This is a hand I posted in the low content section, because it is a bad beat story and that is where it belongs. Yet if we change the circumstances a bit it may have some merit as a strategical discussion.

You are dealt pocket Aces in the SB pretty close to the bubble. This is a fairly big tournament that you got into by winning a satellite. The payouts would be enough for you to maybe not quit your dayjob if you made the final table, but enough to say take a couple of months hiatus. Blinds are 60/120 w/ no antes yet and you have 4370 in chips.

3 folds and then the loosest player at the table raises to 500. This guy will play anything and you know it. He will not fold to any raise no matter how obvious it is that he is behind. He has 8515 in chips, but used to have much more. He's been hemoraging chips since you've been moved to the table. Your table image does not matter because he doesn't care.

It's folded back to you. Do you actually think of just calling or, God forbid, folding knowing that he will call any bet with any 2 cards and you are sooo close to the money, which is substantial.

***In my case, he only min-raised to 240 and I made it painfully obvious that he was beat and moved all-in. He called with a small Ace and I lost to a full house. I actually thought about just calling or even folding for one second, but not really because it was a low buy-in tournament.

What would you do in the above scenario? Let's say the lower payouts are equal to 2 - 3 months salary for you.

i still push because if just making the money is good for you, moving up the payout structure is even better.

Just making the money in a tournament is totally overrated. If you can coast to it by virtue of your big stack, and find yourself at a loose table where you'd rather pick your spots.. then great. Otherwise, I'm looking to become enough of a danger that I can survive at least a few levels into the money.. where I get paid enough for my time.

agree with push. unless you're playing in that $50k HORSE tourney or one of those wacky $100k things they did in Australia (no satellites, iirc), then you're basically just getting a buy-in when you squeak into the money.

after taxes, i don't think there's really going to be enough to take a hiatus from work.


[edited for spelling]

Let's say WSOP Main Event type MTT and you only spent about $20 to $100 on a satellite to get in. I know, far fetched, but maybe Allstar will weigh in here.

You make the money you get $15,000+. Nice pay day. I'm not saying I would fold either, but something to think about.

Kuso, I've learned a thing about taxes and these big tournaments. Friend of a friend made the final table at a WPT Borgata Main Event in January won my the Grinder. I'll just say that taxes depend on the casino and I've heard that more than once since then.

well, um, you should pay taxes anyway. and you have to tip the dealers (at least at the WSOP).

i dunno, maybe i'm spoiled, but the thought of $15k wouldn't give me enough of a stiffy to fold aces when winning with them might increase my EV to $30k or more.

if it was a family pot and i KNEW that i was making the money if i fold but miss it if i call and lose, i might think about folding. that's a very specific and unlikely scenario, though. in the scenario you gave, there is a lot more play in the tourney, so doubling up would likely take you A LOT deeper. this is doubly true given that so many people (esp. SSs) start dumping after they make the money.

I can think of about 1 scenario - where you are on the bubble in a satellite event - let's say where the prize is 3 WSOP main event seats - you are 2nd stacked with a stack of 25BB, one guy has all the rest of the chips in play apart from 5BB and the other 2 have 2BB and 3BB respectively. Big stack pushes - I am still folding even AA...

But in any event where the prize money increases after the bubble I get my money in with AA