Suited Aces - Part III

I already have mentioned that suited aces come in three flavors. The best suited aces are those in which the other card is big - a king, queen, jack, or 10. These hands, especially suited A-K and A-Q, are premium holdings. The second flavor contains a medium-size card - 9, 8, 7, or 6. The third flavor contains a small card - 5, 4, 3, or 2. With these hands, you are relying primarily on the potential to make a flush or straight.

I will discuss all three types in a lot more detail in later columns, but here, I will examine another instructive hand from actual play. This hand occurred in the 2007 Aussie Millions tournament. First I will describe the play, and then discuss each individual decision. The Aussie Millions uses a format that entails going to shorthanded tables as the tournament progresses. This is a popular format and produces more action than is usually seen at nine- or 10-handed tables. The blinds are 1,500-3,000 with a 500 ante. An aggressive superstar is the chip leader with more than 375,000 in chips. I'm not sure of the stack size of the other player involved in the hand, but I think it is around 200,000.

The aggressive player, in third position, raises to 11,000 with the A 9. The other player calls from the button with the K K. The flop is the J J 8. The aggressive player lives up to his reputation and fires again, this time 22,000, and the button quickly calls. The turn is the Q. Both players check. The river is the 6. The aggressive player doesn't realize that he has made a flush, but decides to fire one more bluffing bullet. He bets 44,000. The button quickly calls. The star says, "Good call!" The button shows his kings. As he is getting ready to muck, the star notices that he has made a flush. He now shows the winner while apologizing for his inadvertent slow-roll.

Analysis of the Plays

Preflop: The superstar's raise at a shorthanded table with A-9 suited is certainly OK, and in keeping with his aggressive style. I can't say that I like flat-calling with kings from the button against a very good, very aggressive player. Yes, he might trap him for a bet or two later in the hand, but he'll be guessing if an ace or any other dangerous flop comes. He may end up being the one who is trapped. I guess his dream is for one of the blinds to decide to reraise and trap everybody in a monster pot. I know it could happen, but I think he is much more likely to make money by raising. One of the blinds still may call or even raise. More importantly, though, the star will feel obliged to defend his raise with a reasonable hand, and certainly will reraise with hands like A-K or Q-Q, which the button has dominated.

Flop: The continuation-bet seems relatively automatic. Perhaps on days when the superstar's table feel is great, he might pick up on the fact that the button is strong, and just check. The button has shown no strength with his kings, but now he has to worry about the opener having a jack. He also might be up against a draw. I might consider raising to clarify the situation, but calling has some advantages. He loses less if the superstar has a jack, and wins more if the superstar keeps bluffing.

Turn: The queen convinces the pro that he is beat; his opponent doesn't seem to be going anywhere, and could be slow-playing a jack.Therefore, he wisely checks. I don't know why the button checks. Kings figure to be good. The board is too dangerous to allow a free card. Any red card might make a flush, any 10 or 9 a straight, and any ace an overpair. He might get called by a draw that will fold on the river if it misses. The only way that this ill-conceived play can win is if the aggressor misses and decides to bluff again.

River: The pro doesn't realize that he has a flush, but fires another bluffing bullet. I think this is a mistake, based on the fact that his opponent has called every bet, and doesn't appear to be giving up now. If he did realize what he had, a larger bet or a check-raise attempt would have been appropriate. The kings correctly call. They can beat a lot of hands, including bluffs, A-Q, and pairs like tens or nines, and so on. They obviously can't raise, as the aggressor could have a monster.

This hand is taken from an excellent new book, Every Hand Revealed by Gus Hansen (available at CardPlayer.com). He gives the reader a real peek inside the mind of the expert. Gus is a creative, thoughtful, aggressive player. When you read his analysis, you realize that some of his plays that seem to be wild are carefully thought out. It is both instructive and fascinating to read Gus' thoughts as he plays. Yes, Gus was the superstar involved in this hand. He summarizes it by saying, "This was probably my poorest performance so far in this tournament. Trying a hopeless bluff (on the river) … Not knowing what cards I had was absolutely unforgivable!"

We have to praise Gus for being willing to share his blunders as well as his brilliant plays. I think that since one of the best all-around players (tournaments and all varieties of cash games) can space out like that, there is hope for all of us. Add Gus Hansen's book to your must -read list, especially if you are a tournament player.

Steve "Zee" Zolotow, aka The Bald Eagle, is a successful games player. He currently devotes most of his time to poker. He can be found at many major tournaments and playing on Full Tilt, as one of its pros. When escaping from poker, he hangs out in his bars on Avenue A in New York City - Nice Guy Eddie's on Houston and Doc Holliday's on 9th Street.