Serendipity

by Jim Woods

All too seldom, we get the kind of hand we dream of: great cards and opponents with lots of chips and the motivation to spend them. Allow me to share with you my latest.

I had been in a $2/$5 no-limit holdem game for less than an hour and I was up about $110 from my buy-in of $300. I was on the button and everyone folded to the player to my right (let's call him "Trey," for reasons that will become obvious later), who raised to $25. Peering at my hole cards, I discovered what my poker buddies and I call a "Negreanu," meaning suited connectors. In this case, it was 6 5, too pretty to abandon on the button for $25 without seeing the flop. After my call and the small blind's fold, however, the big blind ("Adam," short for "Adamant") raised to $75. I put him on a big pocket pair or suited Big Slick, and I never call heads up with a Negreanu (well...as far as YOU know I don't, to quote Chevy Chase in "Caddyshack." ) But when Trey called, I put both of them on big cards and thought I might (a) luck out with an all-baby flop or (b) be able to get away cheaply after the flop.

And whattaflop! Fortunately there was a large player between Adam and I (which made three of us), because when I saw the 4 3 7 masterpiece, I checked and re-checked my hole cards to make sure I really had what I thought I had! (I was wearing sunglasses, but after the hand the player directly across from me said, "I knew what you had even through those shades!") Adam had done everything right before the flop, but the poker gods had dealt him a cruel blow. He had "Black Barts"-A A. With little hesitation he bet $150, probably after thinking a little something like this (much faster than you can read it, of course):

1. Trey raised to $25, and then just called the reraise. He almost surely doesn't have AA or KK, and most people in this particular casino protect their QQ with a bigger raise than $25. Most likely he is not merely bluffing, though. He probably has a pocket pair, two big cards, or Ax.
2. "Sunglasses" [that would be me] probably doesn't have AA, KK, or QQ, and he could have a worse hand than Trey, since he has position. In fact, there are LOTS of hands he could have, and many of them include a big diamond OR the 5 or 6. Many players on the button will call a reasonable preflop raise with presto or 66, not to mention 77 and even 44 and 33. 65 offsuit, however, isn't a strong possibility, so I'm not worried about a flopped straight.
3. But a set isn't the real cause for concern. Black aces aren't a big favorite against a lone diamond on an all-diamond flop, even heads up. [Of course, Adam didn't have a poker odds calculator at the table, but at most A A is a 63-37 favorite on that flop against a lone opponent holding one diamond and has no straight possibility, such as K Q.] Black Barts are even a slight underdog heads up against 66 or 55 hands that include a diamond, and this is a three-way pot. If each opponent has a diamond, there's trouble in River City.
4. Should I check? Naaaaah...I can't give them a free card, or invite a bluff or semi-bluff bet that will be hard to call. There's no reason to assume that an opponent flopped a set, given all of the low cards on board. A Q J T or K J T flop would have been a totally different story. And even if one of them has a set, how could he raise me with this board?
5. What do they think I have? Most likely AA or KK, but possibly A K. I can't assume one of them flopped a flush, and they can't know that I DIDN'T. Many players would have reraised to $75 preflop with a suited Slick. And if I make a big bet, how can an opponent call with only one diamond Q or lower? Only if he's gambling with the 6 or 5, and the odds are clearly against him having BOTH [snort!]
6. So how much should I bet? Another $75 is too small, especially after one call. Sunglasses would be getting 4-to-1 odds to draw to a flush or straight. Going all in is too risky, however, even though I have both of them covered. Maybe they'll both fold black cards and I won't make any more money. $125 to $150 sounds right. If I get called and don't make trips on the turn, or a fourth diamond falls, I'll check."

Adam's strategy started to unravel when Trey quickly announced, "I'm all in." That was about a $160 raise. But his plan completely deteriorated when I said, "I'm all in, too." I had Trey covered by $25. As soon as I spoke, I regretted acting so soon. "You moron!" I said to myself (or words to that effect). I thought I should have pretended to ponder, so that Adam would think I was on a draw. I was afraid that my quick action would scare him away. However, he made his first mistake of the hand (and earned his nickname "Adamant") by calling in less than a minute, drawing stone dead!

I know that people don't like to fold after committing 45 big bets, especially with pocket rockets, but as Phil Ivey says in one of the Full Tilt Poker commercials, "Sometimes you just know you're beat." If either Trey or I had gone all in and the other had folded, Adam could have assumed that the raiser had a pair and a flush draw, so his call would have made more sense. But when TWO opponents go all in on a one-suit flop, and you have none of that suit, it's time to sigh, muck your aces, and stop the bleeding!

What did Trey have? No one made him show his eventually losing hand. However, after Adam showed his aces and before I revealed my straight flush, Trey said, "I'm in third place" (hence his nickname). I'll be a nice guy and assume he had the K and another king.

Epilogue: I didn't play another hand. After giving the dealer a big tip and racking my chips, I headed for the cashier's cage. It was only going downhill from there if I stayed.

This article was published at an earlier date on PokerPages.com and is being rerun due to popular demand.

About the Author:
Jim Woods is a middle-aged attorney (but please don't hold that against him) that loves fishing and poker. He has an undergraduate degree... that comes in handy in poker, less so in poker. His one favorite poker fantasy? Using Cling Eastwood's famous line on Phil Hellmuth while having him dominated in a hand: "I know what you're thinking... But what you gotta as yourself is: 'Do I feel lucky?' Well... do ya, punk?