Ok settle an argument for me about calling ranges. I don't have the exact hand history, because it was a game I was watching a friend play. It was a $27.00, 45 man turbo on stars. They were 3 handed and the action went like this.

Hero has 98s, 800/1600/100 Blinds

Button - $23,953: folds

SB - $27,284: Raises to 12,000

Hero - $16,153: Raises and is all in

Villain in the small blind is a losing player (he was shark scoped prior to the hand being played) but is a regular player just not a good one. In my opinion it was a bad shove by the hero, his argument is that if you put him on making that play with at least 80%+ of his hand range, being that he is making that move from the SB, and he said that if he was in his position, he would shove 80%+ of his hands vs. a BB with 10bb or less. I believe that there is a much greater edge in shoving 98s then there is calling off your stack with 98s in this spot. He says my calling ranges from the blinds are too tight.

I just want an opinion on this hand an on calling ranges in general.

I agree with you on this one. I hate calling with weakish hands to a shove. I'd rather shove with garbage than call with marginal hands when we're ITM.

This also seems like a pretty obvious ICM-fold too. Even if we win we don't knock out a player, our stack is only 8k more than the next player, and the SB still has 10k to shove with.

If a person is willing to raise with a very wide range then call a 3bet with that same range you need a pretty decent holding. Bad shove from your friend, he obviously has no fold equity. If villain is raising with any Ace, any PP, any Kxs, any broadway, and some random SC and Kxs you need to be calling with at 55+, A9o+, A8s+ and KQs. If you know villain is a bad player, i think the logical thing to do is to capitalize on his mistakes not gambol with him here. Id much rather fold this and shove the next 3 hands instead of call here

Against an 80% range, 98s has 47.1% equity. Given the pot odds offered with shoving with no fold equity, we need 45.7% equity to make shoving earn us chips on average. However, ICM effects probably put that to a breakeven $EV call at best, given we aren't assured a pay increase and are risking busting, and villain will still be in decent contention if he loses the hand. However, I believe villain can't be put at 80% range pushing 10BB BvB without good reads, and that would require a good deal of play with him. Even if villain is shoving hands like J3o, 62s, can we really expect those shoves with garbage to be done with 100% frequency like villain would be with any hand that's better than 98s (Or a high enough frequency, assuming villain will do this with almost any two)? I doubt it, so this is a money losing call IMO.

I don't think there is a wrong answer here. If you strictly follow ICM and fold then who can argue? If I am in 3rd by 2+ BB then I snapcall this.

Can I ask why you snap call this? I'd like to see the other side of the coin.

Yeah I agree that this is a break even play at best



Really why? I dont see the upside to making the call in this spot with these stack sizes. He could fold and still have FE to make shoves from the SB and Button.