Back when I was in Junior High, I got a Rubik's cube for my birthday. I was in grade 8 I believe, maybe grade 7. So I set out attempting to do the cube. It took several months, but eventually I figured it out and was able to finish the cube. To this day I can still finish it. I'm no speed demon, it takes a while. The important thing is that I figured out how to do it on my own. I didn't read any of the books that were around. Some people did and they of course finished it sooner than I did. But what would be the challenge in that. Anyone can read a book and follow rote instructions. I'm glad I did it the way I did.
Later on in my university years I was interested in chess. Yes I'll get to poker eventually, it's my site, be patient. I knew how to move the pieces around and I'm pretty smart so I figured I should just win at an obvious thinking game. But I had usually lost before university. So I read a couple of chess books from the library. The books were quite enlightening. I got enough clues from the books to be able to beat my friends and the lowest levels of computer chess. You'd be surprised how tough level 1 is of computer chess if you aren't any good; and how easy it is once you have some minimal basic book knowledge.
I now own my first poker book. I won Harrington on Hold'em II from PokerKai's site. Thanks PokerKai. That book is a very interesting and enligtening read. Now I want to read HOH I and start playing big tournaments.
I had it in my mind to take the Rubik's cube approach to poker. Try to figure it out myself. That was modestly successful against very bad players. However I've realized from the 2+2 forums and now from HOH II that it's too much to just figure out by doing. I'd say poker is more than Rubik's cube and less than chess for complexity. Plus I just don't play enough hands to get the experience to learn by doing. So I could use some reading to accelerate the learning process.
If I was really serious about becoming a good player I'd get HOH I, and at least 2-3 other poker books and read them carefully at least once if not more. Then I'd have to invest in PT and PA HUD and use those tools. I don't really have the time or money right now to make those investments in getting really good at this. It's unlikely at my rate if I'll get far past my current 5c/10c micro stakes limit level. So be it I guess. It's an enjoyable hobby at least.
Monday, July 24, 2006
Thursday, July 20, 2006
5c/10c
I tried out 5c/10c limit hold'em. It was a short session, around 30 hands. It went OK, I didn't have much for cards. I lost a bit during the session but I didn't feel run over.
I only won one hand. It was coincidentally similar to the only hand I won in my first 2c/4c session. I'm not sure if I played even one street well, but I still managed to win the hand.
PokerStars 0.05/0.10 Hold'em (9 handed) Hand History Converter Tool from http://www.flopturnriver.comFlopTurnRiver.com (Format: Plain Text)
Preflop: Hero is BB with Ah, 9s.
3 folds, MP2 calls, 4 folds, Hero checks.
--> A9o in the BB. One weak limper from MP. I joined the table because it had a high flop percentage. It tightened up though while I was there. I considered raising this preflop but decided to take the free pass to see the flop.
Flop: (2.40 SB) Ac, 4h, Td (2 players)
Hero checks, MP2 bets, Hero raises, MP2 calls.
--> Flop is good, giving me TPGK. With only one opponent, I decided to slow play because I thought he'd just fold if I led out betting at the Ace. When opponent bet I check raised him. He paused for a long time and I thought he'd time out before he called. I think he was expecting me to fold or call and I surprised him.
Turn: (3.20 BB) [Ac, 4h, Td] 5d (2 players)
Hero bets, MP2 calls.
--> Turn looks like a blank so I think I'm in the lead. So I bet at it.
River: (5.20 BB) [Ac, 4h, Td 5d] 8d (2 players)
Hero checks, MP2 checks.
--> I decided to just check/call the river. Out of position with a scare card I don't want to be raised here.
Final Pot: 5.20 BB
Results below:
Hero has Ah 9s (one pair, aces).
MP2 has 2s 2d (one pair, twos).
Outcome: Hero wins 5.20 BB.
Villian had ducks. He missed his set and his backdoor straight draw and I took the hand.
I only won one hand. It was coincidentally similar to the only hand I won in my first 2c/4c session. I'm not sure if I played even one street well, but I still managed to win the hand.
