Hero MP1 with 1.2M, blinds 25k/50k+BBA. ~50 left, current payout $4k, first 5-figure payouts at 13th place and 210k up top.

8-handed. Hero moved to table 4 hands ago, on first hand 3bet from CO and it folded around. Hero has not played another hand yet. No reads, perhaps Hero has a loose image.

Folds to hero in MP1 with A8ss. 100k, folds to BB (~18BB behind) who tanks for 15 sec and calls.

842ddd. BB checks, Hero bets somewhat large at 135k. BB raises to 440k, leaving ~410k behind. Hero?

All thoughts appreciated, I've played lots of live cash but relatively new to tourneys.

Personally, I'm folding. There's obviously a lot of bad turns for your hand and you still have a decent amount of chips left... I say find a better spot.

This is a big reason why you scale down your c-bets on a flop like this. I'd go somewhere between 60-80k. If he makes a smaller check-raise, it's easier to call and re-evaluate on the turn. If he makes a larger or committing check-raise, it's easier to get away from a slightly ahead / way behind situation.

Agree with the smaller c-bet.

V's c/r sizing is really confusing me. V could just call and jam all turns rather than a c/r here - unless the c/r was AI. I don't see the utility of this size in this situation, esp. with a monotone flop.

Agree with this. When sprs are low, a lot of live players don’t adjust and size down on their cbets. 135 into 275 is way too large at this stack depth per se even though the board is very wet. I would cbet 1/4 to 1/5 and just give up on pressure or decide. I think a lot of mawg recs cbet way too big late and don’t adjust which is kinda why they don’t make insane runs like the good internet/ young gto kids.

When 1/4 or 1/5th can yield folds, why go bigger? 100bb average stack poker is infinitely different from the stage where average stacks are 20-40bb and in the money. Even if I have an overpair to a board, I’m fine going super small to just bump up sizing on the turn and river when we have value and are going for max value. I honestly think one of the biggest leaks in most live mtt players is the sizing they choose when deep. These guys don’t play a lot of tournies like internet kids so they don’t understand or see the size changes per se. Going 50% pot when 33% or less can work just really kills bluff attempts which are needed when stack depths are lower and we need to cbet in a lot of spots like mp Vs bb or sb. Another thing I think is a leak- folks don’t cbet air enough when heads up to a flop late when every pot really matters. I feel you see a lot of the reccy old guys get big stacks early in tournies when they run well but don’t know how to put pressure on in a smart manner to keep building.

What position is MP1? Is that the HJ. You using some 2011 nomenclature. Im assuming HJ.


Solver approves of your half pot flop bet. It is betting this board ~90% and splitting between 1/2 and 1/4 pot with the whole range. I think with it being a low monotone board, there are more overcard + diamond hands that we want to protect against with a larger size, while if it was a A42ddd board we would see strictly small bets.

Villains raise size isnt a thing. Solver either jams or raises small, both at a very low frequency. Its overwhelmingly a call for villain.


Vs a jam, solver calls with A8s and I dont think that I am getting away from it either unless villain is a fit or fold rec.

I would guess LJ. Maybe UTG+1.

Figure it's either

UTG
UTG+1
MP1 / LJ
MP2 / HJ
CO, BT, SB, BB

or

UTG
MP1
MP2 / LJ
MP3 / HJ
CO, BT, SB, BB

Re position: I'm LJ; two players folded to me. Thx for your patience, I don't post too much these days. Might start more if I get more into tourneys.

Re flop bet size: I agree that slightly smaller is easier/better. In-game, I wanted to pressure hands like QdJx. I still think there's value to that, so I'd prob still go for ~110k/40%.

I have basically no reads but he doesn't seem the likely to 3b hands like A9o, KTo, JTs and may just call with them. My sense is that his pf call gives him a lot of mid-low broadways, connectors as low as 87o+ and perhaps 88-55. I didn't think a 1/4-1/5 PSB gets a ton of folds against that range.

The raise really threw me. I expected to see a lot of folds, some shoves, and maybe a few calls. I guess my question is how to proceed readless against a player with the low confidence range above.

Appreciate the feedback; will post results in a bit.

In theory on an 842 monotone board, villain shouldn't have very many raises at all here and we actually beat most of the hands that do raise as a lot of offsuit 8x with a diamond is just supposed to go for it here. Made hands like flushes and even two pair/sets are supposed to check.

What would make me slightly less inclined to just go with it here is that you will have the universe of villains that will want to get tricky with their flushes and maybe not so aggro with their top pairs, in which case we're toast. I think in game I might actually just call flop with the idea of exploitatively folding if a fourth diamond rolls off, but calling off and/or shoving otherwise.

I would bet mostly on flop about 100k. My sizing would typically be 90k (or 1/3 pot) but I'd rather see a fold and 100k looks a lot stronger than 90k (if you've ever been in a retail business you would know what I'm talking about).

My other choice would be to check back and call what I would expect to be one or two bluffs. I prefer the bet because there are so many overcards to 8 that it gets risky. But on a monotone board vs just the BB I sometimes just check (but I usually do that with an overpair or two overcards and no draw).

Also this is basically an all in situation. If we call we are never folding to any turn shove (except a 4th diamond) so our decision to go all in is now. If villain checks the non-diamond turn I am shoving.

I have been making very bad decisions in these spots recently (by calling) and losing very large pots. So I would probably fold on the flop after betting 100k. Also the vast majority of the time when somebody bets half their stack on the flop they are not bluffing.

I ended up jamming. V looked exasperated and upset, but called within 20 seconds. I thought I was way ahead during his tank -- until he tabled 9d9x. I didn't get there.

Weird spot. I still think overpairs are a very small part of his range, but I guess this makes some sense. Thanks all.