POKER HAND #26

HOW GUS HANSEN BUSTED OUT OF THE WORLD SERIES OF POKER: Hansen picked up the 8s-5s and made it something like $7500 to go. This guy Matthias called with the As-Qs and another guy (who I'll call Earl for simplicity's sake) called with the K-10 offsuit.

The flop came down Ks-10s-5s. Gus had bottom pair and a flush draw, Matthias had the nut flush draw, and Earl flopped top two pair. Gus bet, Matthias called, and Earl correctly raised.

Gus in response to this action went all-in. Not a great read, but it was a great play. He wanted to play heads-up with Earl and figured Matthias would fold if he had a straight draw or non-nut flush draw. Unfortunately for Gus, Matthias had a royal flush draw and plenty of chips with which to gamble.

Earl went all-in after Matthias and that's when Gus figured he was beat (though he could still catch one of the two remaining fives in the deck to win). He was, but it was much closer than it looked.

If Matthias has either of the hands I've mentioned, he'll probably fold. And then Gus will be gambling certainly, but he'd have won the pot with a flush when the 9s came on the river.

Particularly fun was that after the hand Gus and Phill Hellmuth discussed his play. Sure wish I'd been a fly on the wall of Binion's for that conversation.

POKER HAND #25

HERE'S ONE: Watched the World Poker Tour celebrity home game to get a taste of what would happen every week on Celebrity Poker Showdown if Phil Gordon didn't teach the celebs to play tight.

Jon Favreau picked up the 6-6 in first position and raised. He got four callers.

The flop came down 6-J-6. Christmas in August for Favreau. He starts his little acting routine. In the Hollywood Home Game they are allowed to call for help once, so he calls Daniel Negreanu and Jennifer Harman over as a bluff move.

I didn't like this move because it obviously shows he has something. Whether the rest of the players believed it to be a 6 or a J, it's not good news when you've got the deck crippled.

So Favreau checks, and everybody else checks around. The 9 comes off. Favreau checks again, Mo Collins checks, Ben Affleck check. Ed Asner, holding the K-9 bets at it. Now with two people to act behind him, Favreau raises. Dumb move.

Affleck is a on a straight draw with the K-10, he can catch a queen to make a straight. He folds to the raise and Mo Collins folds as well.

So instead of keeping Affleck in the pot to the point where he could take all his money if the Queen falls, he raised and takes more of Ed Asner's money.

Naturally the Queen falls, and Favreau moves all in. I just don't like that play, and sure enough Asner was able to get away from it and finally win the tournament after Favreau bluffed off all his money with nothing while they played heads up.

POKER HAND #24

TOM MCEVOY QUIZ: Let's try to see if I can match Tom's knowledge on this hand that he dissected in a recent Card Player column.

"With two tables left, I was in first place with $34,000 in chips, and the lowest stack had $2,000," he continued. "The player directly to my left had raised every time I had tried to limp into a pot. Luckily, I had just knocked him out of the tournament after making a good call, hitting the nuts, and check-raising him all in. On the very next hand, I was in the big blind and looked down to see the Kd Qd. Only one player had called and the small blind had folded."

How Would You Play This Hand Before the Flop?

a. Just call

b. Raise

That's an obvious raise. It tells you so much about what kind of hand your opponent is on. If he plays back at you, watch out. If he just calls, you're probably not up against A-Q or A-K, the hands you most fear.

Here's How Rich Played It

"I decided I could finally limp into a pot safely," he said. "The player who had called had about $9,000 in chips and was in jeopardy of not making the final table. The flop came down Ad 10d 7d! I had made the nut flush."

How Would You Play This Hand on the Flop?

a. Bet and hope your opponent calls

b. Check with the intention of raising if your opponent bets

This is why you wanted to raise before the flop, to find out what to do here. But I'd bet it anyway.

Here's How Rich Played It

"I checked, he bet, and I raised. He called. The turn was the 2. Again, I bet, but this time he raised. I reraised him all in. He showed his 7-7 (for a set) and I showed my nut flush. You guessed it — the river brought the 2 to make a 'boat' (a full house) for my all-in opponent, and I went from first to fifth place in a blink. I'm not sure there was any better way for me to have played this hand. I suppose I could have raised before the flop, but would he have folded pocket sevens in a limit tournament? I guess I also could have bet the flush on the flop, but would he have laid down a set? He was only one more bet from being all in, so even if he was chasing, I figured he would go all in no matter what. What's your opinion, Tom?"