PokerStars 0.05/0.10 Hold'em (9 handed) Hand History Converter Tool from http://www.flopturnriver.comFlopTurnRiver.com (Format: Plain Text)
Preflop: Hero is BB with Ah, 9s.
3 folds, MP2 calls, 4 folds, Hero checks.
--> A9o in the BB. One weak limper from MP. I joined the table because it had a high flop percentage. It tightened up though while I was there. I considered raising this preflop but decided to take the free pass to see the flop.
Flop: (2.40 SB) Ac, 4h, Td (2 players)
Hero checks, MP2 bets, Hero raises, MP2 calls.
--> Flop is good, giving me TPGK. With only one opponent, I decided to slow play because I thought he'd just fold if I led out betting at the Ace. When opponent bet I check raised him. He paused for a long time and I thought he'd time out before he called. I think he was expecting me to fold or call and I surprised him.
Turn: (3.20 BB) [Ac, 4h, Td] 5d (2 players)
Hero bets, MP2 calls.
--> Turn looks like a blank so I think I'm in the lead. So I bet at it.
River: (5.20 BB) [Ac, 4h, Td 5d] 8d (2 players)
Hero checks, MP2 checks.
--> I decided to just check/call the river. Out of position with a scare card I don't want to be raised here.
Final Pot: 5.20 BB
Results below:
Hero has Ah 9s (one pair, aces).
MP2 has 2s 2d (one pair, twos).
Outcome: Hero wins 5.20 BB.
Villian had ducks. He missed his set and his backdoor straight draw and I took the hand.
Sunday, July 16, 2006
Pot equity
This is a concept I'm just starting to grasp. I'm starting to understand now why its good to be aggressive on the flop with draws even when you don't yet have a made hand.
PokerStars 0.02/0.04 Hold'em (8 handed) Hand History Converter Tool from http://www.flopturnriver.comFlopTurnRiver.com (Format: Plain Text)
Preflop: Hero is MP2 with Qd, Td.
UTG calls, 1 fold, MP1 calls, Hero calls, 2 folds, SB completes, BB checks.
--> Typical loose passive table at this level. Two limpers. I also limp with QTs. This hand plays well multiway so I don't want to price the others out of the pot by raising here.
Flop: (5 SB) 2d, Kh, Jd (5 players)
SB checks, BB checks, UTG checks, MP1 checks, Hero bets, SB calls, BB folds, UTG calls, MP1 calls.
--> This is a great flop. I pick up both a flush draw and a straight draw. This gives me around 15 outs. With 15 outs I'm a favorite to win this hand at showdown. I calculate by pot equity as 54%. With 5 players in the hand the average player has 20% pot equity. I bet out my draw based on pot equity.
Turn: (4.50 BB) [2d, Kh, Jd] 2h (4 players)
SB checks, UTG checks, MP1 bets, Hero calls, SB calls, UTG calls.
--> Turn doesn't help me any. It's just 1 bet to continue and I have pot odds. That's a good thing about my flop bet was that it bloated the pot to give me pot odds to chase if I miss my draw on the turn.
River: (8.50 BB) [2d, Kh, Jd 2h] 9s (4 players)
SB checks, UTG checks, MP1 checks, Hero bets, SB calls, UTG folds, MP1 calls $0.04 (All-In).
Final Pot: 11.50 BB
Results below:
MP1 has Js Th (two pair, jacks and twos).
Hero has Qd Td (straight, king high).
SB has 8d 9d (two pair, nines and twos).
Outcome: Hero wins 11.50 BB.
I hit my straight draw on the river to win a nice pot. Too bad it wasn't the flush draw. SB was drawing dead with an inferior flush and I likely would have won a lot more on the river.
PokerStars 0.02/0.04 Hold'em (8 handed) Hand History Converter Tool from http://www.flopturnriver.comFlopTurnRiver.com (Format: Plain Text)
Preflop: Hero is MP2 with Qd, Td.
