Harsh Beats

As you are probably aware you have to expect a few harsh beats when your playing, here is a few of mine. What's most fustrating is when you make an excellent read/call and get punished for it by the draw of the cards (especially if it is late in a competition!):

KJ vs QT:
So I'm playing the 160 buck deepstack at Ceasers palace, started with 10k and I'm on about 40k and we're pretty late in (last 4 tables)
Most of the table are good solid players and sensible, so I'm happy with my seat.

The blinds are 400-800 with 100 anti, and the action folds round to me on the small blind, I have KJ offsuit.

I know the big blind will call my raise as he is that type of player, but he won't raise his own big blind to protect, so I elect to call and just play the flop - he's quite a tricky player and has around 30k behind him.

The flop brings KQ2 rainbow (pot 2600)

I check and he bets 4k...thats a strange overbet. He is on big blind so I don't figure him to hit that flop much, at best a 2 pair or a very disguised trip 2's, I take a sneaky look over at him and am not convinced by his body language - he is looking away from the table and messily playing with his chips...he is quite an old guy and obviously experienced in poker but from what I've seen, not a solid player.

I decide to re-raise him here, I don't want to play another card out of position, I got more chips than him so I can bully, and I figure my KJ is the best holding - so I re-raise to 10k. This pot has got a bit out of control but I'm not too upset about that because I'm sure I have the best hand.

He instantly goes all-in for another 9k. Instantly going all-in is a tell that he hasn't got a made hand. The reason why is, if say he had a hand like trip 222's, he would need to think about the best way to extract the maximum value from the hand, at least for a moment!

Most likely he thinks I don't have a hand and am trying a sneaky play (which aligns with my image, young gun in leather jacket, talks a lot, tricky player, likes to raise). Another tell (in my opinion) of the instant all-in is that the person has decided they are going to bluff and pull the trigger straight away so that they don't talk/think themselfs out of it!

There is a lot of factors that allow me to call here:
a) I think I have the better hand
b) If he does have a hand like Q2 I still have outs (a king or jack or paired board)
c) I have more chips than him so will still be in the game if i lose, although partially crippled
d) I have awesome pot odds (9k to win 33k)
e) If I win I will become the chip leader
f) If I call and am ahead the table with fear me (even more so than before)

So I call and he shows QT, I'm way ahead, awesome call.

Next card is a Queen and he takes the pot....So fustrating, If I won that hand I would have probably won or finished late in the tournament, there was only a few other players who were top standard and none of those were on my table. Instead I spent the next few hours battling with a short stack and eventually got knocked out on the last 3 tables trying to steal a big blind with a weak holding and losing the showdown. super bitter...but thats poker!!

89 vs Q6
Pretty late in the 160$ Ceasers Palace game and I'm on around 22k, the blinds are 400-800. My table is wreckless, I got 4 players on my right going all in/raising every hand, and 4 tight players on my left...this is actually a pretty good seat positional wise.
Finally everyone on my right folds round to me, and i have 89 offsuit - I elect to limp as it looks kinda suspicious with all the pre-flop raising going on and hence might give me a chance to see a flop and make a cheap steal. I could even re-raise all in pre-flop is someone makes a weak raise on my left.
Everyone folds round to the small blind who completes and the big blind checks.

Flop 89Q rainbow, pot is 3300 (800+800+800+antis 900)

The small blind and big blind check so I raise to 2000, 2000 is a good bet for my 89 2 pair because it looks like a cheap steal on the button but has pretty value also (2000 into a 3300 pot). The small blind re-raises to 5000 - he has around 30k behind and has played straight forward poker, the big blind folds.
I take a few minutes to think about his possible holdings on the small blind, and the obvious conclusion is that he holds either; a queen with a weak kicker, a semi bluff (e.g. 9T so he has a pair and straight draw), or a better 2 pair than mine. He doesn't seem like a player who would semi bluff and it is unlikely he flopped the straight (TJ) because he would probably slow play it as there are no scare cards (e.g. a flush draw). He also doesn't seem like a player who would slow player a monster (e.g. KK, AA, QQ) - there is a chance he could have trip 88 or 99 but that is unlikely as I have an 8 and 9 and there is an 8 and 9 on the board.

