Im in a very lose 2-5NL game at Parx. Lots of preflop action so far and straddling.

New player(vilan) sits in game, played with him before only a few times, i would say he was loose aggressive. His first hand he posted the BB. There also is a live straddle for $10.

My stack is $850 and Im dealt AQ in SB.

Middle positon player limps, button limps, i just call $10 from sb, didnt feel i had to raise, outta position, and build a big pot in a loose game with that hand, I rather see a flop. BB (villan ) also limps (key thing)!!, straddler makes it $35.

The straddler has been most active player at table, and my read was the $35 raise was a pot builder, suited connector, small pair was the range i put him on, if he had total air knowing his temdency he would have raised 60-70, and probably the same with big pair.

So the button calls. Now the buttons hand strenght to me is very weak, he limped before, and now is flatting a raise, he also is a very loose player who was steaming a bit, his stack was $700. His range is very wide to me, with the strenght of my hand vs there ranges, i feel like now i could raise, but i again elected to just flat, maybe a mistake,maybe not?

Heres where the hand turns very interesting. ...The BB now raises to $135, straddler flats 135, now button flats 135...It smells like a squeeze from BB, but he just sat down, it is his first hand, but why didnt he raise the first time, he just called the extra 5 ..(a) did he call with prem hand , hoping straddler would raise? ....or (B) his he on a pure squeeze?

So the action is on me.. $100 to call from sb AQ now $410 in pot...I know the 2 other players in the hand arent that strong...my only decison is the BB squeezing? I elected that if shoved for 850, i could take the whole pot down, and might even have best hand in spot if BB is on pure squeeze, remember he just called from the BB first time.

Well i shipped it...thoughts?

My first instinct is that BB is squeezing. His squeeze amount seems a little small though for some reason. I would think it would be around $130-140 on top.

But besides that, unless BB has history with UTG, knew he was going to raise a large % of his straddles, then I think squeeze shove here is a pretty good spot. I can see BB having flatted a middle pocket pair (66s-88's, maybe even 99s-TTs) or AT and AJ, getting a similar read as you with regards to the straddler, and now trying to take it down preflop or at least iso more.

I'm a rec player, so take this with a grain of salt

I also feel BB is going to crying call your shove some of the time, since this hand played out so damn strange.

Pretty interesting. Curious about the results.

Need the other players' stack sizes.

And you should have raised AQ from the sb.

Great spot to shove. You're flipping at worst, with plenty of dead money, making this +EV. Decent chance you take the whole thing down PF...

I find this all kinda strange. You had two chances to raise a very strong PF hand, AQs, when the action was pretty tame, but you declined.

But now that the has action exploded, you shove. I mean I understand your thinking, but now you have a tough decision when you had easy ones before.

Raise big when you wake up with the AQs and it's limped around in a straddled pot. There's a ton of dead money out there and even if you get called, your hand plays well OTF. If you miss and have to c/f, so be it. But you shouldn't be afraid to raise it.

Raise when the straddle sweetens the pot. Why do you want to give him a free look to the flop when your read is that you have him and the table beat? That money's yours for the taking

As played, there's no reason why BB couldn't have been laying a trap for the straddler with AK or a big pair. Yes, it's not in keeping with his image, but LAGs can mix it up. Also, his raise size isn't screaming for folds. If I were squeezing, I'd make it a lot more. After the BB puts in the $35, there's over $150 in the middle and he's making it only $100 more. He must know he's getting a call from someone. If he were squeezing, he would know he'd have to make it like $150 more ($185 total).

As is, you don't really know if the BB is squeezing or trapping because you didn't define his hand by raising yours. If you had raised and he 3bet you, you'd have a clearer picture of his range. And now you're in a spot where if you shove and he's squeezing, he'll fold. But if he's trapping, you're crushed.

When the stacks go in, you're not flipping at worst...you're flipping at best.

Assuming BB bought in for $500, I don't think he'll fold if you shove unless he really was squeezing. I'm not a big fan of PF wars and certainly not with AQ. I lean towards calling. You have a well-hidden hand and great relative position. If you flop a FD, you can CRAI and potentially pick up some callers in between the BB and you (or simply shove yourself).

