Big Fat Value

Trip #3 to the Cleveland Horseshoe casino this morning, squeezing in a couple quick hours before work.

I spotted the bad players quickly. One guy flatted my raise, as I held AJ. I hit my ace and bet twice. He called twice. Remembering how I valuetowned myself with AJ last time vs. AK, I checked the river and he tabled pocket kings. No 3bet preflop? No giving up after 2 bets?

"I knew you had the ace, but I figured I would get paid if a king came", he said.

Yes, I suppose you would have.

Flopped a set of threes a bit later. Someone bet 10 and I raised it to 35. This same guy cold-called my reraise, as did the original raiser. Overpair for the original raiser, God know what for the first guy.

I busted out the "I mean it" pot sized $95 turn bet. First guy reallllly wanted to call, but in the end he folded. A bit too big I guess. That's ok, gotta go for that big fat value when you can.

A limped pot in late position with 6d7d. I hit middle pair on the flop, and two diamonds. A lead to $5, a minraise to $10, and I flat. I put the minraiser on top pair, two pair or a set.

Then, the amazing thing happens, I hit my flush on the turn! Shocking. He leads out for $10 again, the classic "please don't have a flush". I figure the jig will be up if I raise, but I've got to raise now anyway, in case he has a high diamond himself that he wants to draw to, or a set that wants the river to pair the board. I raise to $35. "You've got that flush, huh?", he asks. I stay quiet. He calls the raise.

The river bricks. His one pair + high diamond probably won't be calling me, but two or a set will call something. I settle on $42. He calls without flipping his cards. "You hit that flush?", he asks. I somehow think he knows the answer already.

"Yes sir", I reply as I table my 67. He mucks his cards.

Final decent hand of the day, pocket tens in the big blind. One player makes a $7 raise - a very small raise in a casino atmosphere. He has done this twice already, though, once with queen-ten suited, and once with ace-seven. I've got pocket tens in the big blind - I could probably 3bet and take this hand down, and that's probably the correct play with my read on the raiser, but I flat, and we get a big multiway pot,

The board runs out all low - a six is the highest card. I lead out, and everyone folds except the original small raiser. There are two clubs out there, which is my first thought, but he can also have top pair type hands like 67 or A6, or weaker overpairs like 77, 88, and 99.

Turn keeps my cards an overpair. I lead for $20 and he calls again. Fat value, all the way.

I hate the last card, the ace of clubs. The flush has come, as has the ace-rag two pair. Some of his hands have caught me, some have not. My river value bet has gotten thinner, but that doesn't make it wrong to make it. I add a couple bucks to the bet, $22. He looks at me.

"You really want me to go away, don't you"? he asks. I find it an odd question considering the action, which to me seemed on the weaker side. Sounds like he's not very strong, Two pair or clubs would insta-call or raise without speaking. It makes me think I'm ahead. I freeze up, not staring at him, trying to give away anything. Maybe he takes this action for a bluff - he calls. "Pocket tens", I offer, and flip them over.

He stares at the board for awhile, not flipping his cards. Maybe deciding how I could bet that dangerous river, and still manage to get paid by a worse hand. I wonder the same thing, but he mucks and surrenders the pot to me without letting me see what he got so sticky with.

About half an hour after that hand, I had 2 more hours of time available to play, but something was telling me to get up. I was ahead a full buy-in, I had a bit of a headache, and the first super-fishy guy had left the table. Sometimes you gotta listen to the little voice. I waited for the blinds to get to me and then stood up for the day.