UTG calls, 1 fold, MP1 calls, Hero calls, 2 folds, SB completes, BB checks.
--> Typical loose passive table at this level. Two limpers. I also limp with QTs. This hand plays well multiway so I don't want to price the others out of the pot by raising here.
Flop: (5 SB) 2d, Kh, Jd (5 players)
SB checks, BB checks, UTG checks, MP1 checks, Hero bets, SB calls, BB folds, UTG calls, MP1 calls.
--> This is a great flop. I pick up both a flush draw and a straight draw. This gives me around 15 outs. With 15 outs I'm a favorite to win this hand at showdown. I calculate by pot equity as 54%. With 5 players in the hand the average player has 20% pot equity. I bet out my draw based on pot equity.
Turn: (4.50 BB) [2d, Kh, Jd] 2h (4 players)
SB checks, UTG checks, MP1 bets, Hero calls, SB calls, UTG calls.
--> Turn doesn't help me any. It's just 1 bet to continue and I have pot odds. That's a good thing about my flop bet was that it bloated the pot to give me pot odds to chase if I miss my draw on the turn.
River: (8.50 BB) [2d, Kh, Jd 2h] 9s (4 players)
SB checks, UTG checks, MP1 checks, Hero bets, SB calls, UTG folds, MP1 calls $0.04 (All-In).
Final Pot: 11.50 BB
Results below:
MP1 has Js Th (two pair, jacks and twos).
Hero has Qd Td (straight, king high).
SB has 8d 9d (two pair, nines and twos).
Outcome: Hero wins 11.50 BB.
I hit my straight draw on the river to win a nice pot. Too bad it wasn't the flush draw. SB was drawing dead with an inferior flush and I likely would have won a lot more on the river.
Friday, July 14, 2006
Moving up
I've been running pretty well at 2c/4c limit. I'm up 100 BB, with a win rate of 12.2 BB/100 hands. That includes a 50 BB downswing that I recently busted out of. Admittedly the sample size is small, fewer than 1000 hands.
So I've reached my goal of winning 100 BB at this level. My bankroll is funded for the next level so I'm going to move up to 5c/10c limit and see how that goes.
It's good to be off the bottom rung of the micro stakes. Even if I do half as well at the next level, that's still a healthy win rate. I hope to be at least break even. Like play money, I don't want to go back. The players at the level I'm leaving are generally not very good so I'm hoping to find players that are more challenging, but still beatable.
So I've reached my goal of winning 100 BB at this level. My bankroll is funded for the next level so I'm going to move up to 5c/10c limit and see how that goes.
It's good to be off the bottom rung of the micro stakes. Even if I do half as well at the next level, that's still a healthy win rate. I hope to be at least break even. Like play money, I don't want to go back. The players at the level I'm leaving are generally not very good so I'm hoping to find players that are more challenging, but still beatable.
Wednesday, July 12, 2006
Crying call
Sometimes you just have to call.
PokerStars 0.02/0.04 Hold'em (9 handed) Hand History Converter Tool from http://www.flopturnriver.comFlopTurnRiver.com (Format: Plain Text)
Preflop: Hero is UTG with Qd, Qh.
Hero raises, 1 fold, MP1 calls, 1 fold, MP3 3-bets, 3 folds, BB calls, Hero caps, MP1 calls, MP3 calls, BB calls.
--> Good start. Ladies in EP. MP3 3-bettor is a fish. I considered just calling. I capped instead as QQ is premium and no reason to respect MP3 reraise. Also I was hoping MP1 would fold with 2 back to him as he seemed somewhat clueful.
Flop: (16.50 SB) 3d, Qc, Tc (4 players)
BB checks, Hero bets, MP1 folds, MP3 calls, BB folds.
--> I hit my set on the flop, taking the lead if I don't already have it. I thought about checkraising here but I was worried it might just be checked through. I didn't think any opponent caught any of this flop. I thought it would be better to bloat the pot instead and try to string people along and give me pot odds later if a scare card dropped. And nobody on a draw is going to fold to a CR bet anyway so I just bet out, hoping MP3 would raise.
