Nice Hand !!

01.16.01

Let's look at his choices :

Clearly folding is not an option.

Our primary concern should be attempting to get as much money as possible from the SB and the BB. There is of course a chance that someone has a better Ace, but the only player that we are worried about here is the button. If one of the two very loose blinds hit trips with a better kicker with their very small stacks, then so be it, but the button has enough in front of him to break us.

• We could flat-call, hoping that the button will just fold and that one of the blinds will continue to bet their pocket pair or 4 or flush draw or whatever they might be betting. However, this passes the action on to the button. What if he has KhQh and decides to make a play at the pot since no one has shown real strength ? If he raises to 400 we would basically be forced to fold, oftentimes folding the best hand.
  
  
• We could make a small raise, perhaps just the minimum of 100, raising to 200. This should put enough pressure on the button that he won't try to get tricky, while keeping the risk smaller that the blinds will fold.
  
  
• We could put in a big, pot-sized raise. This will commit us to the pot, so if the button really does have a hand like AQ, we will have no way to get away from the hand. Also, unless they are holding a flush or straight flush draw or an Ace, the blinds will likely fold. On the other hand, if the button is holding a weak Ace such as A7, he will probably be forced to lay it down – we are therefore knocking out a stronger hand.
  
  

So what is the best play ? Perhaps you have a suggestion that I had not considered. All comments are welcome !

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