My Analysis

Before the flop in limit hold'em, a single raise against a limper would not have induced him to fold his pocket sevens. After the flop, it didn't really matter how you played the hand — as all the money was going in one way or the other. Your lucky opponent would never have folded a set on the flop when heads up, no matter what you did. I think you played it correctly after the flop. Just hope for better luck next time.

If your connectors hold up and you can overcome a bad beat here and there, perhaps you and I will meet limit hold'em expert Negreanu one day soon at the final table.

If this were no-limit, the play of this hand wouldn't have been much different.

POKER HAND #23

AS I PREPARE: for a hold 'em game tonight, it's worth reflecting on my hero and savior Phil Hellmuth's biggest loss.

After a little meditation and rest, I came back into the game feeling great, which was good, because I was already a $50,000 loser. Immediately after I arrived, the following hand came up between Doyle Brunson and me. Steve Flicker opened the pot for $4,000, Doyle called, two other people called, and Freddy Deeb called from the small blind. I looked down at 4-5-6-7-10 in the big blind, and pondered my decision.

In Deuce-to-seven, a draw game, the best low hand really wins. The nuts, as the title of the game implies, are 2-3-4-5-7, because I *think* that straights count against you.

I probably had the best hand at this point, especially if Steve was drawing, because anyone else who had a pat (already made) hand would have raised Steve's opening bet. Therefore, I decided to raise the pot to $16,000. Steve contemplated for a long time and then folded, but Doyle announced, "I'm all in for $43,000 total." Everyone quickly folded, and now I was staring the best poker player in the world right in the eyes. It would cost me $27,000 more to call Doyle with my pat 10, and I certainly couldn't draw a card to my 4-5-6-7. Was my pat 10 good or not? Fortunately for me, I had played with Doyle the day before, and had made a similar raise with nothing (I guess I was on tilt that day, as well), so I assumed that Doyle thought I had nothing. I decided to call his raise and stand pat on my 10. Doyle then drew one card, and, luckily, he couldn't beat my hand.

Wait a minute, isn't this supposed to be an article about my biggest loss ever? Don't worry, even though I did manage to win that one big pot, I proceeded to tilt off about $75,000 of my money, and yes, Doyle got most of it.

Deuce-to-seven draw isn't exactly hold 'em for excitement, but it's an intriguing game.

After playing all night long, the following hand came up against Freddy Deeb, who was now playing me heads up. Freddy opened for $3,200 and I looked at 2-3-6-7. At this point, I decided that I would make my move before I looked at the last card, in order to confuse Freddy's read of me. If my last card was a 4 or a 5, I would have one of the best possible hands, and I didn't want to give off too much strength. So, I simply decided to move all in for the $25,000 I had lying in front of me. Freddy decided to call and it was my turn to act, so I quickly looked back at the last card, and it was a 9. Yippee! A pat 9 is a very strong hand in deuce-to-seven. I rapped pat (I didn't draw a card), and then Freddy studied for a minute before drawing one card. I knew that I was at least a 2-to-1 favorite over any draw that Freddy had, so I was feeling pretty good at this point. Freddy asked, "Do you want to make a save?" This means, let's split some of the money in the pot at the appropriate odds, but I decided that if he beat this hand, I would take my $105,000 loss and go get some sleep. Freddy took a long time to look at his last card, which was 100 percent appropriate. I would have taken a long time myself to "sweat out" a $50,000 card. Freddy made an 8 to break me, and I stared in disbelief at his hand before realizing that it was over; I was done playing. I had lost $105,000! Finally, I thought, "Oh well, there will be another better day coming soon!" Freddy said, "Phil, you really played that hand well." I never did tell Freddy that I had raised my last $22,000 in the dark!

POKER HAND #22

PLAYING HEADS UP LAST NIGHT: Hand that happened to me last night playing heads up with my roommate Feuerstein.

I had the Q-J out of position. I raised a few dollars and Feuer called.

Flop came down A-Q-K of all different suits.

I bet 2 dollars and got called.

Turn card was another Q. I was jumping for joy as I had three queens and a 10 would give me the nut straight. The only hands I was dead to were A-A and K-K. I checked and Feuer bet 8 dollars. I quickly called what I felt was a bluff.