Turn: (9.25 BB) [3d, Qc, Tc] Kc (2 players)
Hero bets, MP3 raises, Hero calls.
--> Turn is bad. Now both the straight and flush draws have come in. Villian raises, which makes me think he has a flush. Still I have 9 outs to a full house and 1 out to quads so I have pot odds to call the raise for one more card.
River: (13.25 BB) [3d, Qc, Tc Kc] 4s (2 players)
Hero checks, MP3 bets, Hero calls.
Final Pot: 15.25 BB
--> No help on the river. I check/call, expecting to lose the hand. However sometimes a bad player will raise the turn with 2 pair against any board no matter how draw heavy. Plus he may have just been trying to bluff me out of the pot. My set only has to be good 1 in 14 times for this call to be profitable.
Results below:
Hero has Qd Qh (three of a kind, queens).
MP3 has 6c Jd (high card, king).
Outcome: Hero wins 15.25 BB.
To my surprise I did win the hand. It turns out his turn raise was a semi bluff on his straight draw. Then he tried a stone cold bluff bet with nothing on the river. His river bluff was a good play for the same reason my call was a good play. His bluff attempt only has to be successful 1 in 14 times for the bluff attempt to be profitable. Limit hold'em is interesting like that. A play can be profitable for both players.
PokerStars 0.02/0.04 Hold'em (9 handed) Hand History Converter Tool from http://www.flopturnriver.comFlopTurnRiver.com (Format: Plain Text)
Preflop: Hero is UTG with Qd, Qh.
Hero raises, 1 fold, MP1 calls, 1 fold, MP3 3-bets, 3 folds, BB calls, Hero caps, MP1 calls, MP3 calls, BB calls.
--> Good start. Ladies in EP. MP3 3-bettor is a fish. I considered just calling. I capped instead as QQ is premium and no reason to respect MP3 reraise. Also I was hoping MP1 would fold with 2 back to him as he seemed somewhat clueful.
Flop: (16.50 SB) 3d, Qc, Tc (4 players)
BB checks, Hero bets, MP1 folds, MP3 calls, BB folds.
--> I hit my set on the flop, taking the lead if I don't already have it. I thought about checkraising here but I was worried it might just be checked through. I didn't think any opponent caught any of this flop. I thought it would be better to bloat the pot instead and try to string people along and give me pot odds later if a scare card dropped. And nobody on a draw is going to fold to a CR bet anyway so I just bet out, hoping MP3 would raise.
Turn: (9.25 BB) [3d, Qc, Tc] Kc (2 players)
Hero bets, MP3 raises, Hero calls.
--> Turn is bad. Now both the straight and flush draws have come in. Villian raises, which makes me think he has a flush. Still I have 9 outs to a full house and 1 out to quads so I have pot odds to call the raise for one more card.
River: (13.25 BB) [3d, Qc, Tc Kc] 4s (2 players)
Hero checks, MP3 bets, Hero calls.
Final Pot: 15.25 BB
--> No help on the river. I check/call, expecting to lose the hand. However sometimes a bad player will raise the turn with 2 pair against any board no matter how draw heavy. Plus he may have just been trying to bluff me out of the pot. My set only has to be good 1 in 14 times for this call to be profitable.
Results below:
Hero has Qd Qh (three of a kind, queens).
MP3 has 6c Jd (high card, king).
Outcome: Hero wins 15.25 BB.
To my surprise I did win the hand. It turns out his turn raise was a semi bluff on his straight draw. Then he tried a stone cold bluff bet with nothing on the river. His river bluff was a good play for the same reason my call was a good play. His bluff attempt only has to be successful 1 in 14 times for the bluff attempt to be profitable. Limit hold'em is interesting like that. A play can be profitable for both players.
Saturday, July 08, 2006
Jack Nine suited
I've been on a downswing lately. This is the only hand I won in my last session. I played for around 40 minutes.
