The Poker Quiz
You are playing a $1000 satellite trying to win your way
into a $10,000 World Poker Tour Event. The winner receives
a voucher for the tournament and all other players walk away
with nothing. Each player is given $5000 in chips with the
blinds starting out at a modest $25/$50.
At the second blind level ($50/$100) you are dealt pocket
10’s in middle position. An opponent in early
position opens the pot for a raise of $325. You elect to call
his raise, but then the big blind goes all in for $2900. The
initial raiser gets out of the way and action is back on you.
You have the opponent covered, with a total of $5500 chips
left.
The Solution
Fold.
In a winner take all satellite you must play very tight
in the early stages of the tournament. You don’t want
to get involved with an all-in pot preflop with a hand like
pocket 10’s. With only $325 invested in the pot and
a decent amount of chips left, you want to avoid situations
where you could be dominated (a higher pocket pair) or a coin
flip scenario (two overcards). Muck your 10’s and live
to fight another day.
