When raising with pocket aces..

[Jimmybobbin]

I like to concede im still new at this game. I like to raise pocket aces but the last couple times ive raised pocket aises between 4x and 9x the big blind i still get callers which is good but ive come across problems...

Some examples:

First round of MTT tournament, 10/15 blinds im BB, 5 call, i raise to 125, 4 people still call:

flop is 8 6 6, i put 250 into a 500 pot, 2 still call, next card is 8.

I go all in... i get called by a Q 8 offsuit so i lose to fullhouse. The Question is what size bet should i make to not scare them off but not attract these dodgy hands?

Other example:

I raise 3xBB, 2 callers:

flop is 4 10 K, i bet half the pot and guy reraises me so i go all in and he has pocket 4's so he has trips and no aces or turn come on river.

I should also note these are cheap buy in party poker tournaments.

[xBULLETTSx]

I think one thing you should remember is that A's are the best starting hand.....but are easily beaten post flop. I usually bet heavy pre flop (around 4x or 5x BB) this USUALLY scares of most of the limpers, If you get raised pre flop I would tell you to get your money in while you are in the lead, let the chips fall where the may from there (no pun intended) after the flop is where you have to make a judgement call. Usually regardless of the flop I will lead with a a nice size follow up bet (maybe half or 3/4) the pot. If you incur resistance thats when you have fall back a bit. A's are beaten easily by 2 pair or tripps. If I raise post flop and get a call or raise I will 9 times out of ten check the turn to the raiser/caller. Depending on their bet will determine where it goes from there. Sometimes u just need a read. Just remember....A's are not invincible.

[Jimmybobbin]

ok thanks for the advice, i guess you have to make a judgement and accept your losses if you believe they have the better hand. I need to readjust how attached i am to pocket aces

[xBULLETTSx]

They are a pretty site thats for sure.....lol

[chardrian]

First example - you got to slow down on that 8 on the turn. As far as your betting there... you bet over 10xBB, if you got 4 callers with that big of a bet then you just gotta play poker on the flop. That flop is scary cuz the board paired so anyone playing some crappy 56 or 67 hand has u nailed. Your bet on the flop was ok - the calls makes you stand back and sigh. And the turn is basically an instafold to any big bet and an I'll pay off any small bets.

The second example - having your As cracked by a lower pocket pair sucks, but it happens (and the more you play the more you'll see it happen). It's really hard to get away from a hand like that early since the opp could easily have a hand like AK - that's just a shrug it off and wait for the next tourney hand.

[xBULLETTSx]

Here is an example of I hand I had yesterday...I was playing a guy who I just beat 2 all in hands in a row (this was the third) he was tilting a bit but he was fishy as well. This may not be too good an example because of the flop, but I knew he did not have a K in his hand or he would have been all in after the flop. Again, this was a read I had picked up and would not have pushed if I was not positive he did not have it.



PokerStars Game #3328118340: Hold'em No Limit ($0.10/$0.25) - 2005/12/13 - 23:28:04 (ET)
Table 'Figneria' Seat #6 is the button
Seat 1: evedder02 ($3.50 in chips)
Seat 2: xBULLETTSx ($33.10 in chips)
Seat 4: Cje08 ($16.80 in chips)
Seat 5: bmw02 ($10.50 in chips)
Seat 6: gsxr6crazed ($2.25 in chips)
evedder02: posts small blind $0.10
xBULLETTSx: posts big blind $0.25
bmw02: posts small blind $0.10
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to xBULLETTSx [Ac Ah]
Cje08: folds
bmw02: calls $0.25
gsxr6crazed: folds
evedder02: calls $0.15
xBULLETTSx: raises $0.75 to $1
bmw02: calls $0.75
evedder02: folds
*** FLOP *** [Jc Kc Ks]
xBULLETTSx said, "u aint gonna tilt on me now are ya"
xBULLETTSx: checks
bmw02: bets $1.25
xBULLETTSx: calls $1.25
*** TURN *** [Jc Kc Ks] [2s]
Cje08 said, "lol"
xBULLETTSx: checks
bmw02: bets $2.25
xBULLETTSx: raises $15 to $17.25
bmw02: calls $5.90 and is all-in
*** RIVER *** [Jc Kc Ks 2s] [6c]
*** SHOW DOWN ***
xBULLETTSx: shows [Ac Ah] (two pair, Aces and Kings)
bmw02: mucks hand
xBULLETTSx collected $20.15 from pot
Cje08 said, "lol nh"
bmw02 leaves the table
xBULLETTSx said, "ty"
*** SUMMARY ***
Total pot $21.15 | Rake $1
Board [Jc Kc Ks 2s 6c]
Seat 1: evedder02 (small blind) folded before Flop
Seat 2: xBULLETTSx (big blind) showed [Ac Ah] and won ($20.15) with two pair, Aces and Kings
Seat 4: Cje08 folded before Flop (didn't bet)
Seat 5: bmw02 mucked [Js 5s]
Seat 6: gsxr6crazed (button) folded before Flop (didn't bet)

[Sprayed]

For the first hand, with that many limpers and you have AA in the BB I might just go all in. If they fold you take the small pot which is better than burning all the chips that you did. If you get one or two calls, you don't have to worry about making calls or moves on the flop. You just let the cards drop and hope nobody hits.

