Texas Hold'em - what would you do?

[Zachrulez]

I believe anything you can flop a straight with is considered a connecting hand.

Of course the closer the cards are apart, the better the connectors are because you can get straights more ways.

[Zachrulez]

Thing is, if you're going to wait for good cards to call a raise on the button, I'm going to steal your button over and over again and, when you do call, I'm going to have a very good idea where I'm at. It might be good play when considering a single hand, but it's really bad for your meta. Bad players play any two cards, mediocre players play only good cards, good players raise with anything and call only with good cards, great players play with any two cards.

Of course, loose aggressive isn't easy. You need to be able to get away post-flop, even if you're pot committed (which he wasn't, with somewhere between 6-12 BB left).

I wait till someone pegs me to a specific play style and then I change it.

[Zachrulez]

I wait till someone pegs me to a specific play style and then I change it.

Then how can you say explicitly that it was a bad call? Wouldn't that depend on what gear you're in? Obv, there are plenty of situations I'd fold 10-7 as well, but this didn't sound like one of them.

I didn't actually say it was a bad call.

Not sure I would have played the hand myself though.

Most people who say that plays are a bad call are the people who are annoyed that they lost a hand.

[Zachrulez]

I wouldn't have called that pre-flop, but once you caught your 7s, the hand was yours. You got lucky. Lucky isn't a bad thing in poker, but don't count on it too often.

I'm actually shocked that with as much as I've learned about the game since this, my answer doesn't change. I was reading the scenario going "oh God, I hope my past self didn't encourage this play".

Always be wary when you have three of a kind in case the other guy already had a pair. Might not happen often, but when it does you can lose big.

Being full housed by a pocket pair is not something I'd be worried about happening often enough to be discouraged by playing a set all out. If they have a big pair it's possible to put them on the full after the flop if you pay enough attention to how it was played pre flop. If they boat you with a smaller pair, they just hit a better hand than you, it's going to be difficult to fold a set in that situation unless you have a great read on your opponent.

[Zachrulez]

I'd probably just call a raise with medium pair too. You can reasonably eliminate QQ with someone that just calls your raise cause most people will reraise with QQ. 88 though makes sense to just call so it's a possibility and I'd probably be a tad uncomfortable facing a big bet in that situation.

That said I doubt I'd lay that hand down either. (The actual odds of an overset against you are so low that it would be foolhardy to fold a set without 100% certainty that your opponent holds a larger one.)

[Zachrulez]

I dunno, I just don't like those hands when you're not heads up. The odds of an over card on the board being enough to beat you are just so much higher with more people in there. Any pair under 10s I'm much more likely to either raise or fold than to just call. I've learned from that and a few other hands that not everyone thinks like that though. My league's main event with a Vegas trip on the line, a guy did the same thing with 9s. I checked my big blind with A8. Hit top pair with the 8, thought I was good. When he came over the top I figured he was just trying to steal the pot like he'd done a couple of times already. And of course I ended up going out on that hand.

The one that really surprised me though was when someone did it with Jacks. Again, I'm big blind and hit top pair. I had 10 5. Big tournament in Atlantic City and only two tables left so blinds and even antes are huge and every pot matters. I put out a min bet on the flop which was probably 20% of my stack. Guy calls again. Dud on the turn. I double my bet. He calls. Dud on the river. I'm all in. He calls and flips up the Jacks. I bubbled.

I just feel like it's such a waste of those hands to call and then there's like a queen or something on the board and three or four players with cards. You've got to figure you're beat. I've heard people say they're doing it because they're hoping for the set and will fold if it doesn't come but that's no better than playing suitedcards because "lol suited". (Exception being a small blind or maybe even button with no raises then maybe it's not the worst thing in the world). I'd much rather go heads up and actually win the pot than hope to get lucky.

Gotta be careful with "Top pair" because overpairs are a thing. Some people do like to trap with a good pair. Frankly I think it's begging to get yourself beat with 2 pair or something else like a straight or a flush when you do that but some people apparently think it's a money move.

Top pair weak kicker, good kicker, and bottom two pair are hands that people play like they're invincible and it's actually pretty easy to lose holding those kind of hands. They are not really good all in plays most of the time and the pot size should be managed with them if possible.

If your three of a kind is one card in hand, and two on a table, you have trips, not a set. A set is two in hand, one on the table, as a set is legitimately stronger than trips.

I use the words interchangeably. It's not important unless you actually need the words to make the distinction that "trips" can't beat a "set" in the regards that making "trips" against a "set" turns a "set" into a full house. I don't need the words the understand that.

[Zachrulez]

The odds are much higher he's got two pair or a strong ace though. If you assume every strong bet has you beat when you're holding a monster, you're going to end up folding almost every hand. I say this as a player who is usually tightest at the table.

I still disagree on top pair being weak in that spot, but I have nothing more to add on that.

I'm not saying it's weak per say, I'm just saying it's not as strong of a hand as people think, or as strong as people seem to like to play it. Cautious play will save you a lot of money.