Here's a hand from a live SNG. I was wondering how the majority of you would play it.

It's a 6-player game. Players start with 5,000 chips, and blinds start at 25/50. It's the first time that I'm playing with any of these players, and it's still during the first level.

I'm in the BB with AQo. UTG folds, and then UTG+1 limps, saying "I'll see a flop." Three more limpers to me, and then I raise it to 200. UTG+1 is the only caller, and the pot is 550 on the flop.

Flop comes down 8 8 Q, with two clubs (I don't have any). I bet out 300, and my opponent calls.

The turn is the Ac, giving me two pair, but possibly completing a flush. I bet out 600 into the pot, and my opponent raises me all-in.

I thought about it for a while, but folded. Given the preflop limp, I thought I might be up against a hand like 89, and now he was moving in before another club hit. It was also possible that he had been playing a flush draw that had now hit. If that were my hand, I wouldn't have moved in with it on the turn, but I couldn't be sure how this guy would play it, and so I couldn't rule it out. Finally, he could have had A-rag and just called me on the flop because he thought I was bluffing, in which case I was in great shape. Bottom line was that it was too early for me to make a really good read here, and I decided to fold rather than risk everything this early on. I also figured I only had 5 or 6 outs at best if I were behind and he had any part of the board.

Turned out, A-rag was his hand.

How many of you would have called in this spot?

Laying it down is easy to do in that spot, his flat call on the flop indicates that he could very easily be on a draw.

With the board, you couldn't beat an 8 or 2 clubs, even if he had 1 club he had outs to beat you.

It was not a bad lay down, I would have done the same thing.

Against a rational player a laydown makes perfect sense since the only hand the a semi bluff with A-rag can make fold is another A-rag (a chop anyway) or AQ. Any other hand probably calls, even though there is a flush out there.

However, live sit and go players are probably the worst types of players in the history of poker, which makes the decision more difficult.

Originally Posted by Phytopath

Laying it down is easy to do in that spot, his flat call on the flop indicates that he could very easily be on a draw.

With the board, you couldn't beat an 8 or 2 clubs, even if he had 1 club he had outs to beat you.

It was not a bad lay down, I would have done the same thing.

easy fold. first level. however, i would have tried to check-raise him there, or check call. you're OOP, so i would have def. checked the turn

Originally Posted by bonchkid

I'm not raising this preflop when everyone has 100bb and is calling anyways.

That kind of surprises me. I'm pretty sure that I have the best hand here, especially at a short table. And it was pretty effective, driving all but one of the limpers out. From an early position, I think I'd much rather play AQ heads up after the flop than with 3 or 4 people to act after me.

Originally Posted by nu2mdwst2

easy fold. first level. however, i would have tried to check-raise him there, or check call. you're OOP, so i would have def. checked the turn

This is not that easy a fold because if you make the right read you are waaay ahead, and there are many hands they can have, especialyl since people in these sit and goes are total idiots and play any Ax half the time.

Originally Posted by gaash

This is not that easy a fold because if you make the right read you are waaay ahead, and there are many hands they can have, especialyl since people in these sit and goes are total idiots and play any Ax half the time.

This is exactly what I was thinking. My physical read of the guy was that the Ace had improved his hand, not the third club. But I couldn't square that physical read with his betting action. In other words, it didn't make sense to me that he would call me on the flop with only Ace high. So, on balance, I concluded that it was more likely that he was slowplaying a trips with an 8 on the flop or he was in fact playing the flush draw that had hit on the turn. Since I had so few outs if either of those hands was the one he was playing, I reluctantly folded.

Originally Posted by mxp2004

This is exactly what I was thinking. My physical read of the guy was that the Ace had improved his hand, not the third club. But I couldn't square that physical read with his betting action. In other words, it didn't make sense to me that he would call me on the flop with only Ace high. So, on balance, I concluded that it was more likely that he was slowplaying a trips with an 8 on the flop or he was in fact playing the flush draw that had hit on the turn. Since I had so few outs if either of those hands was the one he was playing, I reluctantly folded.

I think ultimately, folding is the correct play in your situation; however, it is not an easy a fold as some people make it out to be because of who your opponent most likely is.