Mental Lapse
Posted on November 4, 2004
I’ve been playing the $10 Sit & Gos on Party Poker recently as a break from the ring games, so today I was looking around for some advice. I came across one of the greatest pieces of no-limit advice I’ve ever heard.
A K is good for an all-in bet, but not to call an all-in.
Brilliant! Fucking brilliant! Now, do you think I could follow through with this? Hell no! We’re down to 5 players and I should have a tight table image, having only been in a few pots. I’m on the button with the blinds at 25/50 and an average stack of chips. I get dealt A♣K♠, so with one limper I raise to 200. Everyone folds around to the limper who then goes all-in. Should be an easy fold.
What could the player have to go all-in against a raise? He has a pair of some kind and most likely a high pair, possibly even A A or K K and was trying to set a trap by limping with them. If he has either of the top two pairs, I’m almost dead in the hand. If he has any other pair, I’m still an underdog in the hand. Why risk almost all of my chips in a situation that I’m not even favored to win? Take the 200 loss and move on. There is plenty of time to get a few good hands and still make it into the money.
I called of course, was up against Q♣Q♥, didn’t get any help from the board, and lost the hand. Several hands later I was out in 5th place. After a great streak in the Sit & Gos I’ve hit a brick wall. In the last 6, I’ve had five 5ths and a 4th. Pathetic, especially when I made one stupid call almost every time. I think I’m playing well in the early rounds and after making it into the money, but my bubble play is killing me. I forget to think. After all, it only takes one bad play to become the short stack.
Part of my problem is that while debating a call, the wrong thoughts are entering my head. I’m thinking, “Man, I don’t want to let someone put a move on me here.” I call and the majority of the time, there was no “move.” They have the cards and I lose a large pot. Losing large pots is not a good habit to get into, especially in tournaments.
Filed Under Online Poker, Strategy, Tournaments
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4 Responses to “Mental Lapse”
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I’ve been there. I made three all-in calls in a row yesterday in a tourney and got busted each time. And each time I had decent odds of winning. My A-J against 6-6, my A-5 against A-2, and my 2-2 agianst A-K. Race situations at a short handed table (at the end of a tournament) will either make you or break you. I could have just as easily busted all three of them and been heads up with a huge chip lead, but instead I doubled three people up and left four sitting, still duking it out.
I do this too. So many times I have a hand that should logically be an easy laydown. But I will call all-in bets because I had bet first and I think he’s trying something. Like yesterday I had A5s with 3 of us left, raised and then was check-raised all-in. I knew this guy had stolen a few pots, but the logical decision was to just lay this hand down and get him next time. Of course he happened to have JJ, i didn’t improve and suddenly I’m the short stack. I know this is wrong, tell me when you figure out how to stop doing it.
I have recently picked up Zen and the Art of Poker, it seems to be really good, but applying it is the key - so I am told.
The blogshares site is great, found you all there and will be back.