Champion of Poker

Hi there,

I had a situation come up recently in a Limit Holdem game where my friend told me that I made a bad call. I wanted your opinion on the matter. I held pocket 10′s and led out on every street until the river with two players calling my bet the whole way. At the river, the board was 2s-3s-8c-7c-5s. I checked to my first opponent who bet out. The other opponent folded and I made the call. My opponent showed As-4s for the flush and I lost the pot. My friend told me that I should have folded at the river due to there being straight and flush possibilities. I personally was of the thought that it was only one more bet and maybe he just had top pair. What are your thoughts?

Steven

Steven,

I like your call at the river, but not exactly for your reason. While it was true that a straight or a flush might beat you, it is equally true that he could have been playing top pair, A-K or even a smaller pair. The outcome of him having a suited ace was also a definite possibility.

The reason I like your call is the fact that there were eight big bets in the pot. You only need to win one in eight pots to post a profit. Odds are you are going to win this hand more than 1 in 8, so this turns out to be a profitable play in the long run.

I liked your play through this entire hand. You tried to push your opponents out until the river and then you saved yourself a bet. If you had bet with both a straight and flush up on the board, you may have cost yourself an extra bet. Being able to recognize spots to save bets will help you over the course of your poker career.