Poker Hand of the Week: 3/7/15You Decide What's The Best Play |
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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 14 players remaining in a big buy-in prestigious live tournament. You are already guaranteed a pay out of about six times your buy-in and the next pay jump isn’t until there are 12 players left.
With 193,000 in chips, you are the short stack. The blinds are 10,000-20,000 with a 3,000 ante, giving you just over 9 big blinds to work with. To make matters worse, you now have to post the big blind.
The chip leader, an active, aggressive player with 4,279,000, raises to 40,000 in late position and you look down at K
3
. Thinking you might try and stop-and-go play, you call and see a flop of 654
. There is 111,000 in the pot and you have 150,000 remaining in your stack.
The Questions
Do you check or bet? If betting, how much? Is this the best time to try your stop and go, or does your hand have enough equity for a check raise all in? Should you be betting anything less than your whole stack or do you want to maximize fold equity? Do you regret not folding or shoving preflop?
What Actually Happened
Sitting on the short stack at the $10,000 buy-in World Poker Tour L.A. Poker Classic, David Sands opted to shove for his final 150,000 holding K3 on a flop of 654.
His opponent, chip leader Peter Tran, instantly called with 5
3 for the same straight draw and a pair. According to the Card Player Poker Odds Calculator, Sands had a 14 percent chance of winning the pot outright and a 31 percent chance of chopping it.
Unfortunately for Sands, the turn and river fell 54 and he was eliminated in 14th place, earning $59,730. Tran went on to finish in sixth place, earning $200,830.
The eventual winner was none other than Anthony Zinno, who picked up his third WPT title and the $1,015,860 first-place prize.
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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