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One of the highest-rated activities at the WSOP Academy is the live hand demonstrations. Each of the instructors sits down with the students at the table and, as the hands play out, the instructors comment on the actions that take place. Sometimes the attendees have simple decisions to make; for instance, folding 7-2 off-suit under the gun. Other times, the decisions aren’t as easy and some analysis needs to be made.
As an example, I’ll walk you through a hand in the same way it went down at a recent WSOP Academy. We give four hours of intensive hands-on training during our days there and everyone always wants more. If you like what you see, be sure to feed your hunger at the WSOP Academy.
The table is playing eight handed. The blinds are $50/$100 in the first level of a tournament. For convenience sake, we’ll say each player has $10,000.
Seat 1: 8♠2♣ folds.
My take: A clear decision here. Obviously these rags aren’t playable in any position.
Seat 2: 4♠4♦ folds
My take: We know very little about our opponents at this juncture and getting involved in early position with a small pocket pair is certainly a risky move. However, I would still prefer to see a call here, as you are only risking 1% of your stack and, if you flop a set, you might manage to double up. Just be careful that you aren’t putting any money in the pot after the flop if you don’t hit your set.
Seat 3: A♦Q♦ raises to 300.
My take: Considering we’re playing eight handed, this is an acceptable decision. I like his raise, but he’ll need to justify his decision to play this hand in this position.
Seat 4: K♥9♠ folds
My take: With the raise before him, this is absolutely the right decision.
Seat 5 (the cutoff seat): 8♥8♦ calls
My take: I’d ask this player what he is trying to accomplish with a call here. Some players will prefer to raise and isolate in position. I’d tell this player that he should remember that he’s probably up against two overcards, and if he can win this pot with a reraise, he should consider it. However, since this is early and a call is only 3% of his stack, I like the call, as long as he is planning on being very cautious if he does not flop a set.
Seat 6 (the button): 5♠6♠ folds
My take: This is a perfect spot to call with a speculative hand like this. There has been a raise from early position and a call. The pot is now protected, and it is pretty unlikely that one of the blinds is going to reraise. As such, he can be pretty certain that he will see a flop for only the 300, and not any more. If he can hit the right flop, this is the type of hand to try to double up with early in a tournament.
Seat 7 (the small blind): A♥K♦ calls.
My take: Calling with a hand like this out of the small blind and, more importantly, out of position is a mistake. He’s got to make the right decision in this spot to lead him forward in the rest of the hand. I’d rather see a reraise from this player and I’ll be sure to tell him that.
Seat 8 (the big blind): 10♥J♥ calls
My take: With so much in the pot already and a good drawing hand, I think calling here is absolutely correct. There is no value in reraising as he might get raised again, and then he’d have to fold. But this hand has much too much value to fold. Especially important is the fact that he is closing the action and does not have to worry about calling the raise and then getting reraised off the hand. With four players heading to the flop, the dealer turns over 10♠2♥4♥.
Seat 7 checks and I approve. I don’t see a reason to get involved in a flop that he’s completely missed. If he was going to make an impact on this hand, he should’ve taken advantage pre-fl op. Betting here is bluffing, and you should almost never bluff into more than two opponents.
Seat 8 bets $900. I immediately question this move because he now has top pair with a jack-high flush draw. With so much in the pot, the original raiser is probably going to continuation bet and he should understand that he can take advantage and check raise.
He needs to understand that by betting here, if he gets raised, he has to be willing to reraise all in when the action gets back to him.
Seat 3 folds. After missing with his A-Q, he believes that the small blind could have had a hand that may have hit the board. I agree with his decision.
Seat 5 calls. An extremely questionable call here. I asked the student why he calls and he says he believed that his opponent would have led out with his flush draw. I asked him if he was worried about a ten and he thought that he would have checked his top pair in anticipation of a check-raise.
The turn brings the 8♣.
Seat 8 decides to check. I ask the player why he would check in this spot. He mentions that he could check raise his opponent by showing weakness here. He still believes he is ahead in the hand and, although he is mistaken there, I like the fact that he has read his opponent to be aggressive enough to bet in this spot.
Seat 5 checks. I don’t love this check, especially because of his explanation earlier. He said that his opponent was on a flush draw, so why would he give him a free card in this spot? This is a big mistake in my mind, especially going by the player’s post-flop read. I would’ve loved to see a bet of $2000 or even more to dissuade the flush draw.
The river brings the 10♦.
Seat 8 checks once again. I ask him why and he defends his action by telling me he knows his opponent will bet here. He now changes his mind, saying that his opponent was on a higher flush draw, which he determined by his opponent’s check on the turn. He states that the only way his opponent can win this pot is with a bet, and he’s excited to come over the top.
Seat 5 bets out $4,000. He mentions that he wants to make it look like he’s overbetting the pot to make it look like an attempted steal. I think that he’s ambitious with the bet and could have value bet for a bit less. He says his opponent probably missed his flush draw and he doesn’t expect to get a call in this situation. I question why he would bet so much if he doesn’t expect a call and he just shrugs.
Seat 8 reraises all in. Thinking that he’s now trapped his opponent, he moves all in over the top and leans back in his chair with a smile. I ask him what hands would call him here and he says, “Probably only one that beats me.”
Seat 5 makes the call and shows his eights full.
I bring the two participants back together to rehash the hand and ask where they both made their mistakes. They admit that they both should have been more aggressive on the turn, if only to see where they’re standing in the hand.
The key to the live hand demonstrations is that the students understand the reasoning behind each and every move and bet that they make. My job is to make sure that the next time they sit down at the table, they can explain their reasoning and logic to a total stranger to the point where their analysis understood. Once I know they can do that, I’ve succeeded and know that they have taken away something great from the WSOP Academy.
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