So I re-raise him all in, thinking I'm either behind to a higher 2 pair (which would be unlucky and is quite unlikely) or ahead to a weak queen and he will either fold or go in behind which is fine by me. The amount of the pot is good enough for me to take down right there (10300) and I don't want to slow play my hand because it isn't that strong + there is a lot of cards that could scare me (e.g. a T, J, Q, even A or K), although I would have position on him for the rest of the hand. He calls and shows Q6...the river comes a 6 and his 2 pair beats my 2 pair and knocks me out of the tournament. Sigh, play good and get punished again! damn poker...:(

AT vs 88
So we're early on in the tournament I already have a pretty good read on my table. One of my friends is there (Will, a french man) who is a superb player and I've already had to fold some good hands to him because there is just no point getting involved with other good players so early in the tournament when there are easier chips to be won.

The blinds are 75 150 and I have around 10k behind me, its a deepstack so everyone has arond the same stack size. so anyway, limp, limp, limp, I have 88 one before the button and call, the button raises to 650. Everyone folds round to me, I've seen this player in a few hands already and didn't believe him in any of them, he is very geeky looking and has glasses/scruffy hair, obviously an internet player.

I announce that I should raise because I have the best hand but elect to just call. I'm sure at this point he has a mediocre holding like KQ or AT (or equivilant strength)

The flop brings 992 rainbow (pot 1825)

I check and he bets 750, again I know he hasn't hit the flop and that I have the best hand - his body language almost instantly tells me that he has a weak holding, so I raise to 2k.

He instantly goes all in for around 10k and marginally has me covered. This is fustrating, but I know I have the best hand, I take a while to think about it and look to my left at him to increase my physical read (which is all I'm going on now, online I would have to fold this), and I am convinced that he hasn't got it. When I say also, "I know you don't have it" he shrivels and looks nervous and try's to talk but his voice breaks lol..what a loser. Reminds me of comic book guy from the Simpsons.

I mentioned before that the instant all-in looks weak and this is another example (if he had an overpair which is obviously what he is trying to represented, e.g. AA KK QQ or JJ, he would think for at least a few minutes about what the best way extract the maximum value is)

Anyway so I call, and he shows AT, the river brings an ace and I go out of the tournament....so annoying - punished for the an excellent play, I was so happy with the way I played the hand and my read however, that I wasn't too upset.

My friend Will said afterwards that it was a great but unnecessary call because I'm good enough to avoid situations where it is down luck, even when ahead - at least this early in the tournament (the AT still has about 30% after the flop). He makes a fair point, and like I said before is a great player, but I'm still happy with the call...I like the idea of stacking up early. Damn showdowns, killing me. It will be something I take into consideration next time though when I am faced with a similiar situation.

QQ vs KK (cash):
So I've been playing this cash game for about an hour at Bally's and I have pretty good reads on all my tables and am in a steady profit.
This hand I pick up QQ on the button, everyone folds round to the guy on my right who raises to 12$ (blinds 1-2). I have a good sense on this guy that he only raises with premium cos he is very tight so I elect to call on the button and take advantage of position - there is no point raising because I might have to fold to a re-raise or have a race for a big pot, I figure most likely at this point he has JJ, KK, AA AK or AQ. My image is fairly loose as I have played quite a lot of hands.

The blinds fold and the flop comes KQ2 rainbow (pot 27$)

Premium. He bets out 25 which is basically the pot, I elect to just call and slow play this monster - I'm pretty sure he has AA or AK here so he would probably call a raise but I don't want to raise any suspicion and there is no cards that can do me much damage on the turn so a call seems like the best option.

The turn comes 2(KQ2), pot 77$

He checks, and I bet behind - this is obviously a good hand to slow play, however I'm sure he has a strong hand also and will be willing to put more chips in the pot, and because he checked to me a raise doesn't look as suspicious (if he raised and I re-raised then that would obviously show I have a super strong hand). So I bet 50$ and he calls, I started the hand with around 350 dollars, him 300 so now we both have around 200-250 behind.

The river comes 7(KQ22) no flushes, pot 177$

He checks, I think he has AK and doesn't want the pot to get any bigger so I value bet the river....if I had AK and I was a tight player, how much would I call? I figure around 70 dollars is a safe option, I could just push all in but he might fold AK with that.
So I raise to 70 and unexpectedly he pushes all in for a total 220 or so, oh dear. I think for a few moments but it is a pretty easy call, I'm only losing to 2 hands KK or 22, pretty unlikely he has 22...KK is a reasonable holding though and lines up with all the action so far. I can't fold this though, so I call and he shows the KK for full house KKK22 vs my QQQ22 - I feel like someone has just punch me gut, bitter. thats poker :(

22 vs KK
tbc