Finally got a chance to get away and get in a little live action last night. $2/5 blinds with $200 max buy in. I lost my first buy in when I rivered a set and got beat by a straight. Got my stack up to about $550 and I have MP1 covered, when I get the following hand. Sorry I don't know how to make it all fancy with the actual heart symbols and what not. MP1 had just sat down an orbit or two ago so not much read.

MP1 limps and I look down at AcAd I raise to $25 which was a pretty average raise. Folded to MP1 who calls.

Pot $50
Flop AhQc10s.

MP1 checks and I lead for $25. I know I should have probably bet more here. But you know how it is, you get the hand and you think how you don't want to scare anyone away. Do you guys usually bet pot or close to it, every time you flop a set? He smooth calls.

Pot $100. Turn comes 7h. So now board is AhQc10s7h. MP1 checks I bet $75 he smooth calls. So now I must admit, I was feeling pretty good about my hand at this point. So happy I was not really trying to put him on a hand. I did not think he could beat me with no raise on flop or turn.

Pot $250. River comes 9h board AhQc10s7h. So now I start to think a little about what he may have. I think, no way he has the hearts right, no way. Runner runner? So he checks and I think about how much to bet here. I figure I want to get a little value out of AK or AQ or even maybe QQ or 1010 (I figure these two hands are unlikely b/c he hasn't raised the whole hand including preflop). I also don't really think he has KJ because I thought I would have already been raised. So I bet a little value bet and throw out $75. He doesn't take long at all to push in his remaining $270.

WTF!!! What the hell was that, he check raises me all in now, on the river when the hearts hit? What do I make of that? The pot now is pretty damn big, almost $600 and laying me 3-1 but this is a big bet nonetheless. So I take a minute to try and think it through . I know I should have been doing this the whole time and that is a weakness in my game when I hit a big hand. I get so excited and just start betting my hand that I don't take much time to think what he may be calling with, I'm just happy he's calling, till he pulls this crap.

I think Maybe KhQh, that's plausible I suppose, I didn't bet big on the flop, so it's a cheap call with second pair and some draws. Then figures he has lots of outs on the turn. Maybe Qh10h, that would explain no raise on the turn because he wants to see if he improves to boat or flush on river. But wouldn't most people lead with the flush there? I think that QQ, 1010, and KJ are all possibilities. But does that really make much sense? Why would he wait till now to raise with one of those hands after the heart hits? I had no clue where I stood on this one, because he played it so strange. So what do you do? I'll tell you guys what happened when I get some responses.


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Bet close to the pot on the flop. Bet 3/4s pot on turn.

TJ Cloutier says "A call is stronger then a raise."

The problem with this hand is that your bets gleamed no information. Since you bet small..he really could have been calling with anything.

3-1 is a tough laydown. I would try to use all the information i know from mike caros book..and then barring any spectuclar read...make a crying call.

I think he has KJ....but theres a lot of other hands he might have that you have beat.

It definitely looks like he had the straight and was slowplaying you. With that type of flop, you really have to worry about a straight. The flop bet was small, the turn bet was reasonable. You got called both times, that has to worry you. I wouldn't be surprised to see KJs that got the flush in the end.

With the third flush card hitting, with a possible straight since the flop, betting the river is problematic. If you get raised all in, it a very tough call. The hands that you expect to call (AQ, AT) would have probably raised you earlier, so I don't see too many hands that call flop, turn, and would call a value bet.

I just think that given the board, a river bet has a small possible upside and a large possible downside. Most players would probably make this mistake though.

I agree that the bet on the river was probably a mistake. I also agree with Kenny that my bets needed to be a bit bigger on the flop and turn to really define his hand a little better. But once again like I said earlier, I was so happy with my hand that I didn't spend really anytime trying to figure out what he had which is a big mistake that I need to stop doing.

But I did make the call after really thinking it through and I really thought I was beat, and I was. He had KJ not suited, slowplaying it the whole way. I just want to be able to make these laydowns when I am pretty damn sure I am beat but I have a strong hand. I think this is one of the keys to becoming a stronger player. But the only thing that makes this call somewhat acceptable was the 3-1 odds. But does that really make it ok to make a call where you don't think you have much of a chance to win? I really don't think I beat many hands here. I really don't think he makes that raise with two pair. And trip Q's seem unlikely because of no pf raise. So that leaves 1010 as the only real plausible hand I beat. Ah well, live and learn.

well...in live games I've seen players make that play with two pair, thinking they are golden. I think the call is reasonable. The river bet was your biggest mistake I think.

We all make mistakes...it's the people that learn from them that actually have a chance in this game .