Did I play this hand correctly?

[MattB2517]

Hi. First time poster looking for some advice.

I suck at poker. Mostly I play online for play money, but I get into small buy-in cash games with buddies every month or so. I try to play tight agressive most of the time.

Anyway, I was dealt 10Ko and decided to raise preflop. All but one other player folded and we saw the flop, 10 Q 3 rainbow. This guy was agressive and called regularly with nothing. I make a decent sized bet and he calls. Out comes another 10. I check, figuring that a big bet would telegraph my trips, and he raises, hoping to steal the pot.

I didn't put him on trips due to his nature to play with not-so-good hands, but I did put him on at least two pair. So I re-raise and he calls. The next hand was no help to both of us, and I go all-in. He calls immediately and shows 10-A.

So I lose. Was this a bad play? Was going all-in on trips with a K kicker the correct move?

Thanks in advance.

[a500lbgorilla]

Don't play play money.

Play money will only teach you bad habits when you make the jump to real money. Play money also does not expose you to many aspects in real money poker.

Even the smallest 2 dollar buyin micro limits are infinitely better than play money.

That being said: the hand played out like it should.

You can't give me one good reason to fold but you can get me 3 or 4 good reasons to call.

-'rilla

[dsaxton]

Don't play play money.

Play money will only teach you bad habits when you make the jump to real money. Play money also does not expose you to many aspects in real money poker.

Agreed. When I first started playing I played at a lot of play money tables where the players would bet and raise big with crap, and as a result I ended up developing a very passive style of play. Once I moved the real money tables I had a lot of trouble extracting the value of my hands, since I could no longer just check-call all my chips into the pot with strong holdings. I had to learn several dimensions of the game that I was able to ignore in the past.

The best way to get better is to play against skilled opponents. I also spend a lot of time thinking about poker and analyzing decisions I've made in the past, or hands that I've seen, and this seems to help.

[MattB2517]

Thanks, guys. I appreciate your replies. I know that play money is a ticket to nowhere, but I'm kind of living in poverty. College, you know?

Anyway, in regard to my hand, was my betting strategy correct? I'm wondering if, instead of the check raise, if I should have made my big bet right away. Based on my opponent's bets, was there any reason for me to suspect that he had A10, other than his immediate call on the river?

[a500lbgorilla]

Thanks, guys. I appreciate your replies. I know that play money is a ticket to nowhere, but I'm kind of living in poverty. College, you know?

Ilikeaces86 and myself are in college.

-'rilla

[Rorgg]

Rungh. I started with a whopping $20 deposit, and I'm up to $100 in my account after taking my 20 back out.

And that's nothing compared to what some of the others here have done.

[JeffreyGB]

Ilikeaces86 and myself are in college.

-'rilla

JeffreyGB = Chopped Liver? Sheesh!

I'm in college too. Started playing with a $25 deposit into micros. Built it, withdrew initial deposit, moved up too fast, lost all but $10, and the rest is in my sig + the corresponding thread.

- Jeffrey

[JeffreyGB]

Rungh.

I understood and agreed with the rest of this post...but...

[a500lbgorilla]

Ilikeaces86 and myself are in college.

-'rilla

JeffreyGB = Chopped Liver? Sheesh!

I'm in college too. Started playing with a $25 deposit into micros. Built it, withdrew initial deposit, moved up too fast, lost all but $10, and the rest is in my sig + the corresponding thread.

- Jeffrey

-'rilla

[eeeee]

Anyway, in regard to my hand, was my betting strategy correct? ... was there any reason for me to suspect that he had A10, other than his immediate call on the river?

Like 'Rilla said, the hand was played fine, you did fine. You can do everything perfectly, put all your money in the pot, and still lose. And you know what? Once you think about it and know you did it right and lost anyway, you should be eager to do it again.
It's like the endless sob story, "I lost my stack holding KK against AA." Happens. But doesn't happen enough to stop putting the chips in the pot when we get KK. Keep going.

Thanks, guys. I appreciate your replies. I know that play money is a ticket to nowhere, but I'm kind of living in poverty. College, you know?

I am not a student, but I started with $11 borrowed PokerStars dollars from a friend nearly six months ago. I've never again deposited and have replaced a couple household appliances with poker money. I wasted two of those months playing play money. In hind sight, play money wasn't a total waste, like some folks say, but I should have moved to real money 7 weeks sooner.
If you still insist on playing play money, stick to the SNGs and Tournaments and big freerolls, and sit out the first couple levels of blinds. Don't even watch, because you will see foolish behavior rewarded. After that, most folks play a little closer to 'normal'.

Oh, and I didn't even play KTo for my three months of poker.

[ekillian]

Thanks, guys. I appreciate your replies. I know that play money is a ticket to nowhere, but I'm kind of living in poverty. College, you know?

Ilikeaces86 and myself are in college.

-'rilla

So am I and I think ensign_lee is also.

[Rorgg]

Rungh.

I understood and agreed with the rest of this post...but...

What, a grumpy old man can't just grunt from time to time? Get off my lawn, you kids! Rungh!

[a500lbgorilla]

Rungh.

I understood and agreed with the rest of this post...but...

What, a grumpy old man can't just grunt from time to time? Get off my lawn, you kids! Rungh!

POTD

And I've gotta figure out how to start using "Rungh" more in my day to day conversations.

-'rilla

[studboyjoe]

I'm a very old man and when I see all your dads,
I'm telling them you're playing poker instead of studying!!! Whippersnappers!

[bigred]

You could try getting a part time job for a few weeks to make like $300. Its not that hard At college (if you have the time), there's always places looking to hire. Equipped with solid knowledge from FTR, BR management, and my attractive picture taped to your monitor (optional) you can start making decent money.

My personal story starts with $50 last september. I was stupid, poor, and reckless. Got down to $5 at one point (this is all on stars) and someone managed to bring it back up to like $25. That happen to be the day I decided to fix my stupid play and luckily found FTR after a few other crppy sites. I suddenly began to notice steady increases and decent plays by simply reading what other people on this site said. You mean TKo is not a monster? HOLY SHIT! I really thought it was. Well, after many learning experiences and the luck of making some great friends/mentors I've now turned that $50 into 2K.

I'm sure there are other good stories but I just want you to realize that being a poor college student does not stop you from winning money. You only limit yourself.

Insert end cliche

STAY TRUE TO YOURELF AND YOUR DREAMS