A hand recently came up at a $2-$5 NL game. A VERY intoxicated player had $3k in front of him. I sat down late in the game and missed tremendous action. (So I’m told.) When the pot had $40 in it, he bet $200 on a K 7 Q board. He got looked up by KJ, and I commented to the caller how he made a BIG call. He said to me, “You haven’t been here all night.”

Ok, I get it. Now….
Mr. 14 drinks gets up to leave, and racks his chips. He gets dealt his last hand, and WITHOUT LOOKING AT HIS CARDS, he declares,  ”I’m all in. You wanna call? Call.”

We are 6-handed.
The last man to act shows KTo and is sitting with $800. He folds.

Here’s the question….DO YOU?
If you call an all-in bet with KTo against a random hand your chances of winning are approx 59% and your chances of losing are approx 39%, with about a 2% chance of a tie. So you are about a 3 to 2 favorite. If you assume an $800 all-in bet then your expected value is about $160. That’s the amount you would win per bet if you were to run this experiment over and over again.

Is your decision based on the amount of money it costs to call, or based on the fact that long-term EV doesn’t apply here since your opponent is leaving after the hand?

If it is based on the dollar value, then how much would have made you call?  Would it matter if you were having a winning/losing session?  Most importantly, SHOULD IT MATTER?

Hmmm…either way, buy shoes!

~Marguerite~

If you ever hear me say, “Poker is a funny game”, take it literally.

Recently, I have been amused by a few statements that have been made at a 2-5 NL Hold ‘Em table.  The first came when a board of 2 5 7 10 J appeared in a heads-up pot.  Seat 1 was check-calling UNTIL the river.

Seat 2 bet the river, and Seat 1 check-RAISED!

Seat 2 then sits straight up in his seat and declares,

“Whadda ya have a full house?”  (I promise you he meant this!)

Seat 1 gives a slight shrug and Seat 2 MUCKS with, “Yeah, you got it.”

Insert laughter here.

The next night, I played 2-5 again, and I have to tell the above story to my table mates.  We all have a good chuckle because statements like those are pretty common in this particular Fishbowl…errrr… I mean Poker Room.

There is a limped pot 6- handed, I hold KJs.   I flop a K, I bet, one caller.  Turn a J, I bet, he calls again.  River…Q.  I bet, he calls.

Here’s where it gets a little funny.  I announce, “Two pair.”

He says, “Set.”

Here’s where I’m confused.  I say, “Set of WHAT?”  (With the board draw heavy from the flop, I couldn’t figure out the check-calling the whole way with a SET!)

He says, “Queens.”

QUEENS??????  QUEEEEEEEENS?

A SIX-WAY LIMPED POT AND HE HAS QUEENS????

I need to reiterate that it was a limped pot right?

He replies, “Yeah, I don’t like to play out of position.”

I instinctively laughed and then apologized.  I wasn’t laughing AT HIM, I was just expecting a different response like….

“Well, I limped early hoping someone would raise.”

Had he said this, the conversation would be over.  But…the response struck me funny because I had never heard that reasoning before!

Therefore, two things are true:

1) You learn something new every day.

2) POKER IS A FUNNY GAME!

Good luck and buy shoes!

~Marguerite~

Welcome to Woman Poker Player. This is your first post. Edit or delete it, then start blogging!

Neko Case was born in 1970 in Virginia, her original family name which was changed before she was born was Shevchenko.  She left her home in Tacoma Washington when she was 15.  She moved to Vancouver, B.C. and attended the Emily Carr Institute of Art and Design.  She played drums with many Vancouver bands including punk groups like Del Logs, the Propanes, The Weasels and Cub.  In 1998, Neko graduated with a fine arts degree and lost her student visa.  Before she left she recorded some vocals for The New Pornographers first album. Her vocals on Mass Romantic became a success and the New Pornographers decided to tour and record  four more albums.

Case fully embraced country music on her 1997 album with Her Boyfriends, The Virginian. The album contained original compositions as well as covers . When the album was released, critics compared Neko to singers like Loretta Lynn and Patsy Cline, and to rockabilly pioneer Wanda Jackson.

