Friday, July 30, 2010

Poker Drivel: Not Good Enough

I found myself in another relatively large stakes (for me, anyway) invitational tournament and busted out only 3 hands after the add-on, before the lunch break, when pretty much everybody had LOADS of chips to play with. Here's how it went...

Raiser in middle position makes it 2BB. Everyone folds to me; I call with 9Tc on the button. I'll often lay this down, but I've got position and this player has been relatively tight, though he does seem to overvalue his hands sometimes. The blinds fold also.

The flop came 7c8d2c...

Our raiser bets just below the pot, which I expected him to do almost no matter what came. I double his bet. He doesn't hesitate much in doubling THAT bet. I think for awhile... I have the OES draw, flush draw, and this guy ISN'T betting with a draw so I'm good if I hit either one. He's likely on an overpair or a set; I'd give equal odds to either.  With two clubs on the board, he's certain he's ahead for now but would prefer not to see another card. I call. Here's where the real trouble begins...

The turn is 8c...

I get a little starry-eyed for a couple of reasons... I hit the flush, for one, and I've now got the straight flush with EITHER the Jc or 6c. (You guys already know where this is going...) He shoves for about 2x pot and I call far too quickly, too caught up in my cards to think clearly about what's happening here.

Of course, he did have the set on the flop... 77 for sevens-full on the Turn. I have to hit the straight flush now.

River's a blank and I go home 34th / 40, before the lunch break...

Everybody shook my hand and said there was nothing I could do, but I disagree strongly... I need to be good enough to keep my wits about me, remember what I've got the other guy on, and keep the hands in perspective. I could and SHOULD have gotten away from that hand and used my remaining chips to rebuild.

I'll remember that hand for a long time, especially when I start feeling like I'm pretty good. I need to remember the time I was not good enough.

2 comments:

bastinptc said...

I don't know, buddy. The bet on-the-come is probably something I wouldn't do. But I may be too passive. Still, when I see a flush hit on the turn, even with the paired board...maybe you could have gotten away from your hand given that you basically have a baby flush. Hard to say. His betting did represent strength...

PAPro_SandMan said...

Yeah, if I'd stayed clear headed enough, I would have *known* he had a boat. But the open-ended straight flush draw mesmerized me. Thankfully those don't happen very often.