i was okay shoving keeping in mind he could have me out-kicked or could have paired the jack.

i insta-shoved. wait for a better spot? think for more than a second? is my stack deep enough to not shove-bot? i often wreck healthy stacks late being impulsive. the flipside is that large stack is often built with seemingly wreckless decisions like above.

Full Tilt Poker $3 + $0.30 No Limit Hold'em Tournament - t5000/t10000 Blinds + t1000 - 4 players
The Official 2+2 Hand Converter Powered By DeucesCracked.com

CO: t243515 M = 12.82
BTN: t179633 M = 9.45
SB: t610431 M = 32.13
Hero (BB): t217421 M = 11.44

Pre Flop: (t19000) Hero is BB with 9 T
2 folds, SB calls t5000, Hero checks

Flop: (t24000) T J 4 (2 players)
SB checks, Hero bets t17999, SB raises to t77997, Hero raises to t206421 all in, SB calls t128424

Turn: (t436842) K (2 players - 1 is all in)

River: (t436842) 6 (2 players - 1 is all in)

he'll have some worse draws and you have flopped the nuts

nh...thats not a healthy stack

nh, ul. got to get it in there in a BvB with 20bb so nothing u could do imo.

thanks for the responses. is checking the flop unacceptable here? or does a diamond on the turn kill my action? a non-diamond turn may have preserved my stack, since a fold could be somewhat easier, especially an overcard. i'd still bet if he checked, but i don't think i'm shoving with only the river left to see. was his checking the flop oop a smart move or fishy? i'd bet in his spot.

also, dragos, i realize my stack size is not "healthy" relative to the size of the blinds and antes, but with 3 players having similar stacks and 1 monster stack way ahead of us, should i be considering playing safe to make more prize money? when 1 stack is so far ahead, is playing for second place not an adequate goal?

You got to play it this way. NH

Folding this does not guarantee you second place, winning this almost guarantees second and give you a shot for 1st. Since the other 2 stacks are almost equal to yours i dont think there should be any ICM considerations. If one of them wouldve had like 4-5 BB you wouldve folded...but not like this...But thats my opinion, i still have much to learn.

I think if you had checked back the flop it would've been bad, but not as bad as his c/r on the flop. The only way he can possibly not bet out on that flop is if he is almost certain you will bet if he checks. You checking behind there would be disastrous for him since there are draws and overcards that could easily come.

I play it how you did every single time, nh.

thanks for explaining things in detail guys. dragos, your explanation of the icm dynamics makes sense. bkreezy, your response confirms in my mind that villian's c/r was a bad play. definitely trying to shift my mindset towards process rather than results-oriented thinking.