River card was my 10, giving me the nut straight. I pooped my pants (just a little bit). I checked and Feuer immediately went to put me all in. I, of course, called.

I flipped over the nut straight and went to grab the chips inas Feuer showed the Q-10 for the full boat, Queens over tens.

Fuuuuuuuck!

POKER HAND #21

THIS GUY'S ADVICE IS HALFWAY DECENT: This site is an OK tutorial. Here's some very good No-Limit advice.

Position - one thing you'll find in no limit holdem is that position is much more of a factor. Position in limit holdem is important but not even close to no limit. With that said, I am not a slave to position. I'm just as likely to play a hand like 9Ts under-the-gun (first position/worst position) as I am on the dealer button (last position/best position). The reason is because I don't get trapped and call unless I want. If someone raises me preflop a large amount, I can very easily fold. If lots of other people are in, I can call. I think position in limit holdem and no limit are exactly reversed. In limit holdem position is very important preflop, but after the flop it is of less importance. In no limit holdem position is less important preflop and very important post flop. What's the worst thing that can happen if I limp in with 56s in early position in no limit? A person could raise, and then I just fold and lose my few bucks. A few bucks is nothing in no limit. In limit poker though, if I limp in with that hand in early position I am guaranteed to lose money in the long run. I can only win so much with the hand so I need to make sure there is enough money in preflop before I commit my bet (for limit holdem). In no limit you can win a huge pot with any hand so calling a few dollars and then folding if it gets too expensive isn't as much of a concern. Moderation is the key, don't take this too far. You will lose if you play any two cards in any position and call any bet.

Big Loss Or Small Win - there is a concept in no limit poker regarding hands that either will win a small pot or lose a big one. These cards are usually hands like AJ, KJ, KT, KQ, etc. Those are good hands in limit poker but in no limit if you flop something with those and get action, you will most likely lose a big pot or just win a little one after everyone folds. That doesn't mean that I won't play those hands, it just means you have to watch out because they are the cards that will get you in trouble. I treat hands like this with great care. I honestly would prefer a hand like 45s over AJ. The 45s won't get me into any binds while the AJ will do nothing but that.

Trash Hands - I love garbage hands, especially if I can sneak in from the small blind by just calling half a bet. What are some garbage hands? T2s, 95, T6, 23, A2, etc. I love to just limp in with them from the small or big blind and then try to sting someone after flopping a big hand. The ones that do particularly well are the T and J rag hands: J2, J3, J4, etc and T4, T5, T2. The reason these do well is because if there was no raise preflop then the opposition most likely has hands like QJ, KJ, JT, etc. When you flop two pair you can really make them pay. What you want to avoid though is catching one pair and thinking it is good. If you have a crappy hand like J4 and the flop is J92, I probably wouldn't even bet from early position. It's going to be a small pot anyway since no one raised preflop so if you check and give it away even if you had the best hand sobeit. Remember you are here to win some big pots, not a lot of little ones.

AA, KK And AK - These hands pretty much play themselves. You can have fun with them though. I'll mix up my play based on who I'm against (especially with Aces). When I get dealt Aces or Kings though, I'm always thinking in the back of my mind that I don't want to lose my whole stack with these. This is a huge weakness for new players. They get dealt AA or KK and then think they are guaranteed to win. That's not so. The best case scenario if you are dealt Aces is someone else has a hand they are raising with preflop. If that isn't the case I don't mess around with these hands. I'll play them straight forward and take my little pot. I'll raise preflop, then put a decent bet in on the flop and bigger on the turn. My goal if no one else has a big starting hand is just to win some, not a lot. Remember one pair isn't that great and if you get tons of action after the flop then you are in trouble. I don't make the majority of my money with big hands like this. Don't be discouraged if you finally get Aces and then win only a little with them. One tactic that sometimes will win a big pot is to feign weakness on the flop with your Aces. For example, if the flop comes back Jack high and you have Aces, waiting for a while and then only betting half the pot sometimes gets people to check raise or raise a large amount because they put you on AK. Then you just call and then put them all-in on the turn card. That happened to me last night and I got a good player to lose his whole stack to me.

