subject: Playing Aces for Value on the Button [print this page] Playing Aces for Value on the Button Playing Aces for Value on the Button
Playing in a micro stakes, no-limit game on Full Tilt Poker the other day, I woke up with AA on the button. The table was rather tight and passive. The action was opened by the player under the gun (UTG) who raised the big blind by a single bet. The raise was called by UTG+1. The action was then folded to me on the button and I decided to re-raise with my aces. I made it 4 bets and UTG and UTG+1 folded. I was actually happy to see this much action from this passive table.
The flop came Ac4d7d. So I have top set but the two diamonds were somewhat troublesome for me. Right now the best hand possible was AAA but a diamond flush was not outside the realm of possibilities. UTG checked and I bet around 2/3 of the pot, 0.60. UTG raised my bet to 1.20. At this point I put him on a range of hands that included A4, A7, 44 and 77. I also considered that he might have a diamond draw but if he did I wanted to price him out. I had $3.19 left. I considered a $2.40 raise but I would be pot comitted at that point so I re-raised all in making the pot $3.79. The pot offered 2.34:1 odds against the flush draw which was a 4:1 against with two cards to come. Surely, if my opponent had a flush draw he would go away. If, however he had the A4 or the A7 or either of the two pairs making a set the pot odds were right and a call would be in order. Sure enough, he called and was, himself, all in. Our stacks were pretty even at the time. When the cards were turned up he showed bottom set with one diamond.
At this point I had to dodge 1 out, the case 4. The flush, was eliminated as a Qc came on the turn. The 8d pealed off at the river and I won a large pot for this micro stakes game.
It is always a mistake to charge ahead without considering the consequences of one's actions which is precisely what my opponent seems to have done. In this case, I believe he was blinded by his set of fours and discounted the possibility that I held AA which wasthe best hand on the board. He also discounted the possibility that I held 77 producing a set of sevens. His set of fours was the worst possible hand available on this board. A flush draw was also present, but with needing runner-runner two diamonds, the probability of a flush ranked around 60% against. It amazed me that he didn't hear the alarm bells that my all in bet should have set off in his head. Sitting with bottom set and facing an all in bet is a time to pause. So much could beat you that a call does not appear to be warranted. The pot was offering 2.34:1 and with two cards to come the flush draw is 4:1 against. Bottom set is dead against top or middle set so no matter what the pot offered the bet would be unwise. In fact, my opponent was drawing dead to the case four, at this point better than 30:1 against. There is no profit in calling here, but the lure of a set is sometimes too hard to pass up. I win a monster pot for the level I am playing.
Learning how to make big lay-downs is part of plugging leaks in one's game. If our roles were reversed, I probably would have laid that bottom set down. Too much could beat me and the information I had based on betting and raising would place my opponent on a monster hand. Better to fold and fight another day than make a call that, while technically profitable, is destined to be a looser.
