fold, MP raises to t725 (All-In), Hero calls t25.I would be more prone to calling this raise in this position, as KJs is not that great a hand to basically be going all-in with.<Ok, I have a huge problem with this play, calling right here- after his raise, MP now has 325 chips left. Guess what's gonna happen on the flop? That's right, you guessed it! All his chips are going in the middle. So if you're playing this hand, you need to play it heads-up- agasint someone this short stacked, I think it's obvious that KJs is a favorite over the hands that most players do this with. By just calling the bet,  you invite the big blind (who already has 100 of his chips in the pot) to play too. KJs may be a favorite over one, but not two short stacks.  The only reason calling is a different play in this case from raising is you allow the BB to get in too, which is a bad thing for you. Raise here almost always.>Flop: (t1550) Ac, 9s, 2c (2 players, 1 all-in)Turn: (t1550) 5s (2 players, 1 all-in)River: (t1550) 4h (2 players, 1 all-in)Final Pot: t1550Main Pot: t1550 (t1550), between MP and Hero. > Pot won by MP (t1550).Results below:  MP has Jd Jc (one pair, jacks).  Hero has Js Ks (high card, ace).  Outcome: MP wins t1550.  Result was exactly what it should have been.  If you had called his raise only, then bet after the flop, he may have laid down the jacks with the ace scare card.It's rather absurd to believe that he's going to lay down jacks just because an ace is on the board when he'll be left with 3 BB if he does.  He'd be getting 4-1 odds on a call there. No way in hell he's laying that down to a bet on the flop.  Sorry.>I’m betting the OESD after the turn here and I had put him on a Kx so didn’t think he would call. I rivered him with my J. Bad idea pushing so hard? Party Poker No-Limit Hold'em Tourney, Big Blind is t200 (5 handed) converterSB (t645)BB (t1090)UTG (t2555)MP (t2405)Hero (t1305)Preflop: Hero is Button with Jh, Qd.    UTG raises to t400, 1 fold, Hero calls t400, 2 folds.Even though you have position, he has you well covered in chips, and you have a slightly better than average hand only.  This would have been an easy fold.Flop: (t1100) Th, 5d, 2s (2 players)UTG checks, Hero bets t250, UTG calls t250.Well, you've made you bed (by calling his pre-flop raise), so now you have to sleep in it.  You have two overcards to the flop, which is okay, unless you opponent has hit the flop, or has an ace and/or king, in which case you are trailing.  He checks, but doesn't necessarily mean he missed.  If you are going to bet at this point, you have to go all-in (to show him that he better have something or he is going to lose).  Easy call for him with that small a bet into that large a pot.  Turn: (t1600) 9h (2 players)UTG checks, Hero bets t655 (All-In), UTG calls t655.Now, you've picked up the open-ended straight.  I would have taken the free card though, as the pot odds tell him that he should call regardless of what you bet (at least I think they do).  River: (t2910) Jc (2 players, 1 all-in)One of four different cards you could hope for.Final Pot: t2910Main Pot: t2910 (t2910), between UTG and Hero. > Pot won by Hero (t2910).Results below:  UTG has As Kc (high card, ace).  Hero has Jh Qd (one pair, jacks).  Outcome: Hero wins t2910.

Another "lucky" winning hand, in my opinion. Based on the play of your opponents (and some of yours), I assume this was a $5 buy-in Sit-N-Go. Sorry if I seem harsh, but based on the plays that you made, I can't see you making a profit in the long run. You won this one (amazingly I might add), so kudos to you, but it just seems like you played a lot of it totally backwards to how "they" say to play it. Not sure that "they" are always right, but "they" are certainly better than me, and I do pretty good at these levels.

I agree with some of your comments, but not all. I misread the playing position on the raise with queen ten, as I would almost never do that. My bad.The second won with the pot sized bet after the flop, I would most likely do as well if it was played pre-flop like that. I try to win as manu of the pots that I play, regardless of what has flopped. He (I) took a stab at the pot with a pot sized bet, which was the correct size of bet to try to win it right there. Anything small would be wrong, larger is committing too much of your stack to a draw.For the king jack suited, I said to call this raise only rather than re-raise, as the hand isnt good enough to re-raise in my opinion. I want another caller when I call that raise, as it gets more money in the pot, making it so I can win more if I hit my flop. If I miss and he goes all in, I can then assess whether I want to continue or not. I am not saying that I prefer calling to folding either, as a fold is definately an option. I was just saying that I am not convinced I want to go all-in pre-flop with the king jack suited, but might put in half my chips with two other callers to see a flop and go from there.At levels such as these, I have seen many a player fold their pocket jacks, queens, and even kings to a single ace on the board (and I have also seen the opposite, where they chase their high pocket pair all the way regardless of what is showing and the number of players still in the pot). I think that it is around 50/50 whether this guy would have folded them had it played out like I suggested.I like your opposing point of views, as they are views that I could also have at any time during these small-limit Sit-N-Go's. I play these tournaments totally different on a daily basis, if not hourly. It is clear to see that the way the poster played the hands, there was a lot of other ways to play it. In my opinion, he was extremely lucky to win the hands he did (and even this little tourney). I was simply trying to show a possible alternate way to play that might have even better results (hard to be better than 1st though).Or, I could be trying to totally screw him up so I can take all his cold hard cash...lol