Hand 1, I have A23Q on the button with a suited ace and make a raise. 2 callers. Flop brings 24J rainbow. It's checked to me, and I decide that it doesn't look likely to have hit anyone, good spot for a steal. The BB, who I haven't seen much of but had pegged as a solid-ish player, calls. Turn brings an offsuit 9. He bets $15 into a $65-ish pot. This looks weak to me, something of a blocking bet, so I raise the full pot, nearly $100, back at him with nothing but a low draw. I'm thinking his play doesn't look like a set or big two pair with low draw type hand, I want him to lay down here. I do have a little back-up if things go horribly wrong, and perhaps a few ways out although I can't see myself having a scooping card here! Anyhow, he lays down after some thought and I win a nice pot. I think it's not the greatest bluff in the world because it's hard for him to put me on a huge hand, even though I'm representing one all the way with my betting. Plus, his play looks like he maybe has a draw, so I'm clutching at straws a bit to hope he doesn't have, say, A356. I was basically hoping he'd fold something like A3TT etc, or a weak two pair, and I guess I got my wish. Any thoughts?
Hand 2, this one just shows how useful a bit of aggression can be! Ended up making a big score here, when I could easily have checked down and won much less.
Again, the hand is similar, A23J with a suited AJ in
![[h]](https://livepokerforum.com/images/smilies/hearts.gif "Hearts")
. This time I am in LP and make a small raise again. There's about 4 callers including the blinds, one has position on me, and flop comes AQ3 rainbow. First two players check to me, often I check/fold weak two pairs, especially against aggressive opponents and when a big draw could have me decimated, but here my opponents seemed passive and fairly tight. If the player with position on me calls I'm done with the hand unless I boat up or something on the turn. Otherwise I'll try to showdown cheap.
All fold to the player just before me, who calls. He is passive, so far, doesn't appear remarkably loose. The turn brings 2[h] which gives me a flush draw to go with my 3 pair, but leaves me staring a low or wheel in the face. He checks, I am wary of being check-raised here when I could take it on the river if he checks again and/or make a winning high hand, so I check in turn also. River brings another A, giving me the second nut high hand. He checks to me. Now, my thinking is that he's betting a nut high, or 45 for a wheel here, and any other boat made with a set he'd have bet before now. HOWEVER, he might easily have a garbage low if he has a random 47 or something, and he really couldn't call with that, so I can rescue half the pot by bluffing him out. Of course, the danger is that I have no backup low, so if by some quirk he DOES have AQ, I just flushed a lot of money down the toilet. We both have $300+ stacks and so he could make a collosal check-raise, which I would likely fold to.
Anyhow, it worked out better than expected, with an alternative I hadn't considered: He had A255, no low, and AAA22 for high against me AAA33, and I scooped a nice pot with my high. Good stuff! I could've checked the river down and won a tiny pot, but I think my play was fairly sensible here, not necessarily just because A2 was hugely likely, but more because I might just get him to lay down a hand with a weak low and rescue half the pot.
Great month for me so far, haven't put in many hours at all and broke $3k yesterday, so my mid-year progress is going well. I will put in an in-depth report and figures for the first half of 2005 in 5 weeks or so, as I haven't kept up my journal too well.
Oh, and I'm away this weekend - down in London.
Monk
xxxxx
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