Phil Ivey gets some value, Chino gets lucky and Tommy Vedes makes a squeeze – we analyze some key hands from the Festa al Lago.
HAND 1: SUITED AND BOOTED
Level 4:
Blinds:200/400, 25 ante
Chau Giang Qc-Qh
52,775
Sam Stein 7h-6h
38,575
Tommy Vedes ? ?
47,325
BOARD: Qd-7d-7s-8c-9s
Suited connectors are like the sirens of the poker world; their superficial beauty makes them a dangerous magnet for those too inexperienced to handle them properly.
In the right hands, however, suited connectors can have devastating effects, freezing technically stronger hands like stone and casting them into the rails. One man who experienced first hand the unpredictable power of suited connectors was Sam Stein.
Following a raise from early position by Chau Giang, Stein decided to make the call with 7h – 6h. With the stacks standing high and the blinds relatively low this is a great play because the implied odds against a strong under the gun range are huge. The preflop party wasn’t finished yet though as Tommy Vedes decided to make a squeeze from the small blind to 4,800. With Chau making the call it would have been a good time for Stein to jump ship and cut his losses. However, fortune often favours the brave and Stein made the call.
With the flop bringing an attractive Qd, 7d, 7s Vedes bet out for 7,100 and Chau instantly called. Assuming his gamble had paid off Stein instantly shoved in his chips, prompting a quick fold from Vedes and an even quicker call from Giang. Without hesitation both players flipped over their hands but it was Stein left cursing his luck as Giang’s pocket queens left him needing the case seven to stay alive. A helpless 8c on the turn and 9s on the river left Sam with only a smattering of chips, while Giang raked in the monster pot. This hand goes to prove, once again, that overplaying suited connectors can be a costly error, especially in a tournament situation.
HAND 2: BACKDOOR VALUE FOR IVEY
Level 3:
BLINDS: 100/200, ante 25
Phil Ivey – 10c - 8c
60,100
Josh Arieh – ? ?
75,700
BOARD: Jc – 9h – 2s – 3c – 9c
Playing your draws aggressively is a staple of "Brunsonian Power Poker" and, apart from the great man himself there are few better exponents of the art than Phil Ivey.
With the blinds at a meagre 100/200, Mr. Ivey made a fairly standard 3x big blind raise from early position with 10c - 8c and found only one man brave enough to tangle with him in a post flop situation, Josh Arieh. Arieh was first to act and casually tapped the table, passing the action over to Ivey who nonchalantly made a continuation bet of 1,100 at the Jc, 9h, 2s flop. Arieh called and checked once again when the 3c presented itself on the turn. Undeterred by Arieh’s stubbornness on the flop, Ivey bet out again, this time for 3,000.
At this point Arieh knew Phil Ivey wasn’t going to give up the pot without a fight and he also knew Ivey’s range could be pretty wide. Therefore, it was safe for him to assume that he could call again with his hand (which we assume was at least a pair of nines) and let Ivey fire a final bullet on the river. The 9c came off on the river, completing a backdoor flush, and Arieh continued with his check-call line. Sure enough Ivey made one last bid for the pot and Arieh could do nothing as he watched Ivey’s rivered flush swipe the chips from under his nose. Chalk up another one for power poker at its best.
Chino Catches lucky Chop
Level 10:
BLINDS: 1000/2000, 200 ante
Chino Rheem – Ad-Js
240,000
Villain – Ac - Ah
94,500
BOARD: Kh-Ks-Qd-Jc-10s
Having pocket aces cracked in Hold’em is never a fun experience. So when your opponent keeps you in suspense before they overturn a 95% equity deficit, you’ve probably got a right to be slightly annoyed.
With the blinds and antes starting to cause a few ripples of concern amongst the less frugal chip carriers, the more active players were busy building tournament wining stacks.
