8 person single table
No Limit Holdem Tournament
Blinds are at 50/50
UTG 7/8 suited

I raise from UTG with 7,8 S , 3X the BB (150) and get 1 caller from the cut-off seat, both blinds fold. The flop comes 456 rainbow. I check and the cut-off bets about 2/3 the pot (200). I call and the turn hits a 2. i check and the cut-off bets again, (350) about half the pot. I re-raise to 700, he folds. He later stated he had AK. He also said he thought I might have his same hand or hopefully AQ. This shows the value of changing up your starting hands occasionally in order to confuse your opponents. I am regarded by those I play frequently with as a pretty tight aggressive player, They were somewhat surprised when I showed the suited connnectors. I felt I would try some advertising in hopes to set up a play later, when I tryed the same up front play with some big pair. KEEP EM GUESSIN!

In analyzing this, I may have won with an allin following his reraise, but i would have had to muster up a decent amount of testoterone for that one. I may have been able to get him off the hand with a larger intial raise as well somewhere in the line of 3/4 pot size may have done it but that would also have pot commited me, again with total air.

Any ways it depends…

There are no real absolutes, but there is cost , risk and reward to consider. Suited connectors are best played cheaply and against several opponents to increase the size of the potential pot, optimally in position.

So if your at a 9 person table and there are 4 limpers in front, your in the cut-off with 5,6s and can see the flop for the cost the BB absolutely try to see the flop and hope to connect big. More on suited connectors. soon

If the board and action behind you tell a story of defeat, and your intuition sends off alarms during the course of the hand, those jacks should be easy to let go.

We will talk about JJ from the middle, and back side with position and how they are played in the days to come. Comment on this particular set of circumstances let me know how you would play them differently.

I check because if he hit top pair or even two pair he will certainly bet, and then I will check raise him all-in. This is my thought process on this particular situation. I do however run the risk of the him having hit a straight but a feel this is less likely than top pair or even two pair.

He bets half the pot, I move all in. If he has two pair he’ll call, if he has top pair with a K he’ll probably call.

stay tuned…. the river coming next

By the way this is a 9 person table, single table tournament format, starting chip 3500 and its early blinds are 50/100 no ante.

Do I come in with 3x the blind, 4x the blind, 6x the blind or just 2x. Does it matter?

well 6x will clear everything but the hand that surely has me beat. 2x may not be enough to clear a path and then I may be faced with several callers, not good. 3x times is so common, lets make it 2.5 times and see what happens. 225 its is.

players 2,3,4, fold away. player 5 the wild card calls the 6,7, fold as does the SB, but BB completes and its time to run em. pot is 725.

The flop comes 7,10, J rainbow.

Good flop, maybe… what should I do? Im first to act, top set, yep but wild card has come in for a call, what the range of this Maverick? any suited connectors from 5 up, even single gapped suited connectors are possible, any suited A , any two face cards suited or not, any pair below a J. Yep thats what I figure for the Maverick.

The BB is another question all together, a skilled player with pot odds well counted before the flop. So his hand range would probably be suited connectors above a 7 , with or without a gap, any small pocket pair probably, A,234 suited. probably not A rag suited, probably not A10, but A,J or Q is likely. I slightly discount AK as he probably would raise but a smooth call is possible to see a flop.

My JJJ is certainly a good hand, but either of these two could have come in with connectors, I certainly cant let them see another card on a draw, an 8,9 has me beat right now, a Q,9 is drawing to an 8 or K.

The way I figure it I need to see where Im at so about 2/3 the pot would normally be right thats about 500-550. But heres the thing. I put in 550 and then what do I do on the turn if a K or 8 materialize. I think Maverick will call on an open ender, If it doesnt come on the turn, then my only move will be an all-in, but if it hits can I get away from this with 775 or about 1/4 of my stack in this pot.

Well I bet 2/3, the maverick calls the BB folds. stay tuned… whats your thoughts.