$25 PLO on UB. Passive table.
My stack: $30. Opponent: $20.

I get [9c][9h][Tc] in the BB. Pot is unraised with 5 callers, so contains $1.50. Flop is
[3h][6d].

How to play this? Try for a check-raise? I decided to lead out, fearing that it would be checked around, so I bet the pot. One opponent calls. He is passive but usually plays decent hands.

Turn is . What now? I lead out for $2, and got min.raised. I don't think my opponent would make this play on a draw. With $10,50 in the pot, I called; river was a . I folded to a pot sized bet.

Pieter

It would be helpfull to know your opponats position, it is quite possible he is playing a low wrapping cards in late position. Either way after the river there really isn't much you can beat other than a fish making a stupid play. I'd fold in that position too.

The flop is one that you could try to check-raise on BUT you need to know who's downriver of you... If it's a very passive table you should lead out with the nut set. You should only check if there's a preflop raiser behind you (who is more likely to get excited and bet, say, an overpair), or if there's an aggressive or bluffy player yet to bet.

On the turn there are (count em!) THREE ways to play this. The straightforward way is to assume he had to have either 45 (open ender) or 78T or something for the straight wrap, in which case you can check and hope he offers good odds to draw to a boat. A second method is to go ahead and bet again, on the offchance he has a hand like 789 and hasn't hit a straight on this card. Personally I don't like this one much, most passive low-level players will just check and take the free card without the straight, and if he DOES have the straight he'll surely raise.

A third way you might not have considered here is check-raising all in (or, in this case, for most of your stack). I know it sounds ridiculous but it's actually a relatively sophisticated play many higher level players will make in precisely this situation against a sensible but aggressive opponent. The thinking is this - 1) If he has the straight he'll put you all in, and you have a 25% chance of winning the hand. 2) If he doesn't have the straight you got an extra bet out of him and he no longer has implied odds to draw unless he has a big wrap; he has to put you on a straight now so unless he has the same hand he must fold; you may even lose a decent player who has a low straight made with 45. This will only work in VERY specific situations though; the equity is not there in this move if your opponent is guaranteed to call (a calling station) and isn't able to lay down a strong but non-nut hand, and when you have large stacks and know that he has implied odds to call a draw there's little reason to do it if it won't force out a hand with a wrap/flush draw type set-up. However, against a cautious and aggressive opponent who can fold a hand, when the draw that's hit has not NECESSARILY made him the nuts (for instance, I wouldnt do it if a flush draw just hit and there's likely no other draw he could hold) AND when your raise is significantly large to put you all-in or pot commit you, it's an interesting play. I believe I picked this one up off Rolf Slotboom, a very good PLO player who writes for Cardplayer magazine and who i've spoken to online a few times.

HOWEVER- Be warned! That was merely an aside, really; in this case I think it's highly unlikely that your opponent fits the required bill for this play (it is a $25 buyin so the chances of him folding, say, 45, are probably not great). If you have a great read on him it IS one to remember, but here I think I would go for option one - checking (or, in your case, making a blocking bet - never do this on a big money table against astute players as you'll get eaten alive, UNLESS you're doing it as a deceptive play with the nuts, hoping for a raise). If he gives you odds to continue, fine. If not, then give him credit for the straight this time (unless you want to go for the aggressive check-raise play, but be CAUTIOUS with this move, if you use it at all, which perhaps at PLO25 you shouldn't!).

Against a decent but straightforward player who can lay a hand down I would make a 2/3 bet or so on the river on the offchance he'll lay down a straight with no flush (which, indeed, he should). Against the typical 25PLO player I think you should probably give up on that river.

I think you played it just about right really; I know it's tough but drawouts happen in PLO, a lot .

Hope this has helped you . Glad to have you on board on the omaha forum, keep posting!

Monk
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Thanks Monk, as always, your advice is very helpful. Btw, coming from Holland, I've seen Rolf Slotboom play PLO live a couple of times, which was pretty impressive. Did you ever play against him?

Pieter

Not as far as I know, unless he plays online under a name I'm not aware of. As far as I'm aware he plays in the E1000+ games live over in Holland, though he has played in London (again, not while I've been around). Online I mostly play $100 and $200 buyins which I suspect would be a little low for his tastes unless the games were very good. On the odd occasions I've played $400 buyins online I guess it's not outside the realms of possibility. Dave "Devilifish" Ulliott often plays the $400 game at UB as it's usually the largest game available on the site for PLO, which is his favourite game, so I've played him once or twice.

Monk
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