PokerStars Game #5487724433: Hold'em Limit ($0.02/$0.04) - 2006/07/07 - 22:53:49 (ET)
Table 'Vera III' 10-max Seat #1 is the button
Seat 1: SellToyota ($1.48 in chips)
Seat 2: McGrogger ($0.62 in chips)
Seat 3: ramilou ($1.05 in chips)
Seat 4: TNVOL94 ($0.31 in chips)
Seat 5: Nitro.Pl ($0.25 in chips)
Seat 6: Reactrix ($0.81 in chips)
Seat 7: Deereye ($0.68 in chips)
Seat 8: halpgr ($1.76 in chips)
Seat 9: desertcat ($1.41 in chips)
Seat 10: El Cabonk ($1.30 in chips)
McGrogger: posts small blind $0.01
ramilou: posts big blind $0.02
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to halpgr [Jc 9c]
TNVOL94: calls $0.02
Nitro.Pl: calls $0.02
Reactrix: folds
Deereye: calls $0.02
halpgr: calls $0.02
desertcat: calls $0.02
El Cabonk: calls $0.02
SellToyota: folds
McGrogger: folds
ramilou: checks
--> J9s in MP2. I considered folding this preflop but three people limped in before me, giving me pot odds to see the flop. The table is loose passive with little preflop raising so I figured some more people would also call the blinds with low chance of it being raised.
*** FLOP *** [Jh 8h 7c]
ramilou: checks
TNVOL94: checks
Nitro.Pl: checks
Deereye: checks
halpgr: bets $0.02
desertcat: calls $0.02
El Cabonk: calls $0.02
ramilou: calls $0.02
TNVOL94: calls $0.02
Nitro.Pl: folds
Deereye: folds
--> This is a favorable flop for me. I pick up top pair with a medium kicker. I also have a gutshot straight draw with a Ten, as well as a backdoor flush draw. It's checked to me so I bet at it. Lots of people call but no raises so I'm not sure what to make it of it.
*** TURN *** [Jh 8h 7c] [4h]
ramilou: checks
TNVOL94: checks
halpgr: checks
desertcat: checks
El Cabonk: checks
--> Turn is a third heart, which with 5 people still in the hand is a possibility. I checked through with two to act behind me. I feel this is not a good play. I should have taken a bet/fold line here. No opponent has shown any aggression yet at this pot. I'm probably still in the lead at this point. It is much more likely someone is one card from a flush than having a flush. I think the downswing has made me more defensive and thinking bad beats and slow play when it isn't there.
*** RIVER *** [Jh 8h 7c 4h] [2d]
ramilou: checks
TNVOL94: checks
halpgr: checks
desertcat: checks
El Cabonk: checks
--> With two still to act behind me I check through the river card which looks like a blank and hope for a cheap showdown. This would have been a tough call to make on the river if someone bet at it.
*** SHOW DOWN ***
ramilou: shows [2c Tc] (a pair of Deuces)
TNVOL94: mucks hand [Kd Td]
halpgr: shows [Jc 9c] (a pair of Jacks)
desertcat: mucks hand [Ac 2h]
El Cabonk: shows [2s Qs] (a pair of Deuces)
halpgr collected $0.25 from pot
I won this hand, but still lost a bit in the session -1.5BB. I'm thinking of changing things up. I'm still more than +50BB ahead at 2c/4c limit. Plus I have enough bankroll for the next level 5c/10c. I think I'll take a 50BB shot at 5c/10c limit hold'em and see how that goes. If it doesn't stick then I may branch out from limit and try some other games such as no-limit ring or pot limit ring. I may enjoy them more or be more successful at them. I won't know unless I try.
Why not? I'm a recreational player with a day job and no expectation or entitlement to win anything. My only requirement is to enjoy it. My only plan is to not deposit any additional money than my initial deposit of less than $100. I can keep 300 BB for 2c/4c as a last stand reserve if the other areas are unsuccessful which they may very well be.
