Hi,

This hand is a mess. My default is flatting 100% of the time pre w/ AK but I decided to try some 3 bet pre and so far failed miserably.

MP2 is a winning player but playing more hand early than most (think 20% PFR filtered, on a small but not micro sample).

So I decided to try to 3 bet AK. When he min-repoped it, I was already wayyyyyyy out of my comfort zone. Fold there, I suppose ?

His check on the flop was curious but I don't think he folds anything on this board when I cbet (and it's very expensive) except maybe AK.

Turn : I fold to any kind of 1/3 pot bet but here ?

River : Most of the time I'm taken to value town here but he might have KK/QQ sometime there, no ?

Poker Stars $35+$3 No Limit Hold'em Tournament - t10/t20 Blinds - 9 players - View hand 27464
The Official 2+2 Hand Converter Powered By DeucesCracked.com

UTG+1: t1810
UTG+2: t1480
MP1: t1470
MP2: t1460
CO: t1470
Hero (BTN): t1470
SB: t1490
BB: t760
UTG: t2090

Pre Flop: (t30) Hero is BTN with A K
4 folds, MP2 raises to t60, 1 fold, Hero raises to t199, 2 folds, MP2 raises to t440, Hero calls t241

Flop: (t910) J 3 3 (2 players)
MP2 checks, Hero checks

Turn: (t910) 7 (2 players)
MP2 bets t100, Hero calls t100

River: (t1110) A (2 players)
MP2 bets t260, Hero calls t260

Flatting the 3bet is already kind of bad I think.
Unless you flop an ace or a king you pretty much have to give up always. And even then you might be toasted.
Looks a lot like Kings or Aces.
The river is a call, but I think folding the turn would have been fine too.

Preflop: If he´s a ******/spewtard shoving could be considered. Otherwise I would fold.

I don't think he would have min-repoped it with QQ or JJ after your PF 3bet. You are usually dealing with AA/KK in these situations. Similar to you I don't like 3bettin AK in low blinds but I would have played post flop exactly the same if I was in that situation and hope his river bet is a defensive one with KK rather than valye betting me with AA.

O.K., but I think you give away much value by not 3betting AK early, especially if it would bring you a nice stackot:ratio in level 1 + you would have a bigger pot IP + you can fold out a lot of better pockets + you make live for villains much harder.

To the last point: One major point for me whether to open with a speculative hand is how likely it is that someone reraise me off the hand (or forces me to make a nasty move). If you generally don't 3bet with AK even vs aggressive villains, you give them a free card to run over the table and you even give them better odds in the cases they face resistance, plus it is so much easier to fold a 88 to a reraise if you villain cold calls AK generally.
O.K., don't want to berate you, just my opinion about that playing style. I used to also only call or even limp pf with AK when playing in the <60s.

I'd say shove it in and take a note about his action, independent of whether he folds or calls and shows ...?
The problem is, of course, if he knows you and knows your radical tight 3bet-range, you indeed should fold it.
But remember a Min4bet is also to cheapest semi-bluff available in town.

Then you should valuebet.
O.K., I might have also check behind, because there is too much suspicious (min4bet + no cbet on an o.k. flop for the aggressor + we have most likely a wa/wb situation).

The consequence from not folding pf + checking the flop is to call nearly all bets on turn if a blanks pops.

I think you should valueshove here, but calling is o.k. too. As you pointed, a lot of hands we beat now, will just fold. But as we have nearly always (only AA/JJ/AJ or so beat us) the best hand and villain might have only AQ or worse, I'd just shove it and will again make a note of this action.

THE MAIN PROBLEM in this hand is, you have played with villain already, he is an action player, he is a dangerous player and you have no clue how he plays what kind of hands. And if he is a winning player with 20% VPIP, he will know you.
You missed to know the player.

This is an interesting post, Kamel.
Someday I will learn to play poker.

If he raises wide pre (20% as you said), doesn't that make flatting AK even better?

He's probably raising all kinds of Ax hands, KQ, KJ, KT, whatever from that position that will pay you off when you both hit. Wouldn't you make more by flatting against this type of player than a standard nit since alot of his range is dominated and hitting the same flops you hit?

Thanks for the input.

I guess 5-bet shove pre- is better considering my AK blocks 6 combination of AA/KK (6 remaining) and there is already close to 700 in the pot. Otherwise fold but the min raise sucked me in.

I was shown JJ, btw.

If you are not comfortable with these kinds of spots it might be better to just flat preflop,

If I am not comfortable with these kind of spot, it might be better to learn it, don't you think ?

EDIT : (and what's your line here ?)

I'd shove preflop.

I think I'd just shove over the min4bet or fold (which would be pretty ugly, I'm not sure about odds here, pretty sure it's cev+ to flat but dunno about $equity) but putting another t241 of our stack with an unmade hand and with huge reverse implied odds vs KK+ if we hit seems pretty sucky to me
As played I like postflop

I actually posted a similar hand (possibly last week) at the $27s where there seemed to be a unanimous view that flatting pre-flop was better. I like to mix it up when it's against villains that I've played regularly in the past, so I'd continue to do that. I think, if I'm in position, I'm likely to flat v unknown.

+1

This hand reminded me of a NL100 hand where the guy folded to my shove, I wrote "4betbloofaments !!" and he responded "JJ. I think it's the best way to play it.".

I probly muck pre to his reraise, but when I think his range is wide enough that I can profitably play against it(more than QQ AK basically) I shove.

Flat pre , fold to 4bet. Really i dont see anything else here..

3 betting does these things for you
pushed out smaller pp (assuming 22-99, maybe TT) Also should push out AT-AQ respectively and occasionaly an AK

if you are 4 bet then villian's range is shrunk to include {JJ+, AK}

the rest is player dependant

I would advise to attempt extracting some extra valu from the hand when you do make TPTK - otherwise what was the point of calling the turn? What is villian betting that you are beating...AQ?