Playing $1/3 NL hold 'em last night at the Horseshoe, a new guy joined the table. He was waiting for a seat in the $2/5 NL game. He was on the waiting list and just killing time until his seat opened up. He was on the button and straddled. That means he made a $6 bet and the action started with the small blind to his left. There were two limpers to me and I limped along with ♣A ♣J. Another player limped and the button/stradler/new player raised to $35. I was watching him and he hadn't looked at his cards!
This is an old tactic that Tunica regulars are aware of. The assumption is that if no one can come in for a raise, their hand won't be strong enough to call a big bet. Usually the bet is $50. It lets the player pick up a nice pot (four limpers times $6 is a $24 profit).
One of the limpers hemmed and hawed and called the $35! I had about $100 in front of me and moved all in. The straddler called (he still hadn't looked) and the hem-and-haw player folded. A nice $250+ pot sitting there.
You don't have to show (because it wasn't a tournament), but I think it's more fun, so I offered and he accepted. I turned my cards up and he did, too: ♣7 ♦10!
The flop was low cards, but the turn was ♦7 and he won a nice pot. I lost $100, but I still like my play. Why did he call the all in? He was just there for fun and the $100 meant nothing to him.
I dunno...I don't think I'd play any game with a person who thinks of $100 as nothin'! :-)
ReplyDeleteMy brain gets tired what with all the strategizing. I'm so old I can't figure out what to do when I get out of bed in the morning - eat breakfast, brush my teeth, or go back to bed!
@Jacob: LOL
ReplyDeleteI had a similar experience at Treasure Island in Vegas. A young gun sat down to my left and proceeded to raise to $30 pre-flop on almost every hand in a $1-$3 game. He went from $100 to $900 to busto, all within two hours!
ReplyDeleteI kept waiting for a big hand so I could get in a pot with him, but alas, I was card dead the entire time.