limit holdem SNG's

[johnbaker]

ok, so the other night i sign up for a $20+2 SNG on empire. I come in, there are 2 maniacs who are raising and reraising with nothing, showing 8 high etc the whole time. Its seriously safe to call them down with A2 high. anyways, 2 of the maniacs got knocked out and i thought i could skill my way into the money.....

WRONG

I'm dealt J10s on the button, the last maniac has 30 chips more than me. the stakes are 50/100 at this point and i have roughly 450 left. I limp, the maniac raises, i call, its just me and him. flop is 8Q6 or something like that, and i figure that jack high is good at this point (yeah i know, its pretty fuckin presumptuous, but i had a tell on the guy based on how long he delayed when betting. my read said he had nothing.) i knew he would reraise with 3 high at this point, so i just called. turn is a K (i think, dont remember too clearly). he bets, i raise, he reraises, i go all in. he has 72o and gets a 2 on the river.

see heres my question: why would there be so many dumbshits in a 20 buyin LIMIT holdem game at midnight on a friday? do these people not understand that a re-reraise in limit is not going to make a comitted player fold? or did i just run into a bunch of drunks and get unlucky as hell? i know one thing for sure; im never playing limit again below 5/10 cash games. whatever.... the guy got knocked out outside the money, i was cheering on everyone else to knock him out hahaha... the guy who did is my fucking hero.

-jB

[2Tone]

Given that it was midnight on Friday, I'll go with the theory that these guys were not aware they were signing up for a LIMIT tourney, and played it as if it were NL.

There's also the cult of the 7/2 off. On some of the blogs, they call it the Hammer, and have a running joke about playing it every time -- and making some surprisingly good cash doing so.

Badblood might be able to speak to this ...

[Aequitas58]

I've never heard of this... any links you could pass on?

[2Tone]

I don't endorse this, but here's more about 7/2 off.





You can Google for tons more.

FYI, for everyone else. Lou is currently putting on a shorthanded NL clinic over at Mirabelle. Avoid him at the tables, but everyone else is pretty soft.

The free $10 is over, but the fish it brought in remain.

[Aequitas58]

Blowin up my spot like that!

I am terrible at poker, I was just getting a solid run of cards.

[ChipFish]

Read or no read, I am still trying to figure what the heck you were doing playing jack-ten?

[2Tone]

LOL. And Cameron Diaz is a total dog, she just happens to photograph well.

[Penguinfan]

Ah yes, lost in this thread is the signifigance of that statement tight there, good catch ChipFish.

[johnbaker]

i had nothing left basically, and to see a flop with J10 against 1 maniac for 1/6th my chips, i knew that if i hit the flop in any way i would double up and also knock out the maniac. also, the blinds were about to be raised, the J10 was suited, I was open ended on the turn, and if my memory serves me correctly i also had a flushdraw on the turn. Mr 72o was a 9 to 1 dog on 4th, but he hit his miracle... tough shit for me.

-jB

[Frontin]

Yeah I've played in limit tourneys where guys would raise with anything just to end their tourney quickly.. cause they intended to sign up for a NL tourney but got the wrong one.

[badblood44]

Ah yes, The Hammer.

It is kind of a running joke among poker bloggers. Statistically proven to be the worst Hold 'em starting hand, 2,7off has taken on a life of its own.

Inspired by the Poker Grub's Hammer challenge:



winning with the hand has become an event to blog about.

I've even hit quads with it once. So beware the 2,2,7 flop, it's not junk anymore

[jdiana86]

hope this was in the big blind

[badblood44]

It doesn't count if it was in the big blind!!!!

You have to pre-flop raise w/it!!!!

[junYUN]

i think i'll leave 72o to the bloggers and continue to play good poker

[Penguinfan]

Last trip to Atlantic City EVERY time there was a 2 and a 7 on the flop the kid in the 5 seat would say "huh and they say it's the worst hand in poker". After hearing it like a dozen time I wanted to punch him in the face between 2 and 7 times.

[GeoffM]

Agreed. I would have folded all day.

It is likely the guy didn't want to play limit, and was just trying to get knocked out so he could move on to another game. Limit is a lot different from NL and he obviously does not know how to play limit.

[Tilter]

I think its most likely that they signed up thinking it was a NL tourney! thats tough tho.

[Charlie Frank]

I think the guy just didn't realise that his opponent (johnbaker) was the sort of fish to call to the river with only J high.

CF

[Charlie Frank]

This whole thread should be in the "How Should I Play This?" forum.

CF

[johnbaker]

did you even read what i wrote CF.... i was all in on the turn with a straight flush draw + overcards.... i was even money vs the nuts (top set) at that point, no reason not to put all my money in if i know this idiot is going to donate to me.

btw what ever happened to our old thread? after i actually showed some interest in playing you in a freezeout you kind of dissapeared off the forum for a while, which makes me wonder if you even have enough money for a $1000 freezeout anyways... the only reason for you to offer playing a freezeout for so much is because you thought i would say no, and you would win the argument and look like a hardass... anyways you left for weeks, and now you come back talking about stuff you dont understand again.... either pay attention to what i say or dont post in my threads, idiot.

-jB

[GeoffM]

Ah, a challenge has been issued. Great way to build up some rivalries on this forum.

[jimmym]

2-7 2-9 3-10 it doesnt seem to matter.

You will at some stage come accross a player or sometimes a good few players who will chance it with whatever they have.
Now it may be true that these players have signed up to the wrong tourny Limit/NL and just want out, but it is become more frequent that some players are chancers, by this I mean they have a few $ and dont mind spoiling games by trying to buy them (just keep betting with anything and hope for luck) if you come accross a player who you think is trying this it is worth doing a site search for there name as they most probably will be in a couple of sit n gos.
My advice is follow them, play the hands you now are good and you should 90% of the time win, they are playing solely relying on luck, you will be combining your skill with luck, chances are you are going to win.

Jim

[johnbaker]

yeah, the people ive seen doing this really dont think about anythign they do. i saw the tightest player at the sng reraising the maniac on a turn of JJ99, they capped it, and the maniac ended up all in on the river (Q). the tight player had AJ, and the maniac was playing the board with 10 3. obviously these kind of players are going to die when someone gets any sort of hand, but since that was the first (and last) limit sng ive played, i dont think im going to go out of my way to hunt down these people in limit sng's. pot limit fish are more common, and since its pot limit, they cant get my suited connectors out preflop.... especially early in the tourney, when i can see a flop with them for something like 4% of my stack.

-jB

[SirFWALGMan]

Does anything surprise you? KJ s000ted, pre-flop raise, two callers, 75o wins when 757 hits as the last 3 cards! I made my Jack high and was betting it hard enough that he should have know. Idiot!

I personally play the $20 Holdem SNGs when I need a break from the 5/10's. Playing at 5/10 makes the 22 bucks a nothing buyin, and the $88 payout if you win not worth much. If I want to relax a little on my second table I will play one.

These games become too much like NL too quickly. If you do not catch cards by the 4th orbit you are basically deciding to put most of your chips in on one play. The 50/100 and 100/200 blinds happen so quickly that you need to get lucky there and catch some cards or outplay your opponents with bluffs.

[Aequitas58]

Yea, but given the loose nature of these SnGs, usually by the 4th orbit, a few people are knocked out. And hopefully, if you haven't won a pot, then all the money has gone to the same person.