Tourney / NL

Third pair on the flop, final table of the PokerStars Sunday Million


Game type: No limit hold’em tournament
Your image: You just lost a key hand
Stage of tourney: Final table
Avg stack: About 8 million
Misc notes:
Your hand: 8♣8♠

This hand is based on actual game play from the final table of the PokerStars Sunday Million

The setup: Preflop, Player B makes a standard raise to 720,000. Two players fold and you make the call with your eights. The flop comes:

10♣9♥6♣

… and Player B checks to you. What’s your play with third pair and a gut shot?


9 COMMENTS  (Jump to comment form)

Bill
2.19.07 / 12am

Check behind and take a free card. We have position and can make a play on the turn. Also, it would really help to have a read on player B. Does he check flops after being the preflop raiser? Does he like to trap? Etc. But I think we can use our position to reevaluate the situation on the turn, and not risk betting ourselves off the hand if we’re checkraised.

Paul
2.19.07 / 1am

I would prefer to place a good bet, hoping to scare the other one off. I have a reasonable stack lead on him, and I have a fair number of different outs, even possibly leading to a very good hand like a straight or trips (or even a second 10, 9 or 6 would be good enough, giving me two pair).
Precisely because of the fact that he only made a standard raise, he is like NOT to have a monster hand, but just enough to give him a fair starting hand to try and chase out some players pre-flop to enhance his chances.
I would place him on a fair hand like KQuns or at best A with a low kicker card. My chances of simply getting two pair are better than his in such a case, and two pair would probably be enough to take the hand.

Mike
2.19.07 / 1am

I disagree with the range of hands you put the player on. He’s raising UTG+1 at a full table. Assuming he/she is a decent player (which I believe is fair considering it’s the final table of the Sunday Million), I highly doubt they’re raising ace-rag from that position

Sam
2.19.07 / 3am

Considering his weak position and his standard raise, I would put him on hands like AK, AQ and maybe AJs, KQs, JQs or any pair from AA to 66. In the last case, he either has overpairs, sets or open end straight draw and he’s not going to fold if you bet. However, he would probably fold the high cards as it’s a scary board, so I think a 1M bet is not a bad idea. You will know where you stand and you would still have enough chips left to compete if he reraises you and you fold. We don’t have any read on him, so let’s bet for information. If I knew that it’s the kind of guy who bets weak hands and checks good hands (there is always one!), I would probably get the free card.

drhoho
2.19.07 / 7am

I agree with the staff on this one. As long as we dont have read on him, bet something standard like 1.3 million.
He migth of course be slowplaying A 10, overpair or perhaps even a set.
But Seems very likely that he has something like AK, AQ, AJ, KQ or KJ, and thinks you probably hit the flop. And your stack is pretty healthy if you have to fold.

Dan L
2.19.07 / 10am

I agree with the consensus here betting somewhere in the 1 million to 1.3 million range. I considered that bet large since it’s more than half the pot, you really should make it more clear what bet small and bet large mean.

Checking here looks like a big mistake to me. If you’re that scared of overpairs from early position raises, you shouldn’t call them with 88 in the first place. Because your opponent is in the 10-15 M range, I think it’s more likely he has two big cards, and it’s pretty important to bet and not let a scare card hit on the turn if that’s the case.

tsifreak
2.19.07 / 2pm

I agree I want to take the pot down now and even if a call from the other player happened thats OK your still in control of the hand. With as many outs as you have on the flop checking is just not the thing to do here like they said it would induce weakness to the other player and punish you on the turn and you wont know where your at then.
If anything I would bet the other player is on a draw as well but you have a made hand so take advantage with it before it gets worse.

Anonymous
2.19.07 / 2pm

Bet the pot, shows strength,and if he calls you know where he stands>

dust2
2.19.07 / 3pm

bet the pot,and you will most likely win,and seams as though you lost previous hand,they will think you are real strong this time.Usally when a person comes out betting after a beat,who is a semi tight player has the goods.