Somebody Here Has Aces...(and it isn't me)

I recommend using an odds calculator to analyse the hands you have played in order to see if you played them properly. A very easy to use odds calculator can be found at the Card Player site.

During my last trip to the casino I was playing poorly and my $100 had dwindled down to $60. Everything I did was wrong, and it got to the point where I just wanted to win a pot, any pot, even a small pot. That is why when I was dealt pocket queens in middle position I made I massive over-bet of $30 just to take down the blinds. I was surprised that the button, a tight player, called me and I was positively sickened when the guy who limped in re-raised to $60. Somebody here has aces and it isn't me. So what do I do?

If I call the pot will be $153 and my $30 call represents a 19% contribution to the pot - exactly the same percentage as my odds of beating pocket aces. If the third player calls I am now betting 16% of the pot. If the third guy has KK my odds of winning drop to 14% but anything else and I'm at least at 18%.

Unless you are Chris Ferguson, you can't do precise three-way calculations in your head at the table. That is why it is good to remember the hand and then use the odds calculator later. The more you use the calculator, the better you will be able to guess at odds at the table.

In the end my decision was not based on math but on my reluctance to fold after committing half my stack. I called as did the guy after me. As I expected the re-raiser had AA. The guy after me had AK. I got very lucky and hit a queen on the turn but regardless of the happy ending did I do the right thing? It is borderline.

The main point should be that I would never have had to make that borderline call if I had not grossly over-bet in the first place.