Two Hands

Here are a couple of no-limit hands that I just played on PartyPoker in $25 NL. I was playing in three games and they were all pretty tight. I've just started playing some no-limit cash games, because I just wasn't confident enough with my no-limit game in the past.

On the first hand, there were two players who posted out of position and also a dead small blind, then two limpers to me. You've got to be more aggressive when there's more to win, and there was $1.45 in the pot. I raised to $2 with K4o and everyone folded.

In the other hand, a new player raised to $2 and I had KQo on the button. It was an extra large raise (usually players raise to $1) and I thought it meant the player didn't really want the hand to play out. So I called and the blinds folded. The flop came with a K and no ace, so I was happy, but thought he might have AK. He bet the pot, and I called. The turn was a beautiful Q, and now I had two pair, kings and queens. He went all-in for $17 and you bet I called for my last $14.50. The river was a 5 and it turned out that he had pocket 5s, so he drew one of the two cards in the deck that would beat me. That's a 4.5% chance to win after the turn. Argh!

- schneid