PokerStars Game #5487724433: Hold'em Limit ($0.02/$0.04) - 2006/07/07 - 22:53:49 (ET)
Table 'Vera III' 10-max Seat #1 is the button
Seat 1: SellToyota ($1.48 in chips)
Seat 2: McGrogger ($0.62 in chips)
Seat 3: ramilou ($1.05 in chips)
Seat 4: TNVOL94 ($0.31 in chips)
Seat 5: Nitro.Pl ($0.25 in chips)
Seat 6: Reactrix ($0.81 in chips)
Seat 7: Deereye ($0.68 in chips)
Seat 8: halpgr ($1.76 in chips)
Seat 9: desertcat ($1.41 in chips)
Seat 10: El Cabonk ($1.30 in chips)
McGrogger: posts small blind $0.01
ramilou: posts big blind $0.02
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to halpgr [Jc 9c]
TNVOL94: calls $0.02
Nitro.Pl: calls $0.02
Reactrix: folds
Deereye: calls $0.02
halpgr: calls $0.02
desertcat: calls $0.02
El Cabonk: calls $0.02
SellToyota: folds
McGrogger: folds
ramilou: checks
--> J9s in MP2. I considered folding this preflop but three people limped in before me, giving me pot odds to see the flop. The table is loose passive with little preflop raising so I figured some more people would also call the blinds with low chance of it being raised.
*** FLOP *** [Jh 8h 7c]
ramilou: checks
TNVOL94: checks
Nitro.Pl: checks
Deereye: checks
halpgr: bets $0.02
desertcat: calls $0.02
El Cabonk: calls $0.02
ramilou: calls $0.02
TNVOL94: calls $0.02
Nitro.Pl: folds
Deereye: folds
--> This is a favorable flop for me. I pick up top pair with a medium kicker. I also have a gutshot straight draw with a Ten, as well as a backdoor flush draw. It's checked to me so I bet at it. Lots of people call but no raises so I'm not sure what to make it of it.
*** TURN *** [Jh 8h 7c] [4h]
ramilou: checks
TNVOL94: checks
halpgr: checks
desertcat: checks
El Cabonk: checks
--> Turn is a third heart, which with 5 people still in the hand is a possibility. I checked through with two to act behind me. I feel this is not a good play. I should have taken a bet/fold line here. No opponent has shown any aggression yet at this pot. I'm probably still in the lead at this point. It is much more likely someone is one card from a flush than having a flush. I think the downswing has made me more defensive and thinking bad beats and slow play when it isn't there.
*** RIVER *** [Jh 8h 7c 4h] [2d]
ramilou: checks
TNVOL94: checks
halpgr: checks
desertcat: checks
El Cabonk: checks
--> With two still to act behind me I check through the river card which looks like a blank and hope for a cheap showdown. This would have been a tough call to make on the river if someone bet at it.
*** SHOW DOWN ***
ramilou: shows [2c Tc] (a pair of Deuces)
TNVOL94: mucks hand [Kd Td]
halpgr: shows [Jc 9c] (a pair of Jacks)
desertcat: mucks hand [Ac 2h]
El Cabonk: shows [2s Qs] (a pair of Deuces)
halpgr collected $0.25 from pot
I won this hand, but still lost a bit in the session -1.5BB. I'm thinking of changing things up. I'm still more than +50BB ahead at 2c/4c limit. Plus I have enough bankroll for the next level 5c/10c. I think I'll take a 50BB shot at 5c/10c limit hold'em and see how that goes. If it doesn't stick then I may branch out from limit and try some other games such as no-limit ring or pot limit ring. I may enjoy them more or be more successful at them. I won't know unless I try.
Why not? I'm a recreational player with a day job and no expectation or entitlement to win anything. My only requirement is to enjoy it. My only plan is to not deposit any additional money than my initial deposit of less than $100. I can keep 300 BB for 2c/4c as a last stand reserve if the other areas are unsuccessful which they may very well be.
