I was playing some rush poker the other day when this hand came up against allinstevie. I recognized him from MTT’s and sit-and-go’s and quickly wrote him off as just another tourney donk. He went on to show me that he had a little tricky in him:
Full Tilt No-Limit Hold’em, $2.00 BB (6 handed) – Full-Tilt Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com
BB ($221.05)
UTG ($200)
MP ($359.95)
CO ($212.55)
Hero (Button) ($200)
SB ($263.05)
Preflop: Hero is Button with K
, J
3 folds, Hero bets $5, 1 fold, BB raises to $20, Hero calls $15
Flop: ($41) A
, K
, 10 (2 players)
BB bets $25, Hero calls $25
Turn: ($91) J (2 players)
BB bets $52, Hero calls $52
River: ($195) 3 (2 players)
BB checks, Hero bets $103 (All-In), BB calls $103
Total pot: $401 | Rake: $3
Results:
Hero had K, J (two pair, Kings and Jacks).
BB had Q, A (straight, Ace high).
Outcome: BB won $398
When he checked the river, I decided to turn my hand into a bluff to get him off a better two-pair, figuring he’s never checking a straight here. Whoops!
It’s a very good check, I think. It’s pretty rare that I’m going to call this river with anything but a Q, meaning that if he bets, he’s only ever going to chop with me. His check gives me room to turn a hand into a bluff or even go for a thin value bet. It’s a rare spot where my value betting range is probably wider than my calling range, and his check is a very nice way of taking advantage of that, never mind the bluff that he induced here.