Folding top set? Doug Polk would say noooo!

So I folded a set for the first time like ever at MD Live the other night and didn't go into detail until now.

OMC raises UTG+1 $20, YBG who claims to be a personal chef/rec player calls MP, hero calls JJ BTN. Flop: J-4-5dd. OMC bets $30, V calls, hero raises $135 with $400 behind. OMC folds, V calls.

Turn ($360): 8h. V open jams $400 effective. Hero folds putting V squarely on 67 for the turned straight. Anyone else folding here or is it just me? In order to call, we have to give V lower sets that didn't jam otf and the extremely unlikely two pair combos given I have two jacks, or weirdly played draws that called flop/jammed turn for some reason.

PS: Bought Ed Miller's "The Course." Haven't read anything in a while, heard it was good.

For me it's just that we're targeting such a small range of better hands to fold (a handful of Ax), plus that range (TP) is the least likely end of his range he will fold (especially when you compare all of this to raising with bottom pair + nut flush draw where we target a much bigger range and large parts of that range are folded more easy).

There's nothing wrong with the play due to it obviously being +EV with our equity + some small FE, but I'm not convinced it's the most +EV play.

ETA: But it's not even as simple as I'm making it out to be either. If stacks behind are shortish then the pot is worth winning now, so perhaps it's fine to attempt to get Ax to fold; the deeper we are behind, we're probably cooler with just flatting. And the more he's able to call off draws here drawing ~dead perhaps the more fine we are with shoveling in money now.

Gjustsayin'G

Sick fold of the JJ, not sure I could do it. Course the last two big pots I've played with flopped JJ sets didn't work out well for me, so perhaps I should learn to.

GcluelessJJnoobG

I decided to be funny and wear a face-covering scarf, headphones, and sunglasses tonight at the tables. Posing as a wannabe pro. Let's see if I get some laughs out of people.

Despite the loss last night I’m still in a good mood. Good sign.

I’m goin’ pro, baby!

Fun fact: Maria Ho is playing 100/200 in the high limit room here tonight!

Cool

Last night 2/5 was card dead/missing type of session, so lost $150 or so. Also, for some reason every table was utter trash. Zero fun players. I switched three times. Each one was the same.

Finally moved to 1/3 where I was happily seated to the left of a fun player type: the maniac-whale. I loved playing in pots with him. Happy to call his raises with hands as weak as KJo and J9 hoping to flop top pair and call him down. Iso'd his BB almost every time I had anything decent. Made a pretty penny off of him. Then made a little more 3! bluffing a tag who opened CO and I 3! BTN A3ss. He called and we were HU. Flop: A-3-Tcc. I bet a little over 1/3 pot ($30), he c/r $70, I call. Turn: 5. He bets $120, I call. River: 6h. He checks with $200 behind. Do I go for the jam? No, I don't. I happily check behind. He mucks after I show. I assumed big Ax or combo draw.

Really felt in my element at that table last night. My time spent off the tables is showing in my play.

Ended up $800 in 1/3, so up around $650 overall. Hosting home game with friends this afternoon.

Why happily check back two pair?

Yeah I probably should have jammed after he checked river (which he would never do with a set or top two on that runout). Oops. He showed a lot of strength though. I was worried I’d only get called by better, maybe he was trapping hoping I missed a draw?

Little update to $5k goal: up to $4k with 15 days to go!

Home game last night was fun, saw friends, broke even.

Tonight at MGM saw Maria Ho in person for the first time. She looked just like on TV!

Ran well in 2/5. Called EP raise with AQo in BB over a couple callers, flop Q-high, rivered trips and took it down. AA on BTN, iso'd two limpers, held. 88 in 3! pot, flopped set and GII on 7-8-Tdd for $400+ and held.

Ended up $820 in 2 hours. Just shy of my $5k goal now with two weeks remaining, so I'll revise it to $8k to keep it a challenge....

Lol, did anyone get the "goin' pro" joke or did they take it at face value?

I once dressed up as like a 70's cowboy (think way way way over the top, then x2) for halloween and pokered. Half the crowd realized it was joke. The other half took it at face value.

GcluelesshalloweennoobG

My friends got it. I think everyone else at the table thought I was serious. Ha!

Went for day shift today. Slowplayed myself into a 2/5 loss. Raised AA UTG, good player calls BTN, check/check 993 flop. Check/call his $30 bet on 4 turn, check/call $85 on Q river, he has QQ for queens full. Raise AQs UTG, four callers including two good players. Flop: Q-5-6r. Checks around. Turn: Q. BB leads, I call, SB calls. River: 9. SB leads $100 into $200. I call, SB has 99 for 9s full. Most likely my pot with a bet otf or a raise ott, so I botched this one.

Moved down to 1/3 and nothing really happened, made some second best hands, got a bad runout with a flopped set. Lost another $100 or so.

Overall down $400 today. Meh.

Lol. Probably because there are serious mouth-covering players galore at the tables nowadays.

I didn't stay in costume long anyway. It was unbearable! So uncomfortable!

It was kinda funny though, this one hand I was HU with this Argentinian player and he covered his mouth with his hand the whole time. Heehee.

I don't play nosebleeds, and obviously you have some options on each street, but I see nothing horrendous with both of these hands. Also look like they paid to hit their 2 outer in each case. And from a results oriented point-of-view, QQ was simply destined to own you.

Gbothhandsarefine,imoG

Went well today. Played 2/5 ($300 min buy in) for around 6 hours, ended up $700. Only trouble spot was when I raised JJ over one limper, three callers including BB (fun player) and limper (rec). Flop: 9-8-9. I cbet $35 into $80, BB and limper call. Turn: T. BB donks $75, limper calls, I call. River: 5. BB checks, limper bets $150 into $400, I call, BB folds. Limper has Q9o.

Otherwise, session went fine. Today I surpassed my $5k goal. Hooray!

$$$-making goals can have pros and cons, but congrats on the achievement!

Ggogogo!G

Congrats on hitting the 5k challenge! Good luck on the 8k, too. Do you know how many hours at the table it took and the 1/3 vs 2/5 breakdown? (If you're willing to share specifics.) You made short work of that one!

Ran KK into AA for the first time at 2/5. $380 AI pre. MP fairly active opened MP, SB (60 y/o rec) 3! for first time to $125, I have KK BB and just jammed. Unfortunate thing is this was probably the only player at the table I could have found a fold against pre. Meh.

Lost a little more at 1/3, for $500 total.

Thanks! It was mostly (80-90%) 2/5, about 70 hours total. I just checked and my overall 2/5 hourly is on the high side now at $90/hr with only 90 hours played. I hate to say it, but I anticipate this winrate will start falling the more I play, assuming normal variance.

I'm essentially full-time 2/5 now with drops back down to 1/3 on off days when I lose my first buy-in early on in the session.

Went well today. Made $1,015 in 4.5 hours at 2/5. Big hand: AQ on A-K-2-A-5 runout, win against A9. Many smaller/medium sized pots where I went for thin value or bluff-caught and was good. A little tired but gonna hit the gym for the first time in ages before bed.

"The Course" arrived a couple days ago. Haven't picked it up yet but will soon.

Chip porn and MGM in springtime:





Edit: I have no idea why TinyPic Url is uploading these photos incorrectly. It's a recent problem I've been having.

Oh, played with one of the Ott brothers today before he moved to 5/10 with his twin (who took second in WSOP Main Event). He 3! from the SB several times, twice I folded a pair in BB (99 and TT). Cool to play with the best.