Pushing by the book

I received Jeff Hwang's book, "Pot-Limit Omaha Poker" today. The subtitle is, "The Big Play Strategy," which basically details the times it is best to get all of the money in the middle. It is going to take me a while to get through it, yet the information I have gleaned in the first twelve pages have already helped my game. For instance, he goes to great length to show how sets are slight dogs to draws with 13 outs, and, of course, worse off when there is a greater number of outs. I am encouuraged by this. And as happens any time I crack a book on poker, I can't wait to get to the tables with the new tools.

I was just taking a seat when the player to my right won a fairly large pot with a baby flush (his cards) against a set of Aces. He was crowing about it. I looked at the HH and saw that he had called a big preflop raise with absolute crap and got lucky. Afterward, he was playing every hand, calling all raises and min-raising from UTG. A complete LAG donkey. I was glad to be sitting where I was.

PokerStars Pot-Limit Omaha, $0.10 BB (8 handed) - Poker-Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com
saw flop | saw showdown

SB ($10)

BB ($19.50)

Hero (UTG) ($9.55)

UTG+1 ($4.15)

MP1 ($14.15)

MP2 ($7.50)

CO ($13.50)

Button ($30.20)



Preflop: Hero is UTG with 4, 7, 6, 5

Hero calls $0.10, UTG+1 raises to $0.45, MP1 calls $0.45, MP2 calls $0.45, CO calls $0.45, Button calls $0.45, SB calls $0.40, BB calls $0.35, Hero calls $0.35

With a spread like this, I wasn't going anywhere preflop and began praying for low cards on the flop.

Flop: ($3.60) K, 2, 3 (8 players)

That'll work. I have 15 outs, discounting the flush.

SB checks, BB checks, Hero checks, UTG+1 checks, MP1 checks, MP2 bets $3.45, 3 folds, BB raises to $6.90, Hero raises to $9.10 (All-In), 2 folds, MP2 calls $3.60 (All-In), BB calls $2.20

I knew what MP2 had. He had played very few hands and was protecting his set of Ks. I was surprised by the raise by the BB. Could he have the Kings? Given his wide range of hands (all of them), he could be on a big draw, perhaps to the nut flush. Otherwise, he had a set of 2s or 3s. I really didn't think he had the Kings at all. I really wanted to call, yet it would make no sense to just call at this point. I only had to options: fold or shove. With *half* of the deck at my beck and call, I intensified the prayer.

Turn: ($28.85) Q (3 players, 2 all-in)

River: ($28.85) 6 (3 players, 2 all-in)

Total pot: $28.85 | Rake: $1.40

Main pot: $24.75 between BB, Hero and MP2, won by Hero

Side pot 1: $4.10 between BB and Hero, won by Hero

Results:

BB had 10, 2, 8, 2 (three of a kind, twos).

Hero had 4, 7, 6, 5 (straight, six high).

MP2 mucked K, J, 4, K (three of a kind, Kings).

Outcome: Hero won $27.45

This win again puts me back over my original investment on Stars. It has taken me 5 days to win back what I lost in one disastrous last Wednesday. Not bad, considering it took me 4 weeks to make that much the previous good run.