After a bout of preflop action, Chino Rheem was facing an all in bet from a player sitting in middle position (villain). With 95,000 already in the pot and only 47,000 more chips to call it was time for Rheem to go into the tank and ponder his next move. With the board showing Kh – Ks – Qd - Jc it was conceivable that Rheem’s Ad – Js could be ahead at this point (although it was unlikely), so after some deliberation he finally made the call. His opponent quickly tabled pocket aces while a sheepish Rheem clung loosely to his cards facedown. Even though Rheem was clearly reluctant to table his hand the dealer tried in vain to convince him before the river was dealt. Chino responded with “I need an ace or a jack” which eventually persuaded the dealer to burn and turn the river card. And what a river card it was. The 10s prompted an instant reveal from Chino, who had exactly what everyone expected: Ad – Js.
The pot was duly split in half and a very relieved Chino gratefully stacked his chips. The table banter after the hand indicated that the same opponent had bluffed Chino out of a pot the previous day which probably influenced his actions. Whatever the reasons it was a lucky escape by the 2009 WPT Doyle Brunson Classic Champion.
It’s Your Call: Vedes vs. Lavallee
Level 28:
BLINDS: 100,000/ 200,000, 2,000 ante
Tommy Vedes – 8d-7s
6,980,000
Jason Lavallee – Kh – 4h
9,515,000
BOARD: 8s - 4d - 3h - Qh - 8h
The power of hindsight is a beautiful thing and can transform an everyday donk into a world-beater.
However, poker is a game of imperfect information and to truly appreciate the subtleties of a hand we need to sit in the driving seat once in a while. For this key hand we’re going to play along from the perspective of Tommy Vedes without revealing Lavallee’s holding. What’s your decision on the river?
With only two players left and the both players perched behind mountains of chips there was a lot of room for some post flop antics at the Festa al Lago final table. With a minimum entry fee of 200,000, Jason Lavallee cautiously made up the extra ante and limped in from the small blind. Looking down at 8-7 Vedes checked his option from the big blind. (At this point it is difficult to narrow down our opponent’s range because there are a large number of hands he could do this with in position.) The flop came a rather inviting 8s - 4d - 3h which prompted a 200,000 chip bet from Vedes, which was quickly called by Lavallee.
From our perspective Lavallee’s quick call can mean one of two things: either Lavallee is weak and our pair of eights is good or he is looking to set up a move on the turn. Additionally, our opponent may have limped with a big hand, hoping we catch a piece of the board, and is looking to trap us. The Qh on the turn wasn’t enough to deter Vedes from betting again and this time he fired out another 400,000 into a rapidly expanding pot. Lavallee once again made the call and took the action to the river.
If we were in Vedes’ shoes we have to start eliminating some premium hands from Lavallee’s range, simply because the second heart on the board is a danger card. A third heart on the river would kill the action for a big hand because weaker hands will be fearful and fold and strong hands will raise us. Thus, if he had a strong pocket pair he would have likely raised on the turn for value. It is much more likely that Lavallee’s call is still a sign he is relatively weak and either has a small/medium pocket pair (a hand such as A-4), or he has picked up a draw. Against this range our 8-7 is good a large percentage of the time.
The river card came 8h which prompted a final value bet of 800,000 by Vedes. This time though Lavallee seized the initiative and retorted with a raise to 2.6 million. At this point if we were Vedes staring at a pot of almost 4 million chips we need to really question our next move. Up until this point our opponent has shown no aggression and given our previous analysis it is unlikely he has a strong pocket pair. So what hands could he be raising us with on the river? More importantly, what hands do we beat with our trip eights? A full house is certainly possible but given the action it seems this doesn’t constitute a large portion of his range. A backdoor flush could be possible as Lavallee could have limped preflop with a hand like 5h – 6h or Ah – xh. This would also explain his willingness to raise on the river. Another strong possibility is that Lavallee is bluffing and thinks that with a paired board and a backdoor flush he can force us into a lot of folds. So what’s your move: fold, raise or move all in? It’s your call.
After some thought Vedes finally made the call and dejectedly threw his cards into the muck as Lavallee’s rivered Kh – 4h flush was enough to win him a 6.8 million chips pot. |