The second hand is more common. Don't get down over that.

[chardrian]

For the first hand, with that many limpers and you have AA in the BB I might just go all in. If they fold you take the small pot which is better than burning all the chips that you did.

You don't want to take the pot down preflop with AA. Yes they can get cracked, but you don't get that many chances to accumulate chips with a monster hand, so I like to take advantage when I can. If you are pretty certain someone actually will call your push then yes it's a good move, if you are pretty certain everyone will fold than I don't like it. His bet was big - I too would have thought that it would have given me the best chance at dwindling the field down to one or at most two more opps... which is exactly what he wants.

[Rondavu]

flop is 8 6 6, i put 250 into a 500 pot, 2 callers, next card is 8. I go all in...

That was a bad move. Two callers on 866 flop, you need to slow down when top pair duplicates.

[xBULLETTSx]

If you get one or two calls, you don't have to worry about making calls or moves on the flop. You just let the cards drop and hope nobody hits.

??????????? I think this is a bad move as well, if no one hits....and your not making moves....where does the $$ come from. Each new card that dropes gives someone another chance to hit 2 pair or tripps.

[Miffed22001]

If it is obvious that the flop brings a bether hand eg 886 flop then bet a good aggressive amount 2/3 pot fro example. If you get called then you have to keep showdown cheap, and also think of what hand calls your pot bet.
After that u have to figure out which hands that call your flop bet improve on the turn/river. This thinking helps you to think about hpw you play your example and others that will happen

[bigredhoss]

ony guarunteed way to avoid losing with AA is fold preflop``

[xBULLETTSx]

Here are a few different ways I played Aces today....yes, AA 3 times in two hours. one paid good...one paid alright...one didnt pay. Just to give you some Ideas......lol


Hand #115
PokerStars Game #3348663876: Hold'em No Limit ($0.25/$0.50) - 2005/12/16 - 10:01:58 (ET)
Table 'Sarema' Seat #2 is the button
Seat 2: xBULLETTSx ($17.85 in chips)
Seat 4: RaSeC ($15.90 in chips)
Seat 5: t-swing ($34.60 in chips)
RaSeC: posts small blind $0.25
t-swing: posts big blind $0.50
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to xBULLETTSx [Ad Ah]
xBULLETTSx: calls $0.50
RaSeC: calls $0.25
t-swing: raises $2 to $2.50
xBULLETTSx: raises $3.50 to $6
RaSeC: folds
t-swing: raises $21.50 to $27.50
xBULLETTSx: calls $11.85 and is all-in
*** FLOP *** [8s 9h 5h]
xBULLETTSx said, "AA"
*** TURN *** [8s 9h 5h] [Kd]
*** RIVER *** [8s 9h 5h Kd] [8c]
*** SHOW DOWN ***
t-swing: shows [Jh Js] (two pair, Jacks and Eights)
xBULLETTSx: shows [Ad Ah] (two pair, Aces and Eights)
xBULLETTSx collected $35.20 from pot
xBULLETTSx said, "lol"


PokerStars Game #3349150752: Hold'em No Limit ($0.25/$0.50) - 2005/12/16 - 11:57:49 (ET)
Table 'Neoptolemus' Seat #8 is the button
Seat 2: tedh ($13.20 in chips)
Seat 3: xBULLETTSx ($32.65 in chips)
Seat 8: willyjr ($38.45 in chips)
tedh: posts small blind $0.25
xBULLETTSx: posts big blind $0.50
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to xBULLETTSx [Ac As]
willyjr: folds
tedh: calls $0.25
xBULLETTSx: checks
*** FLOP *** [9h 9d Qs]
tedh: checks
xBULLETTSx: checks
*** TURN *** [9h 9d Qs] [2s]
tedh: checks
xBULLETTSx: bets $0.50
tedh: calls $0.50
*** RIVER *** [9h 9d Qs 2s] [Ad]
tedh: checks
xBULLETTSx: bets $2
tedh: raises $2 to $4
xBULLETTSx: raises $27.65 to $31.65 and is all-in
xBULLETTSx said, "i dare u"
tedh: folds
xBULLETTSx said, "AA"
xBULLETTSx collected $9.55 from pot
xBULLETTSx: doesn't show hand
*** SUMMARY ***
Total pot $10 | Rake $0.45
Board [9h 9d Qs 2s Ad]
Seat 2: tedh (small blind) folded on the River
Seat 3: xBULLETTSx (big blind) collected ($9.55)
Seat 8: willyjr (button) folded before Flop (didn't bet)


