Poker Hand of the Week: 11/27/14

Give us your opinion in the comments section below for your chance at winning a six-month Card Player magazine digital subscription.

Ask any group of poker players how you played your hand and they’ll come up with dozens of different opinions. That’s just the nature of the game.

Each week, Card Player will select a hand from the high-stakes, big buy-in poker world, break it down and show that there’s more than one way to get the job done.

The Scenario

There are 24 players remaining at three tables in a mid-stakes regional tournament. You are already guaranteed $10,837 from your initial $1,500 buy-in. You have a stack of 516,000, good enough for 17th place overall. The blinds are currently 10,000-20,000 with a 3,000 ante, giving you almost 26 big blinds to work with.

An aggressive player who started the hand with 1,151,000 opens from middle position to 43,000. You are in the hijack and look down at A4. You call and the blinds fold. The flop comes down 543 and your opponent continues for 50,000.

You call and the turn is the 6. Your opponent now checks. You have 420,000 remaining in your stack.

The Questions

Do you check or bet? If checking, what is your plan for the river if you miss your draw? If you make your flush? If betting, how much? Do you like that turn card? What are the benefits to betting the turn? What are the benefits of checking behind? Your opponent raised preflop, bet the flop and then checked the turn. What does that say about his hand?

What Actually Happened

At the World Series of Poker Circuit main event at Planet Hollywood in Las Vegas, Quang Ngo checked on a board reading 5436 and Susan Stewart opted to bet 125,000 with her A4.

Ngo called and the river was the Q. Ngo checked and Stewart checked behind. Ngo showed 43 for two pair and took down the pot.

Stewart was eliminated in 24th place, earning $10,837. Ngo went on to make the final table, busting in eighth place for $35,861. The eventual winner was John Eames, who banked $289,706.

What would you have done and why? Let us know in the comments section below and try not to be results oriented. The best answer will receive a six-month Card Player magazine digital subscription.

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