The CLB Bet

Playing in one of the best poker games on this planet, a loose $15-$30 Omaha high-low affair at Grand Casino in Biloxi in which an average of six or seven players were seeing the flop, I picked up the A 6 5 7. Would you consider a call with this hand sound, marginal, or loose in a loose game?

In a loose Omaha high-low game ("loose" is defined by Cappelletti's Rule as an average of more than five players seeing the flop), most A-5 low-oriented hands are marginal at best, since you often have to show the nut low to win low.

Note that in tightish Omaha high-low games (usually at higher limits), an A-5 with two working high cards and the ace suited (one of the other three cards is the same suit as the ace) can occasionally be a raising hand preflop. Although generally a high-oriented hand, against only a few players, the A-5 sometimes salvages half the pot with an "emergency low."

So, although I wasn't impressed with my low prospects, since I was on the button (yes, I know, I didn't tell you that before), I called in seven-way action.

The flop came J 4 3. This was a good flop for me, with very good nut-straight prospects and the second-nut-low draw (my A-5 was second-best to A-2). By the way, in a 10-handed game, the chances of an A-2 being out (when you hold an ace) are roughly even money. So, obviously, you want to closely observe the bettors.

The blinds both checked, but the next player, who was relatively tight, bet. Two players folded, and everyone else called. In five-way action, the turn card was the 9. It was not a great card, but it did give me the nut-flush draw. The first three players checked (now it seemed even more likely that the flop bettor had an A-2), but the player on my right (who had frequently bet with nothing) made the $30 bet. Everyone called. I was rooting for the double-nut 2 to come on the river.

The river card was the A - not what I had in mind. Thus, I went from the second-best low draw to the third-best low (a 5-2 or 6-2 would beat my 6-5). And I now had a pair of aces for high. All in all, it was quite unimpressive. Although I would call a single bet (with my fish low), I certainly would fold to a bet and a raise.

But, surprise, it was checked around to me! There was a good chance that nobody had the 5-2 (the wheel was the two-way nuts). Are you wondering what a "CLB bet" is? Charge of the Light Brigade, of course! "Into the valley of death rode the six hundred." Thus, instead of gratefully accepting the check, I bet. I would definitely hate my bet if I got check-raised!

The reason for sometimes betting two-way trash into a gaggle of players who have checked is that you might fold one or more players with slightly better trash than yours, but in only one direction, which would probably not be worth a call, especially in the presence of other players. Thus, good things sometimes happen. In this particular case, I obviously liked my low chances much better than my high, but I might put pressure on slightly better highs (very much like the classic "hump bet"; see Best of Cappelletti, Page 61).

One blind folded, the other blind called, and the third player (who likely had an A-2, and probably had me beat for high) looked disgusted as he threw in his cards. The next player, who had bet the turn, also folded after some thought.

The player who called me also had a 6-5 low, but had only jacks for high. So, I ended up winning three-quarters of the pot. Since any hand with an ace (or two pair) would have beat my hand, the Charge of the Light Brigade was vindicated at last.