12- 2-09, LearnTexasHoldem:

Getting bad beats suck

Middle position. A-10 off suit. With 9 players in the table, I call the blinds and everyone else just calls. It was a very aggressive game and there were at least 3 players who were stupid callers. Given the aggressiveness of the table, I played a hell lot tighter than usual and I established (unintentionally) a table image of a rock. The A-10 call was meant to be a "loose table-image" call.

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The flop then comes Ad-2d-Kh. Everyone before me checks. I bet 8x the big blind knowing that somebody having an ace was very unlikely (the table usually had raises reaching 10x the big blind for A-x off suit). And I knew even with an 8x bet somebody would still call. Another thing to point out was that there was a possible flush-draw hiding somewhere and I really needed to give them very bad pot-odds. Four of the "tighter" and better off players to my left folded because they saw me as a "rock." The other two (super aggressive ones) were thinking about calling but eventually folded. The tight short stack folded immediately. The other two left was the mega-caller (already lost 9x min buy-in) and the newbie who played live poker for the first time. They both called my bet.

Three players in, the turn added an 8c. Ad-2d-Kh-8c. Mega-caller was first to act, he checks. Newbie thought about a bet but decided to check. I was last to act and I bet 10x the big blind. Mega-caller calls. Newbie calls.

The river ended with Ad-2d-Kh-8c-Ks. Mega-caller bets 3x the big-blinds but newbie re-raises and goes all-in to 12x. I had a 15x big blind stack left. I thought for a moment, I knew I was beat. I went all in and mega-caller (I realized he was a flush-draw) folded, leaving me without any side pot to win. Newbie instantly shows his K-4 and I mucked my hand.

I analyzed the situation and realized I didn't made any mistakes. With a potential flush-draw in the flop, I didn't slow play my Ace. When I bet, I was seen as a "rock" and considering the table was loose-aggressive -- I bet aggressively knowing that those that noticed me will fold (even with a king) and the losers will call. Without any pre-flop raises given the loose-aggressiveness of the table, I correctly guessed there were no other Aces in the game. On the turn, both players checked before me and both didn't have tells of fishy two-pair odor so I bet.

Everything was perfect until the river gave the newbie the trips. This hand was one of the best non-monster hand I ever played and it got bad beat by a newbie who couldn't see an Ace and thought that K with 4 kicker was good pair even against huge maybe even monster bets from a "rock." Getting bad beats suck.

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