Middle Pairs (QQ, JJ, TT) - I sometimes limp in with TT preflop but with Queens and Jacks you have to raise. I think out of all the hands in no limit, these are the toughest to play well. The best advice I can give is don't lose all your chips calling all-in with Queens or Jacks preflop. You'd be surprised how often you'll have AK, KK or AA against QQ or JJ. Being able to not lose a bunch in that situation is a sign you're doing something right. The tell tale sign of AA or KK is if you raise a good amount and then get reraised or reraised all-in by an unimaginative player. If I just get reraised I'll most likely call. If the person has a bunch of chips and goes all-in then I'm going to have to look hard at the situation. Do I really want to put a lot of my money at risk when I only may be a small favorite (they have AK), or a big underdog (they have AA or KK)? How much it is going to cost me is another thing I look at in this situation. If I'm playing at a $200 game and it will just cost me $100 total then sobeit. Or if the person is a wild player that raises a lot of hands and you don't know if they have anything, let alone a good hand then go ahead and do the dirty dance. Also understand that calling the reraise and seeing the flop is only the start. Most likely all the money will go in by showdown. My goal in trouble spots like this is to just break even. If I can make a few reads here and there and win a few pots and then make a few mistakes and lose a few I'm ok with it.

Face Cards (AJ, KQ, KJ, QJ, QT etc) - I mentioned these hands above in the "lose a big pot or a win a small one" paragraph. My advice with these cards is to play them but be careful. I play these cards pretty weakly. If I flop something big like top two pair then of course I'll play more aggressively and try to win more but with just top pair I'm careful. I will bet but I'm not going to get married to the pot. What you want to avoid like the plague is calling big preflop raises with these, flopping top pair and paying off the raiser. That's how you lose fast in no limit poker. I will limp in with these hands from early position but if someone raises a good amount, I'm out unless lots of other people are in. I'll need a really strong flop to continue. There is no way I'll limp in with KJs, call a preflop raise, and then call all the way down with top pair hoping I'm good. If you don't have the initiative in the hand (doing the betting), there is a reason.

Small Pocket Pairs - Of all the hands in no limit holdem, these are my favorites. They play themselves and when they hit, you are "set". My ideal situation is when I limp in with a small pocket pair in early position, get raised a decent amount from someone with a big pair or AK and then I call and flop trips. You'll hit your set/trips about 1 in 8 times. I'll call preflop with these hands as long as the raise isn't too much and the person has enough chips in front of them (or alternatively other people are in the hand too). Having pocket deuces is no different then having pocket fives or sevens. You won't continue on the flop unless you hit (or you see a bluffing opportunity in which case the denomination of your cards doesn't matter either). Pocket eights and up can win without improving but it's rare you'll get much action in those situations.

Suited Cards - In no limit holdem I don't make a big distinction between a suited connector (67s) and two suited cards (T6s). In either case you are going to need a big flop to make much with the hand. In limit poker having the suited cards connected really helps out a lot but in no limit it doesn't matter as much. With these cards I'll limp in late position, sometimes in the front if they are decent cards. I particularly like the smaller suited cards like 35s or 46s. The reason is because if no one raised preflop it usually means someone is out there with a "weak ace" (A5, A6, A2, A3, etc). Sometimes you'll flop the straight and they will have two pair, in which case you can sting them nicely.

Staying Out Of Trouble - In limit holdem much of the play is in the middle. What I mean by that is you win the majority of your money by just having decent hands -- top pair and betting it down. For example, you have KQ, raise, flop top pair, and bet it down and win. To play no limit well you need to adjust your thinking. In no limit you want either a great hand or a trash hand. You don't want a lot of stuff in the middle since a mistake can cost you your whole stack. This is why you would prefer to have 33 against a raiser instead of AJ or KQ. Remember we aren't playing tournaments here, we are playing ring games for money. That's a big distinction.

POKER HAND #20

LAST NIGHT'S GAME: I had a strong outing on Friday night, outside of one costly error. Stupidly I bluffed $14 dollars on a stone cold bluff and the other guy could practically smell me coming.

I did one of my favorite traps plays as well. I need to apologize to Gideon Friedman for making him fall victim to this stupid ploy. I picked up the suited Q-7 in an unraised pot. The flop came down 9-7-7 and I was practically jumping for joy. Naturally I checked it right away and Gideon bet. I just called. When the turn came K, I checked again. Gideon bet. I looked at my cards like I was looking at a midrange pocket pair and Gideon was, after my raise, all too happy to put me all-in. He had the A-A, which makes sense, but he was dead to all but an ace and I dodged heartbreak on the river.

