Rudy Edwards

I had a fairly eventful heads up game, vs Jimmy (his screen name is Jimmy and some digits but I don't see a reason to post it) on Full Tilt. I sat down to the NL100 heads up table and Jimmy had $114 in his stack. This HU game is noteworthy primarily because of my use of table talk. It was all experimental, but I gave it a shot.

The Session began with me raising from the button with J4s, and taking it down with a continuation bet. He folded his first button, and I deviated from my usual HU strategy by limping J3s from the button to test his reaction. He overraised to $5, and I immediately wished I had waited to limp with a stronger hand so I could play back at him, but I noted his overraise and moved on. we swapped big blinds by raising in position for a few hands, until I three bet him pot ($9) with AQ, and he folded. My next button saw 96o, and I raised pot as usual, and he three bet to 9. I put in a loose call here, hoping to take him for a big pot. The flop came down ATs9. He continuation bet 12.50 into an $18 pot, and I decided the board was scary enough I'd take a shot and I raised to 30, with outs to two pair, trips, or even a back door flush draw if he calls. He didn't.

Jimmy backed off for a few hands, and then came in with a raise, but folded to my 3-bet with AKs. He backed for a few hands and folded the blinds to me, Finally, he raised the blinds from the button, and I called with 75s. The flop came down T98 with two clubs. I checked to Jimmy, who bet $5 into the $6 pot, and I made it 21 to go with a check raise. Jimmy pushed all-in, and I called. The turn gave him a set, but the river gave me a flush to stack him.
He claimed in player chat that the irrelevant set of Qs tilted him, which I was looking for but hadn't seen much sign of. If anything, he seemed even more passive. I was able to escape his quad kings vs my Kings full of eights (with 88 in the hole, obv) losing only $18 because he was so passive. I started my chats now, telling him that his river bet with the quads was a perfect one, and that I would have folded to just a little more. This was true, and I'm still unsure if that statement would help later or if it was irrelevant.

A few hands later, Jimmy has taken a few hands from me and he's got about $120 to play for. I raise T3 suited from the button, and Jimmy 3 bets me, but with a Ten Dollar bet instead of our standard $9 pot-sized reraise. I mention to him during the next hand that his 10 bet looked kind of weak, but he caught me with weak suited, so I couldn't play. Immediately after this chat, I raise up ATo from the button, and he ten bets me again. "Another Ten Bet so soon? OK I'll bite" I say, and call. The flop is a nightmare, probably for both of us, 36s5, and I lay down to his $14 bet into the $20 pot.

Me: Now I wish I hadn't chatted about it
Jimmy: Lay down 99 or something?

About this time, I'm dealt KK

Me: No, A with a good kicker, but I really thought you were full of it.

Jimmy raises the button to $3

Me: Have a taste of my 10 bet

I three bet to $10. Jimmy reraises to $35. I pause-push. Jimmy Calls for his stack with AQ

Now, for all I know, this was going to be the path we would take if I had shut my mouth and just played, but the AQ call seems way out of Jimmy's usual range. We've played about 40 or 50 hands at this point, and You've really got to think I'm full of it to call that bet all in with AQo. I can't break down why I feel I made the right chats (or more likely the right play based on the chats we had) But I felt like I was doing the right thing. This was less like the Rock-Paper-Scissors I usually feel like I'm playing when trying to get into someone's head, and a little more like... well, an art form.

I don't even know if I would blindly feel the same way when playing an opponent who is more aware or insightful, so there are plenty of ways to decide that it was just plain luck that he called AQ when I had been chatting him up, but it sticks in my mind as something I'd like to work on. If I ever want to have success at medium to high stakes live games, I'll certainly need to be more aware of it's impact.