Don't Make This Mistake

I did it again. I over-played my hand and it cost me. All because I was sitting on round after round of mediocre and bad cards. Here's the situation:

After better than 30 min of post/fold in a live event, I get K9os in the BB. UTG limps, the button calls, and I check. Flops brings K63 rainbow. I'm first to act with top pair, but a lousy kicker. I decide to bet 2/3 pot in hopes of taking it down right there. Both players just smooth call.

The turn brings a blank and I bet out about 1/2 pot, reasoning that these players have something like mid pkt pair or A6, A3. After all, there was no raise pre-flop and no raise of my bet on the flop. Again, both players just call.

The river brings an A. I check, UTG bets about 1/4 pot, the button calls. I think for a minute, but can't resist making the call with 2nd pair. I'm getting good odds on my money, and the way the hand has played out it's hard to put either opponent on an A. If either had had a hand like A6 or A3 and made 2 pair on the river, they'd be betting more than just 1/4 pot.

Well, UTG rolls over AK for 2 pair, A's and K's. (!)

The button shows A-rag for a pair of A's. (?)

Leaving aside the donkey that called every bet to the river with nothing but a naked A (no pair, no draws), I made my biggest mistake in continuing to bet on the turn after making a big bet on the flop and being called by 2 players. I should've given at least one of them credit for a hand. Not necessarily AK, but a hand like pkt 6's or 3's would have been reasonable in this situation, given the way the hand played out.

I ended up losing nearly 1/2 of my stack on this one hand. I managed to make a comeback later and finished 12th, but I never really recovered from the earlier loss. Those extra chips would've made a huge difference in the amount I could have won in the later hands, possibly allowing me to make the final table.

Don't let yourself get pressured into over-playing any hand because of frustration with perceived inactivity. While it's true that my play of this hand would have won me the pot if neither of these players held premium cards, their calls should have been a BIG red flag.

Heads Up!!!

Every year the National Heads-Up Poker Championship is one of TV's highest rated poker shows, and in the past has been reserved for the poker elite on an invitation-only basis.

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PokerStars is holding twice-daily freerolls beginning January 22nd to February 22nd:

Round 1A tournaments are held at 7pm Eastern time.
Round 1B tournaments are held at 10pm Eastern time.

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Every new and existing PokerStars player will be allowed to enter one Round 1A and one Round 1B qualifier.

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These freerolls are open to US players only, so give it a shot. If you have what it takes, you could be playing heads-up for $1.5M!

WILL YOU BE THE NEXT CHAMPION?

Answer from WPT about ClubWPT

This is the answer I got back from Customer Support at the WPT:

Hello Lawrence,

Thank you for contacting us.

There is no conflict for US players at ClubWPT. This service was set up specifically with US players in mind.

We don't accept cash deposits.

We are set up to operate under sweepstakes laws. There are a few states where we're not allowed, but rest assured Vermont is a perfectly acceptable state for using this service.

While I don't have specific information about WPT event prizes such as you mentioned, I can tell you that we are currently exploring the possibility and it is likely.

We look forward to seeing you at the Club tables soon.

Best of luck to you!Please feel free to contact us if you have any additional questions.

Sincerely,Michael

Please visit our online Customer Support center for answers to any questions and concerns.