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Bob Ciaffone's 20 Questions
April 17, 2001

In each of the following questions, select the one best answer. Assume you are playing in a typical game in a public cardroom against sane opponents. After you have answered all the questions, press "Submit," and you will see what I believe is the correct answer.

For the first ten questions, you are playing $20-40 limit hold'em with a bet and three raises allowed.

1)	You are in early position with the Kh-Qh in a nine-handed game. No one has entered the pot yet. You should: Just call Raise the pot Look behind you to see if anyone has grabbed a bunch of chips
2)	You are in the little blind with Ac-Js. The cutoff seat opens with a raise, the button folds, and it is up to you. The raiser is a middle-aged man who has not been in the game long. You should: Fold Call Raise
3)	You are in the big blind with pocket eights. The game is loose, and some people are seeing the flop on some ugly hands like J-7 suited and A-3 offsuit. There are a caller in early position, middle position, on the button, and in the small blind. You should: Decline the option to raise Pop it, because there is a good chance you have the best hand here. Pop it, because the large number of players give nice pot odds.
4)	You are on the button with two black queens. One player in early position limps. You of course raise. The big blind and limper call. The flop comes 9h-8h-3d. They check and you bet. The blind folds and the limper now check-raises. You should: Just call, see what comes, and whether the opponent bets the turn Reraise, because you are very likely to have the best hand. Reraise, because the opponent is probably on a draw.
5)	You are in the big blind with two black queens. One player in early position limps, and the button calls. You of course raise. The limper and the button call. The flop comes 9h-8h-3d. You bet, the limper folds, and the button raises. Just call, and check the turn Reraise, and bet the turn unless a heart comes. Reraise, and bet the turn no matter what comes.
6)	You pick up Ad-Kd in the cutoff seat after a long dry spell. Two players limp, you raise, the button cold-calls, the big blind comes, and of course the two limpers dutifully call. The flop comes 8s-6s-2d. The three players in front of you check. You should: Check and hope the button checks, so you get a free card. Bet, trying to get last position by knocking out the button. Bet; there is a very reasonable chance you have the best hand.
7)	You pick up the Kd-Jd on the button. The cardroom calling station calls under the gun and everyone else folds. You should: Call Raise, to punish the dude for playing every third hand in front position. Raise, to get out the blinds and have "dinner" all to yourself.
8)	You hold Ah-Ks and open with a raise. Only the button calls. The flop is Kh-8d-5c. You bet, he calls. The turn is the 4c. You bet, and he raises. The opponent seems to be a pretty solid player. You should: Fold Call Reraise
9)	You hold Ah-Ks and open with a raise. Five people call, including the button, and the blinds fold. The flop is Kh-8d-5c. You bet, and the next player plus the button call. The turn is the 4c. You bet, the next player raises, and the button folds. The opponent seems to be a pretty solid player. You should: Fold Call Reraise
10)	You hold 10s-10d in the big blind. Four players limp, the button raises, you call, and the limpers call. The flop comes Jc-10c-10h, giving you quads. You manage to keep a poker face and follow this game plan: Check the flop, call if someone bets, and spring to life later. Check the flop, raise if someone bets, and bet the turn. Bet the flop
11)	In a no-limit hold'em ten-handed satellite, you get $300 worth of chips and are starting out with a $5-$10 blind, which goes up every 15 minutes. You pick up Ac-Qs on the first hand and are second to act. The first player folds; you: Call, because you are not looking to get heavily involved out of position here Open for $25, to get a little money out there in case you help on the flop Raise to $50, because you have to get a hold of some chips for the next level
12)	In a no-limit hold'em tournament eight-handed last table, you pick up 6s-6c and are in middle position. It is folded to you. The blinds are $500-$1000 (no ante), and you have $7000 in chips, slightly below average. You should: Call Open for about $2500 Go all-in
13)	You are first to act in a $5-5-10 blind n-limit hold'em money game, and pick up two black queens. You open for $50 and everyone folds around to the big blind, who reraises to a total of $200. You have a grand in front of you and the other player has about the same. What do you do? Fold Call Reraise
14)	In a pot-limit Omaha $10-25 blind money game, you pick up Kd-Qd-10s-9s in the big blind. You have $2000 in chips. Three players limp in and the little blind folds. The recommended play for you is to: Check Make a small raise Raise the max
15)	In an eight-handed no-limit ace-to-five lowball game with a $10 ante and $25 big blind, you pick up K-6-4-3-2. A player opens in early position for $125 and you call. The pot is about $350. You each take one card. You catch a 2, making a pair of deuces for low. The opponent checks. You should: Decline the option to raise Bet about $150 Bet about the pot size
16)	You have a $300 bankroll and the rent money of $500 is due the next day. Your cousin is coming to town later in the week, who is supposed to repay the grand he owes you, but meanwhile you want to keep your good relation with your landlord and pay the rent as soon as it is due. You play all poker forms well, but just had a bad run of luck at basketball bets. Your safest game to make this attempt at doubling your bankroll is probably: $5-10 seven-card stud $5-$10 Texas hold'em $5-$10 Omaha high
17)	In a $15-30 seven-card stud game, you start with (Qh-Qd) 9c. The club deuce bets the mandatory $5, you make it $15, the 10c calls, and an ace and king both fold. (No queens or tens were folded.) You breathe a sigh of relief, but it is short-lived. On fourth street you buy a dead deuce, and the 10c makes an open pair with the 10d and bets. What do you do? Fold. Phooey Call, but be prepared to fold on fifth street if you do not improve Call, play the hand through, but not call on the river without at least queens up.
18)	High-low split eight-or-better seven-card stud, $15-30 limit. You have (Kc-3h) Ks. The 2h lowcard on your immediate left bets the obligatory $5, an ace completes the bet to $15, and the field folds. No aces or kings showed anywhere. What do you do? Fold. This is a bad spot to gamble Call. You must battle for the ante money Raise. The ace is much more likely to have three babies than aces
19)	No one alive today knows for sure where the game of Texas hold'em originated, but most of the old-time players think it was first played in: Dallas, Texas Robstown, Texas Ada, Oklahoma
20)	You are a floorperson who gets called over to make a ruling in a $25-$25 blind pot-limit hold'em game. The first player puts a $100 bill into the pot and says nothing. The next player puts four $25 chips into the pot and says nothing. Two more players put four $25 chips into the pot and say nothing. Now the first player, the one who put a $100 bill into the pot, says, "raise." The next player says, "I thought you were the raiser. You can't raise again." The would-be raiser says, "I didn't say anything when the bill was put into the pot, so that was a call. You raised, and now I have the right to reraise." How do you rule? Rule that putting the $100 bill into the pot saying nothing was a call, according to the "oversize chip rule," so the player is now entitled to reraise. Rule that the player who put the bill into the pot helped cause the confusion, so is not entitled to take advantage of it. Look at the player's hand before making your ruling, and see if he has a legitimate raise.