Wednesday, July 05, 2006
multi tabling update
I've decided to leave off multi tabling for a while.
So far at 2 tabling I'm down 17 BB over 270 hands. Now that's not especially bad and the sample size is very small. So it could be just an ordinary downswing. However I find I'm not really enjoying 2 tabling (perhaps because I'm not winning!). I've made some bad decisions and that has been costing me, especially call/fold decisions on the turn and river. I'm going to go back to 1 table to plug some leaks and hopefully get back on a winning track.
So I'm back to my original plan, to win 100 BB single tabling at 2c/4c, then move up to 5c/10c. I'm at +64 BB now so hopefully I can reach that goal and move up.
I'll probably try multi tabling again in the future. Another challenge I guess. Another thing which is interesting people talk about over on 2+2 is about OIC. That's basically when you take a minimum bankroll then try to keep winning enough to get the same minimum bankroll at the next level. Keep moving up as far as you can. Maybe I'll try something like that in sit n' go.
So far at 2 tabling I'm down 17 BB over 270 hands. Now that's not especially bad and the sample size is very small. So it could be just an ordinary downswing. However I find I'm not really enjoying 2 tabling (perhaps because I'm not winning!). I've made some bad decisions and that has been costing me, especially call/fold decisions on the turn and river. I'm going to go back to 1 table to plug some leaks and hopefully get back on a winning track.
So I'm back to my original plan, to win 100 BB single tabling at 2c/4c, then move up to 5c/10c. I'm at +64 BB now so hopefully I can reach that goal and move up.
I'll probably try multi tabling again in the future. Another challenge I guess. Another thing which is interesting people talk about over on 2+2 is about OIC. That's basically when you take a minimum bankroll then try to keep winning enough to get the same minimum bankroll at the next level. Keep moving up as far as you can. Maybe I'll try something like that in sit n' go.
Monday, July 03, 2006
board straight
In a recent session the board looked like this at the river.
[3c 6d 5h] [4s] [7h]
There were two people still in the hand at the end. The players bet and raised the river and capped it.
Why not? It's a straight on the board, and therefore a chop, right? Well I bet one of the players was surprised at showdown when the opponent showed down an 8 to make the 4-8 straight, beating the 3-7 straight on the board and taking the pot.
A board straight is not too uncommon. Also sometimes you'll see a board flush or a board full house. These hands are most often just chops, splitting the pot among whoever hung around to showdown.
However you need to be careful at the river on these hands. Like the example above, most made hands on the board can be improved. It is not a guaranteed split.
So if the board is a straight and you can't improve that straight, then don't bet at it. It's an obvious bluffing situation and nobody is going to fold, especially in limit hold'em. Plus if an opponent has a better straight then he'll gladly raise you and you have no way to know if he is bluffing you back so you pretty much have to call. In the nanos where I play there's no rake due to the pot size. However at higher levels because of rake you'll lose money bluff betting the straight board when the best you can hope for is a split.
[3c 6d 5h] [4s] [7h]
There were two people still in the hand at the end. The players bet and raised the river and capped it.
Why not? It's a straight on the board, and therefore a chop, right? Well I bet one of the players was surprised at showdown when the opponent showed down an 8 to make the 4-8 straight, beating the 3-7 straight on the board and taking the pot.
A board straight is not too uncommon. Also sometimes you'll see a board flush or a board full house. These hands are most often just chops, splitting the pot among whoever hung around to showdown.
However you need to be careful at the river on these hands. Like the example above, most made hands on the board can be improved. It is not a guaranteed split.
So if the board is a straight and you can't improve that straight, then don't bet at it. It's an obvious bluffing situation and nobody is going to fold, especially in limit hold'em. Plus if an opponent has a better straight then he'll gladly raise you and you have no way to know if he is bluffing you back so you pretty much have to call. In the nanos where I play there's no rake due to the pot size. However at higher levels because of rake you'll lose money bluff betting the straight board when the best you can hope for is a split.
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