You definitely should have raised the first time around, they will call with many worse hands and you want to shrink SPR down to where you can easily commit with TP if possible. I would have made it $60. As played I don't mind the squeeze, I think it makes sense and you will have ~35% equity when called.

He had AK and called, and button also called with 35 for 700,

lol @ the call with 35s. Tho if u guys turned your hands face up it would be the correct call b/c he has ~33% equity vs AQs and AK.

I'm a rec player as well, but shoving here kind of reveals the strength of your hand imo. If you re-raise say to 350-450 and shove any flop, they might give you respect for QQ+.

Live people do nit squeeze as much as they should or could. I think just completing the sb is fine as we have to make it so big if we open and live people don't like to fold. You can make it 70 and get at least 2callers and then unless you flop really good it is really tough.

I was thinking maybe fold. Live people like to trap in weird spots though maybe he saw the straddler was about to raise. Is hard to say cause you've posted results!

If you shove your hand looks like a mid pocket pair like 88

The way it went down, it really seemed like BB had a hand similiar to yours and AK was very likely here (but so was JJ or TT...if every1 expected straddle to raise then BB could be even stronger but that is doubtful) The problem with your shove is that it seems unlikely that you will just take down the pot with a shove (because you already showed that you aren't super strong based on previous action), but from an equity standpoint it is a pretty good spot.

BTW, I like the call of $10 and even $35 here (simply based on the table). You were simply put in a tough position IMO.

No. His line was already way too weak for QQ (he had 2 opportunities to raise previously). Aside from that, I wouldn't expect any of these guys to fold to that and these donkeys can't fold bottom pair I promise they would call and 3/5 would win with a pair of 3s or some stupid crap like that.

I'm not seeing relevant stack sizes anywhere, so I'm assuming that BB and straddle both cover you.

I think the initial limp is fine.

I think calling the initial $25 bet is fine. His range is too weak for you to fold, and stack sizes are too awkward for you to raise. If the straddle started the hand with $400 or less, I'd shove over his $25 bet. As is, I think call > fold > shove.

After the $100 raise, I think shoving is fine. I think shove > fold > call.

All you need to know before shoving is how often opponents could have QQ+ and AK (because with any other hand, we are coinflipping or better and we get fold equity). No one in this hand could have AA or KK here unless they are the worst player ever. Straddler wouldve shoved, BB wouldnt have limped.

Straddler couldve called the 3B with QQ or AK I suppose, but if he is flatting with either of those, he is folding when you shove.

BB is the interesting case here. I think he almost 100% has 99-JJ. He limped figuring he is too stupid to play them postflop, so he should treat them like a low PP, but when straddler raises, he figures he can reraise in the hopes to end the hand there. He could also show up with AK, because "lol its a drawing hand", but i sort of doubt it.

I think if you shove, Straddler folds like 95% of the time, and when he calls it is with exactly QQ, which he will fold sometimes. BB will most likely crying call with some 99-JJ, which makes it even more likely straddler is gone, and you will be coinflipping with a few hundred bucks of dead money in the pot, which gives you plenty of EV+ to counteract the occasional QQ.

If someone shows up with AA/KK, oh well, whatever they are stupid.

Sounds fishy from the bb. Id expect him to fold often though as he has 2 people to act behind him. I wouldnt be surprised by a button call if other two players fold.-+

AK is one of the hands I would be very wary of. Its a hand people are happy to limp with, call raises with and squeeze or resqueeze with. When I read the start of the thread that's what I thought he had straight away. The guy is happy to see a flop but after the straddler squeezes he is pretty his hand is in good shape so he reraises.

Villain has AK+ JJ+ and he's never folding. Just fold, money saved is money earned. From $35 to $700 commitment is just wtf when we have almost no FE vs multiple hands that crush us.

lol stupid because they got you to put your money in with like 6% or 30%?

its very unlikely the button or straddler will have big pairs, but its not that far fetched for the bb to