Call Me Fishboy

I wasn't planning on playing poker today but at around 11 am I had run my errands, got my hair cut and was heading home when the Talking Heads song Take Me to the River came on. I took it as a sign, gave in to the impulse and dropped in at my favourite casino and bought in for $260.

It was a very aggressive table with lots of pre-flop raises and re-raises. On my fifth hand I was dealt pocket tens under the gun, raised it to $15 and found myself re-raised to $45. I called, which was probably a mistake. This seems to be a "fold or re-raise" situation, but I lacked the discipline to the former and the balls to do the latter. No surprise then when a ace came on the flop and I kissed my $45 goodbye.

Weak.

I lasted only another three hands. I was dealt Kd 10h, not a particularly good hand, but with three guys limping ahead of me I figured it was worth a $2 bet. The player on my left, a black guy who had just won a big pot with a bluff (he showed), also calls. To BG's left sits an action kid, who I've seen try to buy a few pots already. Action Kid raises to $15 and it folds back to me. I call and BG calls. The flop comes Ks Kc 4d, nice!

I check. BG checks.  Action Kid bets $35. I hollywooded for about for about eight seconds and call. BG calls as well.

The turn is a 3h. I bet $40,  hoping for a caller and BG goes all in. The Action Kid folds and I have a decision to make. I have no idea what to do. BG could be bluffing. He could have a king with a worse kicker than mine. He could have a king with a better kicker than mine. He could have a pocket pair, in which case I'm ahead of AA, QQ, JJ, 10 10, 99, 88, 77, 66, 55, and 22. I'm behind 44 and 33. Shit. My gut says fold - so what if I'm folding best hand? I can wait to win when I know I'm ahead rather than take a chance here.

But I don't fold. I call.

BG flips over AK. Oh crap. The river doesn't help me and I'm busted after less than thirty minutes at the table.

Where did I go wrong? I made so many mistakes it's hard to count them all:

My first mistake was playing in the first place. By giving into the whim to play, I was already showing a lack of discipline. If I can't control my impulses I am at a disadvantage before the cards are dealt.

My second mistake was buying in for $260 rather than the $200 I'd had success with lately. Again, a lack of discipline.

Now we come to the mistakes I made in the hand itself. The $2 call pre-flop was fine, but calling the $15 bet was stupid. K 10 off is a drawing hand and at an aggressive table like this you will not get pot odds to chase with drawing hands. What was I hoping would flop? I should never have been in this hand in the first place.

My next mistake was focusing too much on Action Kid and not thinking about BG enough.

The great big mistake, of course, was calling BG's all in. These are the possible hands he could have had that I would beat:  AA, QQ, JJ - that's it.  I don't think a good player would make this all in against two guys with 10 10 or lower, and a good player would not have called that $15 with a king with a worse kicker than mine. There is a possibility he is bluffing again, but I think it is less likely a guy will bluff so soon after showing a bluff. I was hoping he was bluffing - engaging in wishful thinking. Much more likely he had 44 and had flopped a full house.

I played badly and got what I deserved. However I did not compound my mistakes by re-buying. I stood up, wished everyone a good day and went home to write a blog post and walk the dogs.