Another interesting hand came up when I picked up the 10-10. I was short stack and looking to double-up on somebody. I called a raise on the flop. After the flop came down rainbow K-6-4 another player bet $7 to put me all in. I decided to call, which was tough at the time because I really thought he might have that K.

POKER HAND #19

MORE SUPER/SYSTEM: Here's more from Mike Caro, on a draw play that can easily be used in hold 'em on the river when you're holding a strong hand and only want to get re-raised with the nuts.

One of my favorite plays goes like this:

A player who has just sat down opens in 5th position. I am unfamiliar with his playing habits and, unfortunately, his opening mannerisms have given me no firm indication of what hand he holds. Probably he's got more than Jacks or Queens because he hasnot thrown his chips in forcefully. The player in 6th raises and I'm not sure what he has either, although it's likely he has Trips or better. I'm holding 3-Aces in 7th.

Naturally I can consider re-raising, but a simple call is the superior play here.

Why?

Let's look at two things that might happen.

First. The Opener draws three, the raiser draws two. Now I draw one, knowing that mine is the best hand going. After the draw, it's check, bet. Now it's my turn.

"You're betting into me?" I say as in disbelief. "What is I make a Full House, Aces-full say? Then you'll be sorry. Except I can't make Aces-Full because I don't have any Aces, but I can make..." I look quickly at the card I've drawn. "Yes, it's true! The miracle of the century, Straight-Flush!" Now, I raise.

The Opener says, "If HE wasn't behind me, I WOULD call you," and throws his hand away. The reason he says this is to avoid an embarassed ego in the event the original raiser calls and catches me bluffing.

Naturally, the probable Trips will call unless he was bluffing with a small Pair and an Ace kicker or a Cat-Hop. He may even call with a lone Pair since my seemingly inane patter has so confused him that he wishes his mother would make the decision for him. Of course, he might have made a Full House or Four Kings, but he's very likely to just call even with those hands figuriung that I either made a Straight-Flush or I have nothing.

That's the point! I still have the 3-Aces I went into the hand with, but my verbal manuevers might keep this player (I'm having a bit of troubling reading him) from re-raising with a Full House if he improved after the draw. Maybe it won't work. Maybe it will only work one time in twenty. But when it does, preventing his re-raise will save me money because mathematically my opponent has the best of it if he fills up and re-raises.

Unless I have an absolute Tell making it safe for me to throw my hand away when re-raised, game strategy dictates that I must call most of the time.

All the playful talking I employ at the Poker table is calculated to have a predictable psychological effect on my opponents. It is not meaningless! The most probable outcome of the betting sequence described is that I win with 3-Aces agaisnt, say, 3-Sevens. A re-raise before the draw would have shown a smaller profit.

POKER HAND #18

THIS WEEKEND'S GAME: In a game with friends, this weekend had its share of thrills. On one memorable hand, four way action, everyone checked to me on the button. I raised $5 (a big raise in our game) and after checking on the flop, everyone called! You guys are maniacs!

One of the more interesting situations came up when I picked up the Kh-4h. I called a raise in the big blind against two players, hoping to hit my hand and pick up a big pot as I was shortstacked. I was rewarded when the flop came out down Js-4s-4d. I'd flopped a set with a good kicker. Yet suddenly I had someone going all-in on me for about $10 bucks, which is what I had left.

I had to think--does this guy have the J-J? He had raised preflop...or he might easily have A-J. Alternately, he could have the nut flush draw. After all, he had raised preflop, and there was a big likelihood I didn't have the four and would fold to an all-in bet.

I concluded he probably didn't have a better hand that mine, and was on a draw. If he really thought I didn't have a two, I might just as easily fold to an $8 bet, or something similar.

I also had to think about the guy acting behind me. Did he have the other four with the ace kicker? There were a lot of hands that could beat me but if so, I was just going to pay them off.

I called and the next person to play folded. My opponent had the Ks-10s. Well, he had a chance but so did I. Then the turn brough another Jack, giving me a full house and leaving him drawing dead. I later found out the player that folded to the all-in had the A-J. Good laydown, bad result.

Overall I came out a teensy bit up, but I was definitely not playing my best in a loose game.