In 2000, Case released her second solo album with Her Boyfriends, Furnace Room Lullaby. It introduced the “country noir” elements that have defined Case’s subsequent solo career.

Case sometimes tours with her friend Canadian singer and songwriter Carolyn Mark, as The Corn Sisters. One of their performances, at Seattle’s Hattie’s Hat restaurant in Ballard, was recorded and released as an album, The Other Women, on November 28, 2000.

Case’s latest album, Middle Cyclone, was released on March 3, 2009 and hit #3 on the billboard charts during its first week.  Later in 2009 she also appeared on Late Show with David Letterman. Amazon.com rated Middle Cyclone the number one album of 2009.

Case was honored as the Female Artist of the Year at the Plug Independent Music Awards on February 2, 2006.

I also get caught up in the….is he just doing that to me because I am a “girl????”

my focus right now is n three of many weaknesses in my game
1. wanting to see a flop with a small pair, no matter what the cost!
2. LOVE a suited ace
3. I never believe the button

I don’t know if anyone out there is interested…but I plan to post my poker learning experiences and hope to hear from others!

Welcome to Woman Poker Player. This is your first post. Edit or delete it, then start blogging!

“Dooshy” had at least one 9, thus causing his outrage.

WHY?

Why is it important to keep your focus and concentration during EVERY hand?

It is because it will be a deciding factor in your shoe shopping…you will either NOT be going, or you will be going to the nearest Christian Louboutin.

I was playing 2-5 at Caesars. On my left was a complete maniac who did not have a “fold button” and confirmed that to me when I asked him.  Earlier, we were in a hand with a $40 pot.  He bet $100 on the river, and I said, “You want it that bad?  You can have it.”  He responded, “THAT’S THE POINT!”

LOL…ok, you win.

Four hours into the game, I get involved in a hand with him AGAIN. This time it is the biggest pot of the night and my deciding factor for shoes!

Middle position was FIP and raised to $20. It was folded to me in the small blind. I looked down to AK and 3-bet to $65. Mr. “Can’t fold” in the BB snap called. The original raiser, I will call him “Dooshy”, (and you will see why), folded.

The flop: A 9 9
I bet $85.
“Can’t fold” snap called.
The turn: 5
I bet $150
“Can’t fold” again…SNAPPAGE.
The river: 2
I check.
“Can’t fold” immediately dug his thumbs into his stack for $475 as I watched. This leaves him $300 behind.
If I call, it leaves me $500 behind.

Here’s where it gets tricky:

I IMMEDIATELY said, “Wow!  You got the 9?  Sorry guys, I’m gonna need a minute.”
All at once, I heard,

“Take your time.”

“No rush.”

“Think about it.”

“Take all the time you need.”

“Nobody’s calling a clock on you, don’t worry.”

All this came from 6 players at my table. Then I heard,

“I’m calling a clock.”

That came from “Dooshy”!

Well…he gets trampled by most of the table for this.

“Who called a clock?” (This came from the 8 seat.)
“I did. The guy who’s leaving.” (This came from Dooshy.)
“So leave then!”
“Go now then!”
“You gotta be kiddin’ man!”
“She’s not even thinking for 30 seconds, dude!”
“Why are you being a jerk?”

(This comes from everyone else!)

I am silently trying to evaluate this hand and “Can’t fold” is silent as well.
Dooshy then tapped the dealer on the forearm and says, loudly, “I SAID, I CALL A CLOCK!”
The dealer called the floor over and they allllllllll tell him that I am not deliberating for more than half a minute, I am playing for half my stack, it is a big decision…etc.

I was desperately trying to tune this all out and make a decision.

At this point, “Can’t fold” and I are the ONLY PEOPLE at the table not speaking! There was now chaos and arguing going on and I felt like I was on the commercial for Full Tilt where everything is going in slow motion around the person in the hand.

The floor says, “You have 40 seconds.”

I convince myself that he doesn’t have the 9, and he doesn’t have me beat.  I think my hand is good.  I call.

WHY?

(I will give you time to think about it.  Answer will be blogged in one week.)