The Poker Quiz

Your playing a multi-table NLH tournament and are seated on the button with 1,800 in chips. The blinds are 100 and 200, with 9 players at your table. Most of the table is playing conservatively except for the Big Blind who has recently went on a rush and is now the chip leader at your table. The first three players fold, and the player in fourth position raises to 800 with about 4000 left in his stack. It folds around , and you look down to see KJ unsuited staring back at you.

Do you raise, fold or call?

The Solution

Fold.

There are a couple of factors that should lead you to think about throwing this hand away. First is the 800 chip raise from middle position. If this 4xBB raise was from late position, there would be a good chance that the player was making a steal attempt. From middle position it is more likely your opponent is holding a hand better than your KJ. The size of the raise and the size of your chip stack should also worry you. If you call, you will only be left with 1000 in chips. With at least 1900 in the pot after the flop, you would probably be pot committed. If you decide to play this hand, you should plan to go all the way.

Another factor influencing your decision to fold is the chip leader in the big blind. He has enough chips that he can see more flops, especially if he feels his pot odds, or implied pot odds are favorable. Plus the big blind is on a rush which makes it even more likely that he would call the raise in hopes continuing his lucky streak. This means you will need to beat two hands, instead of just one, which dramatically decreases your chances of surviving this hand.

There is also an argument to be made for re-raising all in if you believe that the original raiser was making a steal attempt. Keep in mind that assuming the blinds fold to your all in move, it would only cost the player in 4th position 1000 to go after a 2900 pot. This will be pretty good odds for an opponent, especially considering the strength of your hand. So while it would be a good move in this situation, be prepared for a call.

With only 9 times the big blind, your are technically short stacked but still not in a desperate situation. You can let this hand go and still have plenty of opportunities to pick up blinds, and hopefully double up when you do get a premium hand.