PokerStars Game #3349223958: Hold'em No Limit ($0.25/$0.50) - 2005/12/16 - 12:12:46 (ET)
Table 'Yarilo' Seat #3 is the button
Seat 1: Guardizle ($9.95 in chips)
Seat 3: xBULLETTSx ($28.35 in chips)
Guardizle: posts small blind $0.25
xBULLETTSx: posts big blind $0.50
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to xBULLETTSx [As Ad]
Guardizle: calls $0.25
xBULLETTSx: raises $0.50 to $1
Guardizle: folds
xBULLETTSx said, "AA"
xBULLETTSx collected $1 from pot
xBULLETTSx: doesn't show hand
*** SUMMARY ***
Total pot $1 | Rake $0
Seat 1: Guardizle (small blind) folded before Flop
Seat 3: xBULLETTSx (button) (big blind

[Kessler]

Just curious, why are you announcing your hand in Chat? Bragging? Projecting an image of getting good cards this session? If you're AI, you're going to be showing down anyway, So what's the point?


-Kes

[dannyd267]

I have to agree, you shouldn't anounce your Aces all the time. That will ruin your table image. However, it is fun some of the time as you can see below?

***** Hand History for Game 3225210992 *****
0/0 Texas Hold'em Game Table (NL) - Sun Dec 18 22:15:02 EST 2005
Table Table 66487 (Real Money) -- Seat 2 is the button
Total number of players : 10
Seat 1: fobog ( $44.25)
Seat 2: AxeMan1101 ( $24.65)
Seat 3: Queefstain ( $41.65)
Seat 4: okgrinder ( $5.75)
Seat 5: poker110_00 ( $13.88)
Seat 6: SteveMather ( $23.90)
Seat 7: Badgers2481 ( $24.75)
Seat 8: dannyd267 ( $16.49)
Seat 9: pokar_pony ( $28.55)
Seat 10: crunchEbud ( $26.10)
Queefstain posts small blind (0.10)
okgrinder posts big blind (0.25)
** Dealing down cards **
Dealt to dannyd267 [ 9c, 9d ]
poker110_00 calls (0.25)
SteveMather calls (0.25)
Badgers2481 folds.
dannyd267 calls (0.25)
Queefstain: ballsy raise without the flush fobog
pokar_pony folds.
crunchEbud folds.
fobog folds.
AxeMan1101 calls (0.25)
Queefstain raises (0.90) to 1
okgrinder calls (0.75)
poker110_00 folds.
Queefstain: the reraise i mean
SteveMather calls (0.75)
dannyd267 calls (0.75)
AxeMan1101 folds.
** Dealing Flop ** : [ 9h, 9s, Qc ]
Queefstain bets (2)
okgrinder folds.
SteveMather folds.
dannyd267: q?
dannyd267 calls (2)
** Dealing Turn ** : [ 4h ]
Queefstain bets (4)
crunchEbud: stain
dannyd267 calls (4)
** Dealing River ** : [ Th ]
dannyd267: i know you don't have a 9
Queefstain bets (10)
dannyd267: cuz i got both of them
dannyd267 calls (9.49)
dannyd267 is all-In.
Creating Main Pot with $33.73 with dannyd267
** Summary **
Main Pot: $33.73 | Side Pot 1: $0.51 | Rake: $1.75
Board: [ 9h 9s Qc 4h Th ]
fobog balance $44.25, didn't bet (folded)
AxeMan1101 balance $24.40, lost $0.25 (folded)
Queefstain balance $25.16, bet $17, collected $0.51, lost -$16.49 [ Kc Ks ] [ two pairs, kings and nines -- Kc,Ks,Qc,9h,9s ]
okgrinder balance $4.75, lost $1 (folded)
poker110_00 balance $13.63, lost $0.25 (folded)
SteveMather balance $22.90, lost $1 (folded)
Badgers2481 balance $24.75, didn't bet (folded)
dannyd267 balance $33.73, bet $16.49, collected $33.73, net +$17.24 [ 9c 9d ] [ four of a kind, nines -- Qc,9c,9d,9h,9s ]
pokar_pony balance $28.55, didn't bet (folded)
crunchEbud balance $26.10, didn't bet (folded)

[xBULLETTSx]

SWEET!!!!!!!!! NH....lol, and I dont announce my hand all of the time. Just on ocassion. Usually I am very protective of my cards, not showing anything. I just feel if me and another player are AI, I am just taking the suspense out of it. thats all.

[biondino]

At the start of a tourney, you really do need to raise a decent amount with aces. Not only do people often play loose/take big risks to double up, but ideally you would liek to be called by other group 0 and 1 hands only. You are so far ahead of AK, AQ, KK, it's not funny, which is why you want them to call you. JT or 67s, or even more specualtive hands, you want to avoid like the plague.